Meet our new Future Leaders Committee Members!

Amanda Baldwin: 

A chartered accountant, Amanda Baldwin has held the position of Manager- Strategy and Acquisitions within the G’Day Group for nearly two years. Prior to this appointment she was the Senior Investment analyst within the group and also previously held the position of Senior Accountant within McGrathNicol, a financial advisory firm.

The G’Day Group which includes Discovery Parks – the largest single owner/operator of Holiday Parks in Australia; the Top Parks network – Australia’s largest licenced holiday park group and the nationally acclaimed G’Day Rewards program, has a market capitalisation approaching $1b.

Amanda has been an integral member of the group’s management team and has been leader in the acquisition of over 30 parks and provided critical strategy direction to the Board on major investment decisions.

Brad Hooper

Brad leads the marketing team at AL-KO in Australia & New Zealand and has previously held marketing management roles with several multinational brands. Brad has been an active member of the Caravan Industry Association of Australia’s Future Leaders Committee since its inception in 2014 and is passionate about applying innovative thinking to the future of the industry.

Daniel Tilton

Daniel has grown up in the Australian holiday park industry, working everywhere from groundsman to senior management for a large corporate. In 2015 he became the CEO of Next Generation Holiday Parks, an award-winning “family multinational” that owns and operates holiday parks in both Australia and New Zealand.

Irene Viergever

Irene Viergever is the Aftermarket Sales & Marketing Manager at Thetford Australia. Being originally from Europe, her career in the Caravan Industry started in the Netherlands 8 years ago. She decided to broaden her horizons and move to Australia. Irene is very passionate about the Australian Caravan Industry, which is evident in her winning the CIA VIC Young Achiever Award in 2018.

Justin Hales

A leader and entrepreneur, Justin spent his early twenties running technology retail stores, before progressing to management and business development roles in IT and software. In December 2014, he founded Camplify.com.au through the NRMA Slingshot Jumpstart Accelerator program and within three years grew the innovative sharing community to be the largest caravan, motorhome, and camper hire and sharing platform in Australia, New Zealand and the UK. Now boasting 5000 recreational vehicles on its platform and a valuation over $20m, Camplify continues to expand its local and international footprint on a mission to make ‘Van Life’ accessible to all. Justin also sits on the board of a number of other marketplace businesses advising other entrepreneurs who are following a similar journey.

Margaret Shannon

Margaret is currently the General Manager at Ballina Beach Village Holiday Park at South Ballina. She has a very strong hospitality and tourism background with 20 years in the hotel, tourism and holiday park sectors, giving her a hands-on understanding of operations, marketing and business strategy and a solid understanding of the relationship between the supply and consumer side of the accommodation industry.

Margaret is passionate about advocating on behalf of industry stakeholders, and seeks to bring about active change by offering a different perspective in strategic thinking.

Michael McIvor

With over 15 years’ experience in the caravan and camping industry, Michael is a trusted emerging leader with a practical approach to strategic growth. He has a proud track record in the Caravan and Camping sector, delivering sustainable strategies that enhance competitive positioning of the industry. Michael is people-centric, inclusive and energised by the importance of meaningful performance through leading and developing strong cross-functional teams.  A clear thinker with an ambitious spirit, Michael makes an impact by bringing insight and inspiration to maximise the competitiveness of the Australian Caravan and Camping industry.

Michael possesses highly tuned strategic and operational instincts and thrives on bringing transformation to organisations and teams. Across the last few years Michael has lead substantial change in his family owned businesses and now contributes his passion for the industry on the Future Leaders Committee and the Top Parks Advisory Board.  He has consistently demonstrated the ability to take advantage of new business opportunities through the application of digital technologies and continuous professional development opportunities.

Stephen Edwards

The Edwards Group is a South Australian based family owned business that has owned and operated caravan parks since the early 2000’s. Son of founder Ian Edwards, Stephen has worked in the business for over 15 years in various roles starting from grounds maintenance, park management and major projects. After completing a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) and a Bachelor of Commerce with majors in Accounting and Corporate Finance, Stephen assumed the role of Group CEO in 2014. Since then, the Edwards Group has more than doubled in size and now includes 7 parks in both the tourism and residential sectors. Stephen is also the Vice-President of SA Parks and has served on the board for more than 3 years.

Tracey Clarke

Tracey Clarke is the Events Manager for the Caravan Industry Association of Western Australia (CIAWA). In her role, Tracey is responsible for managing all operational aspects of CIAWA events as well as assisting the CEO with strategic planning and financial management. Tracey has been part of the Future Leaders Committee since 2016 and is involved with the Events Agile Project Team.