The Airbnb of RVs Is Booming After Covid-19 Nearly Destroyed It
- Startup slashed staff, was near-death earlier this year
- Nervous travelers, public bathroom fears haved fueled comeback
Source: Outdoorsy Inc.
This article is for subscribers only.
When the pandemic slammed the travel industry earlier this year, Jeff Cavins didn’t know if his startup was going to make it. Cavins is the chief executive officer of Outdoorsy Inc., a Texas-based RV marketplace. In March and April, as Americans scrapped their travel plans en masse, Outdoorsy’s cancellation rate ran as high as 90%.
Cavins furloughed 40% of his staff, gave across-the-board pay cuts and said he wouldn’t take a salary through the end of the year. Despite having raised more than $80 million from investors, the company took a $1.5 million loan from the federal government’s Paycheck Protection Program to staunch the bleeding.