Outdoors Geek Founder Will Marquardt inside a “glamor camping” display. (BusinessDen file photo)
Sleeping in a canvas tent isnāt just for Civil War reenactments anymore.
Outdoors Geek, a Denver company that rents equipment for outdoor adventures, just bought another 50 canvas tents to support a booming “glamping” rental business.
Founder Will Marquardt used a $150,000 SBA loan to add 50 tents to the 350 stored in the company’sĀ 7,500-square-foot warehouse.Ā The rental firm bought internal frames for those tents and 50 memory foam beds as well.
āIām an outdoor snob,ā Marquardt said, adding that his idea of an outdoor adventure requires suffering and skill. He initially started the business to rent backpacking gear.
āBut our vision is inspiring love for the outdoors, and any time we can get someone closer to nature, however comfortable they are doing that ā¦ itās an awesome thing.ā
Marquardt purchased theĀ 12-Ā byĀ 14-foot tents ā which cost $1,500 each ā from Denver-based Davis Tent and Awning.
HeĀ said theĀ business will continue setting up temporary glamping tents for music festivals and events, but now is determinedĀ to offer seasonal lodging for clients.
At Darien Lake, a theme park in upstate New York, Outdoors GeekĀ is pitching 40 glamping tents for the summer season and splitting revenue with the park.
ā(Glamping) will grow more than our camping business,ā Marquardt said. āWeāre creating new avenues for it to make it more accessible, so someone does not have to invest $10,000 for their property.ā
In Colorado, the companyĀ is trying a similar idea at May Farms in Byers, where it willĀ set up three to five tents for fiveĀ weeksĀ this fall. Next spring,Ā Marquardt hopes to pitchĀ glamping tents at farms and wineries statewide.
āIt really allows for these gatherings to pop up in places where they otherwise couldnāt,ā heĀ said. āIt expands the kind of people who would take advantage of this.ā
Marquardt said the real beds and additional wood furniture areĀ new features to theĀ glamping product catalogue. Outdoors Geek, which launchedĀ in 2010, had 150 glamping tents in stockĀ in 2012. Now, itĀ has 400.
The firmĀ also added inflatable kayaks, SUPs and portable bunk beds this year, which areĀ shipped nationwide.
Read More: Booking site for āglamor campingā settles into Denver home base
Outdoors Geek Founder Will Marquardt inside a “glamor camping” display. (BusinessDen file photo)
Sleeping in a canvas tent isnāt just for Civil War reenactments anymore.
Outdoors Geek, a Denver company that rents equipment for outdoor adventures, just bought another 50 canvas tents to support a booming “glamping” rental business.
Founder Will Marquardt used a $150,000 SBA loan to add 50 tents to the 350 stored in the company’sĀ 7,500-square-foot warehouse.Ā The rental firm bought internal frames for those tents and 50 memory foam beds as well.
āIām an outdoor snob,ā Marquardt said, adding that his idea of an outdoor adventure requires suffering and skill. He initially started the business to rent backpacking gear.
āBut our vision is inspiring love for the outdoors, and any time we can get someone closer to nature, however comfortable they are doing that ā¦ itās an awesome thing.ā
Marquardt purchased theĀ 12-Ā byĀ 14-foot tents ā which cost $1,500 each ā from Denver-based Davis Tent and Awning.
HeĀ said theĀ business will continue setting up temporary glamping tents for music festivals and events, but now is determinedĀ to offer seasonal lodging for clients.
At Darien Lake, a theme park in upstate New York, Outdoors GeekĀ is pitching 40 glamping tents for the summer season and splitting revenue with the park.
ā(Glamping) will grow more than our camping business,ā Marquardt said. āWeāre creating new avenues for it to make it more accessible, so someone does not have to invest $10,000 for their property.ā
In Colorado, the companyĀ is trying a similar idea at May Farms in Byers, where it willĀ set up three to five tents for fiveĀ weeksĀ this fall. Next spring,Ā Marquardt hopes to pitchĀ glamping tents at farms and wineries statewide.
āIt really allows for these gatherings to pop up in places where they otherwise couldnāt,ā heĀ said. āIt expands the kind of people who would take advantage of this.ā
Marquardt said the real beds and additional wood furniture areĀ new features to theĀ glamping product catalogue. Outdoors Geek, which launchedĀ in 2010, had 150 glamping tents in stockĀ in 2012. Now, itĀ has 400.
The firmĀ also added inflatable kayaks, SUPs and portable bunk beds this year, which areĀ shipped nationwide.
Read More: Booking site for āglamor campingā settles into Denver home base
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