FOR more than 50 years, the Hall name has been synonymous with adventure in Sunraysia.
Hall’s Caravans, started by Geoff Hall in 1962, supplied locals with the gear needed to fully experience the great outdoors.
At just 15, Geoff’s son Peter entered the business and in 2000, took over the dealership with wife Lisa, transforming it into Halls Jayco.
Now Mr and Mrs Hall are about to embark on a new adventure — retirement — passing the business on to fellow Jayco franchisee Richard Clarke.
Mr Hall said while he would have liked to keep the dealership in the family, he was excited to see what Mr Clarke could bring to the business.
“I think Richard is going to make the business grow and take it to the next level — well, he’d better,” he said with a laugh.
“But I feel better knowing it’s going to someone in the Jayco family.”
He said he had seen major changes to caravanning during his time in the industry.
“There’s more off-road camping now — you can go everywhere. A lot more of the country has been opened up to caravanning now.
“When I started out, a flash caravan had a fridge, a stove and an annexe — that was it.
“Now they’ve got satellite TVs and Alexa — they’re very self-contained and you can really go anywhere you want.”
Mr Clarke, who also owns the Jayco Horsham dealer, said he was honoured to be taking on the Hall legacy.
“It’s a fantastic opportunity Halls have given me and and I’m excited to see what I can do with it,” he said.
“My family and I will be moving up here in the new year and basing ourselves out of Mildura, which we are all looking forward to.
“It’s an outstanding local business and I can’t thank Geoff, Peter and Lisa enough for their tremendous work.”
While overseas travel is off the cards for now, Mr and Mrs Hall said they already had “plenty to do” during retirement.
“There’ll be lots of walking, gym and staying active,” Mrs Hall said.
Mr Hall added: “We’ve had a new Jayco arrive, which I’m not sure we will use just yet.
“But I’ve got heaps of plans — I restore classic cars and race classic speedway, so I’ve got plenty to do.”
