Led · Equity · Jun 2021

Outdoorsy operates an online marketplace for on-demand RV rentals and outdoor travel. The company owns Roamly Insurance Group, which provides digital insurance products for travelers and RV owners and removes the commercial exclusion clause that can inhibit online listing activity. Roamly’s new insurance products launched in private beta last year and will be marketed to Outdoorsy’s customers and other purchasers of recreational vehicles in North America. Outdoorsy plans to use new capital to grow its marketplace customer base, expand its insurtech division Roamly, and advance a partnership with Collective Retreats to expand outdoor experiences. The company was founded in 2015, is led by co-founder and CEO Jeff Cavins, and maintains offices in the U.S., Canada, Australia, France, and the U.K. Outdoorsy is a peer-to-peer RV and camper-van rental marketplace founded in 2015 that collects fees from both vehicle owners and renters. The company reported 48,000 peer-to-peer listings and a total supply of about 68,000 units when including international listings and mega fleets connected via APIs. During COVID demand shifted: average rentals lengthened from about six days to over nine days and bookings rose 2,645% from the late-March low; in May 88% of bookings were by first-time renters and more than half of those rebooked. The platform’s typical user skews under 40 and is favoring camper vans and features like solar power, portable water, and bike/sporting-gear hookups. Outdoorsy has implemented CDC cleaning guidance, contactless key exchange and other disinfecting practices, with technical guidance from an investor who is a molecular biologist with a Nobel-winning doctoral thesis. The company did international staffing reductions, used domestic salary adjustments and equity to retain U.S. employees, and reported profitability in May and June with prospects for continued profitability absent a second COVID wave. Outdoorsy runs a peer-to-peer marketplace that lets RV owners list underused recreational vehicles and campers for short-term rental, keeping roughly 75–80% of owner earnings. The company offers insurance (including up to $1M protection in the U.S. and Canada and higher coverage in Europe), roadside assistance, trip insurance and financing via an Affirm partnership, with additional premium services planned. Outdoorsy has signed up about 31,000 vehicles to date, with rentals averaging six days and producing roughly $1,900 in income for owners over that period; it expects to have about 65,000 vehicles available by year’s end as it expands in Europe, Australia and New Zealand. Headquarters moved from the Bay Area to Austin six months ago. The marketplace highlights seasonal demand variability and is expanding geographically in part to take advantage of opposing seasons (e.g., summer in the Southern Hemisphere). The company also cites examples of power users scaling to dozens of vehicles (one customer reportedly earns more than $1M annually from 50–55 RVs). Outdoorsy operates an Airbnb‑style marketplace that lets owners of the 14 million privately owned RVs in the U.S. list and rent their vehicles. The platform bundles episodic commercial insurance (covering up to $2 million after a DMV check) and unlimited roadside assistance via partnerships. Owners set prices and keep between 80% and 94% of rental revenues depending on trust ranking and volume; Outdoorsy retains at least 10% of the rental price. The company reports 256,000 users and is growing by about 21,000 users per month, and it employs roughly 50 people. Outdoorsy pursues partnerships (for example with KOA) and is working with event organizers to integrate RV bookings with events and parking passes. Competitors include Airbnb (which also lists RVs), Mighway, and Campanda.