HipCamp, not like AirBnb for camping

Alyssa Ravasio, Hipcamp, Marketplace

Before we started, I asked Alyssa Ravasio, why she didn’t model her company on other marketplaces. “Why don’t you encourage more people to buy land near national parks and turn them into campgrounds that they list on Hipcamp? It’s a good way for entrepreneurs to make money and for Hipcamp to grow your inventory.”

She didn’t seem happy with my suggestion.

Alyssa is trying to preserve nature and get more people into it, not “capitalize” on nature. Still, her business is growing. This is the story of why and how she did it.

Alyssa Ravasio

Hipcamp

Alyssa Ravasio is the founder of Hipcamp, the comprehensive resource for discovering and reserving unique tent camping, RV parks, cabins, treehouses, and glamping.

Andrew Warner: Hey there, freedom fighters. my name is Andrew Warner. I’m the founder of Mixergy, where I interview entrepreneurs about how they built their businesses. This entrepreneur has a brilliant idea. Check this out. you want to go camping and I do, Alyssa, I love camping. The thing that I love about camping is I get away from all the routine stuff. I’m not on my phone as much, even though I bring my phone with me and often there’s wifi, but I spend more time with my kids. We’re by the fire. We’re making smoke, even making a fire is an activity that connects us.

We’re all sleeping in the same tent. The pain of camping is. It’s hard to get a campground, you have to book months in advance, and then these Type A personalities have alerts and spreadsheets and no exaggeration, they’re really on it, and I know it because I’m married to one. And she has done this, and we sometimes compete for campgrounds, and we get...

Continue reading the transcript...