Throughout our lives, we come across things that inspire us, but many of us don’t act on them. However, Gareth and Pamela did just that when they founded an eco-friendly adventure rental business. After two years of careful planning and preparation, they were able to launch Lakeside Eco-Sports, and they chose Booqable to be their online rental system.
We’ve all experienced some form of inspiration in our lives and had elaborate dreams of what we can achieve. However, few people follow through on these dreams. This ability is reserved for the entrepreneurs among us who not only see an idea but mold it and turn it into reality, achieving the things that most people can only dream about.
Lakeside Eco-Sports
Gareth and Pamela were both involved in tourism and worked with global cruise lines to offer tours and activities on a private island. During this time, they were exposed to many eco-friendly products powered by renewable energy sources. They enjoyed working with them so much that they decided to start their own adventure rental business once they returned home.
Over the next two years, they carefully planned and prepared to launch Lakeside Eco-Sports, an eco-friendly adventure rental service. Upon launch, they have begun offering e-bikes that are built in their home province of British Columbia, Canada. This serves their goal of using products powered by renewable sources but also minimizes pollution during shipping.
They plan to expand into a greater product portfolio that suits the setting of their business, which is surrounded by biking trails, a huge lake, and a snowy landscape. The aim is to provide a strong diversity of products, including electric jet boards and assisted pedal boats. Part of their ethos is to stay on the cutting edge of tech in a fast-evolving market segment.
Getting ready for bookings
While they had their product offering planned out, there were still some things they needed to launch Lakeside Eco-Sports. Gareth set out to find a software solution that would allow them to manage inventory in real-time that was designed specifically for rental businesses. He found that some of the solutions on the market didn’t quite live up to this goal.
Being able to integrate with their website was also critical as they needed to be able to cater to walk-in bookings simultaneously with website bookings. The software needed to cater to a shared inventory that could be accessed from one central system and updated in real-time. By finding a solution to this issue, they would be able to prevent double bookings and shortages.
Finally, communication was a key aspect where Gareth had set high expectations. He knew from his experience in the tourism industry that customers have certain expectations regarding the booking process, confirmation emails, and after-sales communication. The ideal solution would cater to all three of these aspects in one simple system.
Finding the solution
After finding and trying several solutions that catered to needs but didn’t quite meet the full-functionality required, Gareth found Booqable. It was like a switch clicked in his head, and he had found what he was looking for. He found the inventory management perfect for his needs, and he was able to set it up easily with the assistance of one of our onboarding specialists, Rafael.
He found that adding Booqable to his Squarespace website was easy enough to do himself, and he was able to integrate a date picker, calendar, cart, and buttons easily. It also allowed him to create manual bookings for walk-in customers alongside bookings coming from his website. This perfectly fits his needs, and so far, he has experienced no double bookings.
The automation of booking confirmations is a real asset to the business as Gareth doesn’t need to keep on top of this himself. He also loves that he can set up email templates and streamline customer communication. While being able to track the email history means he doesn’t accidentally send someone the same email twice, turning communication into a simple task.
A successful launch
Since launching in June, Gareth and Pamela have received great feedback from customers who love how seamless the booking and checkout process is. They are elated by this as they put a lot of effort into looking at the booking process through his customers’ eyes and created a page with the appropriate guidance. This is vital when designing a booking experience that works for everyone.
Looking to the future, they plan on investing in more e-bikes, expanding to multiple locations, and adding new products. They are also looking to work on bundles by partnering with local businesses to create travel packages directed at regional interests and activities. Plus, they will be doing all of this with as little impact on the planet as they can.
