CADA Laureate award announcement

Press Release: Thornhill, ON July 2025

Canadian Automobile Dealers Association (CADA) Chair Paul Williams has announced that Brent Ravelle of Ravelle Auto Group, Listowel, ON, has won the 2025 CADA Laureate award for Ambassadorship.

One dealer is selected annually by judges at the Ivey Business School at Western University in London, Ontario, in each of three categories: Ambassadorship, Business Innovation, and Retail Operations. Mr. Ravelle received his Laureate award in the Ambassadorship category, for extraordinary service to the community and the industry.

Chair Williams stated, “The Laureate award is very important to the retail auto industry. Hundreds of nominations are submitted each year, which shines a bright light on the great work being done by new car and truck dealers every day across the country. With only three award recipients annually, the exclusivity of the award and the rigour of the selection process makes the Laureate the highest honour a dealer can receive over the course of their career.”

iA Dealer Services, Canada’s leader in finance and insurance products and services for automobile dealers, is the Laureate program’s exclusive sponsor. Gwen Gareau, Senior Vice-President, acknowledged Brent Ravelle’s achievement. “As a business owner in Listowel and North Perth, Brent gives back with his time, expertise, leadership and financial resources. The list of Brent’s service and contributions is extremely impressive. He also instills a culture within his dealerships in which giving back to the community is second nature.

“Brent has served his industry in every capacity, through his work with local business groups and manufacturer committees, plus local, provincial and national dealer associations. “As a graduate of the Automotive Business School of Canada, Brent’s commitment to the school is reflected in his role as a Board Member and Chair of the Curriculum Committee. He also won the 2025 Alumni of the Year Award.

“Brent exemplifies the important role that car dealers can play as business leaders and ambassadors in their communities and industry.” 

Commenting on the selection of Mr. Ravelle as the 2025 Ambassador Laureate, Professor Kirk Kristofferson of Ivey said, “Brent’s long-standing support of this community has been exceptional, and his actions have impacted the lives of so many. In the words of the Chair of the Listowel Memorial Hospital Foundation, ‘…our hometown and surrounding community would not be able to receive the kind of services both recreationally and from a health care side without the support Brent Ravelle has provided for many years.’ This is but one of many testimonials to the work that Brent has done and the impact he has made.

“In addition to his community service and support, Brent also holds prominent leadership roles in the automotive community, such as MVRO, CADA, and the Canadian International AutoShow, among others, and has liaised with high-level government officials regarding current threats to the auto industry.

“Brent Ravelle is an exceptional ambassador to the local and automotive communities and is a very deserving recipient of the Ambassador Laureate honour.” Mr. Ravelle was informed of his Laureate win by CADA Chair Williams, after which he said, “I was at a loss for words when I received the call that I was the Ambassador Laureate — and I’m never speechless. I look at the previous winners in this category, and when I realize that I’m being honoured in the same way that they were, that’s pretty special, it’s humbling.

“My wife was with me when we got the call, it was emotional for me to see how excited she got, and how proud she was. I’m a guy that didn’t come from the industry, my Dad’s a technician, and I had to figure this out along the way. I had a dream when I was in high school that this is what I wanted to do. Winning this award made me realize that I’ve achieved that dream. “Now the number one thing I want to do is continue to give back, to the students at Georgian College, who I spend a lot of time with, and to the people within my store to help mentor them. I’m reflecting on what it means to be a CADA Laureate for life. There’s some added weight on your shoulders to make sure you live up to it, and now you have to work harder to represent it.

Now I have even more drive to help people out. None of us do all of this by ourselves. We might have a vision and we might have a plan and we might help carve the path forward, but it’s everybody that’s around us that makes it happen.”

The Canadian Automobile Dealers Association is the national voice of the more than 3,200 new car and truck dealers in Canada. CADA has its headquarters in Thornhill, Ontario, and a government relations office in Ottawa. CADA’s wide-ranging mandate includes helping member dealers improve their overall operations and implementing initiatives that strengthen the relationship between new car and truck dealers and the communities they serve.
For more information contact: Tim Reuss, CADA President & CEO

+1 905 940-4959

Other Related News