Lord of the Rigs Honoured in NZ

Wade Thompson, US-based chairman, president and CEO of the world’s largest recreation vehicle company, is to receive an honorary Doctor of Commerce degree from Victoria University. Thompson, 66, completed a Bachelor of Commerce degree at Victoria in 1962 before gaining a Master of Science in Retailing from New York University in 1965. His remarkable business career in America involved turning a tiny RV (recreation vehicle) company into the largest in the world. Thompson’s Thor Industries now has over 9,000 employees in 29 plants across the US. Last year, the company had sales of more than US$3 billion and a net income of $164 million. Thompson was featured on the cover of Forbes magazine as “Lord of the Rigs” in 2004; the same year he supported and appeared in Open Road, an educational documentary featuring Thor Industries. “[Thompson’s] career demonstrates what can be achieved with a combination of intellectual acuity, unflinching integrity, dogged persistence and economic discipline,” says Victoria University Vice-Chancellor Pat Walsh.