Record sales at Regina RV show despite Saskatchewan’s slowing economy

REGINA – It’s no surprise that Saskatchewan’s economy has taken a hit with the drop in commodity prices.

Usually that results in reduced consumer spending, especially on big ticket items. But that didn’t seem to be the case at Regina’s largest RV show.

In attendance was Debbie Shay who loves going camping with her family but it’s been a while since their last trip.

“We took a few years when we didn’t camp because everybody was busy with sports and activities,” Shay said.

Now, she’s ready to hit the road again but can’t help but notice all the bells and whistles RV’s come equipped with nowadays.

“We started off with a little 17 foot, big foot camper which met all of our needs at the time,” Shay added.

“Gas is low so you’ll be able to go to more places for less money”

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Saskatchewan’s slowing economy didn’t deter Shay and many others from checking out the annual month-long RV show.

“It is going absolutely fantastic, record sales so that’s really exciting for us,” Minard’s Leisure World’s RV sales manager Susan Minard said.

It seems the weak Canadian dollar and steep savings at the  gas pump have created a perfect recipe for vendors.

“Oh they love it! Staycations, I mean stay in Canada, travel in Canada. Gas is low so you’ll be able to go to more places for less money,” Minard explained.

“Kind of our idea for our future is to camp across Canada,” Shay quipped.

It’s music to the ears for Weyburn-based Minard’s Leisure World, who had over 70 RV’s for sale ranging from high to low end models and prices.

“Our idea for our future is to camp across Canada”

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“We have really small units if people want to start at 18 feet and if you want a luxury, we got some with dishwashers,” Minard said.

“Oh this is gorgeous, this is very nice, campers have come a long ways,” Shay said while looking at one of the larger RV’s on display not knowing its cost of $100,000. “Oh is it? I hadn’t seen that. Well I guess I won’t be camping in this one.”

Still, whether Shay leaves with the camper of her dreams or not, vendors are confident they’ll have no problem selling out.

“Yes, yes we will,” Minard said.