Executive Team

Dave Guenther

President and Founder

In 1992, President and founder Dave Guenther used his deep-seeded passion for sports and travel to create Roadtrips, Inc. An early form of Roadtrips manifested itself in Dave’s junior year at the University of Manitoba, when he started organizing sports and entertainment junkets for friends and classmates. After a stint in financial services, Dave decided to evolve his college idea into a professional venture.

Dave first targeted sports fans, providing them with customized travel experiences to games, matches and sporting events in North America. In an effort to adapt to the changing market, he slowly began to target more premium and upscale travelers, expanding the reach of his business internationally. Dave’s commitment to excellent customer service, outstanding personalized travel experiences and athletics have allowed him to lead a strong team and Roadtrips to flourish.

Today, Dave continues to cast a vision for bespoke and responsible service to customers. As the head of the company, he is the ambassador of the Roadtrips philosophy—a pledge to tailor the company’s highly personalized responses to exceed customers’ expectations—and leads his team’s efforts to further develop the company’s global focus.

When Dave is not traveling the world for Roadtrips, he enjoys spending time with his family, fine dining, hiking, playing golf and cooking. His favorite travel destinations include Hawaii, South Africa and his native Canada. Before the 2010 World Cup, Dave and his family spent five months in Cape Town and fell in love with the city’s culture and lifestyle. A Winnipeg native, Dave lives a few minutes away from the house where he grew up. He is married and has three sons, twins Sam and Matt, and their older brother Josh.

Duane Penner

Vice-President of Sales

Duane Penner’s international and entrepreneurial backgrounds made him a strong fit for Roadtrips, Inc. He joined the team in 2000, and those attributes remain as some of his strongest today.

A Winnipeg native, Duane lived in Australia, Germany and the United States before returning to his Canadian hometown. He joined Roadtrips as head of sales after managing a promotions and print wear business, developing an agricultural retail company and launching a tech startup. His management and sales experience combined with his passion for travel have helped him to expand Roadtrips’ reach globally and penetrate markets including Latin America and Asia.

As the head of Roadtrips’ sales division, Duane handles supplier relationships and international connections, facilitates large global events, and works with the marketing team to strategically develop and diversify Roadtrips’ offerings. Duane plays a key role in securing clients internationally: spanning large corporations, upscale families and individual travelers.

Duane developed a passion for travel, food, wine and history through his backpacking expeditions in South America, the United States, Australia, New Zealand and Europe. His time off is spent in the kitchen, perfecting recipes and working on his cooking techniques. He also enjoys playing golf and watching soccer, football and ice hockey.

Duane’s favorite travel experiences include trips to Italy’s Amalfi Coast, Provence, and Hawaii, to name a few. He lives in Winnipeg with his wife and three daughters: McKinley, Maia and Malea.

Jeff Wills

Vice-President of Marketing

A native of Sioux Lookout in Northwestern Ontario, Jeff Wills joined Roadtrips, Inc. in 1997 and is currently Vice-President of Marketing and part owner.

Jeff honed his management and marketing skills working in the satellite industry prior to Roadtrips. A devoted sports fan, he worked as the assistant marketing manager for minor league basketball team the Winnipeg Cyclones.

Jeff’s responsibilities at Roadtrips include product development, overseeing product fulfillment and operations. As the head of marketing, he is also responsible for creating marketing materials, attending trade shows, and spearheading the company’s marketing and social media efforts. Jeff plays a key role in developing Roadtrips’ Internet marketing strategy, driving traffic and maximizing SEO. Today, he also handles the company’s advertising budget and all corporate/incentive conference business. Jeff is a doer, a coordinator and a facilitator.

With a passion for hockey passed on to him by his uncle, Garry Peters, former ice hockey centre for the Philadelphia Flyers, Jeff played ice hockey all through his youth. He is also an avid soccer fan, and follows Toronto FC and Vancouver Whitecaps in the MLS, and all Team Canada international matches. His experience at the 2006 World Cup in Germany reinforced his passion for soccer and gave him first-hand experience in the ways sports and culture can blend through travel.

When not at work or watching sports, Jeff loves to spend time with his family and travel the world. His most memorable travel experiences include trips to Thailand, Rio de Janeiro and Cape Town. Jeff lives in Winnipeg with his wife and his two children, Sajana and Sasha.