Starting from Scratch is a Challenge for Glamping Entrepreneurs

BY MIKE GAST

The couple spent months pouring through all the available research on the burgeoning national glamping market, including available accommodation vendors and possible sites for their dream resort. They also attended the last Glamping Show Americas in Aurora, Colorado to visit with industry experts. They felt they were well prepared to enter the glamping marketplace.

Today, they have an impressive 66-page business plan for their Mitten Getaways Glamping Company – but they have yet to turn a single shovel full of dirt.

“We are a little deflated,” Mike Crowe said as he reflected recently on the months of planning that has yet to produce a solid result. “We haven’t been able to get an offer accepted on the land we’ve been considering. We just really need to get a purchase agreement in place to get things rolling.”

Crowe is a full-time pharmacist in Eastern Michigan, while Melissa is a full-time mom to their two young daughters. Their shared love of the outdoors and a burning desire to raise their family as close to nature as possible ignited the glamping resort dream. They admit to having zero experience when it comes to building and running a glamping facility. What they’ve learned thus far is that starting from scratch comes with its own special set of issues.

“It is what it is,” Crowe said as he reflected on the frustrations of finding the right piece of land for their seven-unit glamping retreat and a large dome house for their family. “We’ve thrown one official offer at the sellers, and two informal ones but they didn’t bite. We aren’t giving up yet because the location would just be perfect in our eyes.”

The land they are seeking is near their Eastern Michigan home in Grand Blanc near Flint and would include a river running on the south side of the property and access to a lake on the north.

“If we can’t make a deal on the current piece of land we want, we’ll just keep going somewhere else,” Crowe said.

Finding that “somewhere else” is a challenge many other glamping developers have faced. Unless a developer already owns a appropriately zoned piece of property the process for finding, buying, and properly permitting a piece of land can be daunting.

“As we work with landowners and potential sellers, our lender has advised us to ask for six months of time to get our permitting ducks in a row so that we don’t end up with a piece of property that we can’t do business on,” Crowe said.

“We have been keeping our eyes out for other properties, and we’re willing to adjust our business plan based on other acreage or other factors,” Crowe said. “We’d be content with a single glamping operation that we could live on and manage, with or without utilizing additional employees.”

Both Mike and Melissa Crowe said they received “sage advice” from glamping industry experts to start small and build out as their market (and profits) allow. “We’d really be happy starting with six or seven glamping sites,” Crowe said. “We’d like to eventually have a property where we could expand to 20 sites with adequate space between them.”

Mike Crowe said he forecasts the Mitten Glamping Getaways Resort will generate an income for his family “as good if now better” than his pharmacy career. They’ve joined the American Glamping Association and have a letter of support from that group to present to local government officials.

The Crowes say they aren’t just looking for a sustainable outdoor business. They want a new, quality outdoor lifestyle for their small family.

“The ideal would be for the girls and I to take care of all of the grounds, the gardening and the house,” said Melissa Crowe. Mike Crowe said his wife also has her heart set on a barrel sauna for guests.

Mike Crowe said his business plan calls for a mix of accommodations, starting with five domes and two tiny cabins for one property that caught their eye. “We want to end up with a resort that has fantastic views, and we think the domes, with their bay windows, could do justice to great views overlooking the river.” Nighty fees would be in the $300 range for domes and $225 for tiny cabins.

The Crowe’s vision includes plenty of access to activities such as hiking, snow shoeing, crosscountry skiing, and mountain biking at a yearround facility. Services would be limited, and guests may not see the owners other than during check in or should issues arise. “At least to start, guests would be on their own to just relax and explore the property.”

The Crowes think the market for a glamping resort in Eastern Michigan is huge. “Most folks from this region feel they must travel hours to the top of Lower Michigan to enjoy the outdoors like this. We intend to give them something great much closer to home.”

The delay caused by their so-far-fruitless land search hasn’t stopped the Crowes from working on other portions of their project.

Crowe said he’s working on his own web site design, and the Mitten Getaways Facebook page is already developing a following. They are quick to tell their Facebook audience that theirs will be a tranquil retreat, not a noisy nuisance.

“We are trying to get as much done and out of the way as possible, so that we are ready to go when the dominos really start to fall,” he said.

The Crowes face the same hurdles as other ground-up entrepreneurs.

“We have to find the right piece of land with motivated sellers,” he said. “We then must get the proper approvals of the township we are in. And finally, we have to get the financing in place.”

The Crowes know that the clock will start running in earnest as soon as their land can be secured.

“I think we can be up and running and renting sites within a year if not sooner,” he said. “We know that there will be a lot of work to compete very quickly, including running power, septic fields and the like.”

For now, Crowe continues his 13-year career in pharmacy, and serves as chairman of the board of the Michigan Pharmacists Association.

Melissa said the reaction to their plans from friends and family has been mixed.

“Some of them have said, “Good for you guys, but we wouldn’t do that,” she said. “I can just smile and not be discouraged when I hear those comments.” Mike Crowe jokingly called those reactions “passive-aggressive encouragement.”

“We’ve actually been getting a lot of support from a growing network of people,” Crowe said. He said the project has already caught the eye of some local investors. “Overall, nearly everyone has been supportive.”

But they understand those who wonder if they can make their dream a reality.

“I get it,” said Melissa. “But it’s our dream. People don’t know what your vision is. It’s only when it’s all done that they will really understand it. It’s a big risk we are taking, but I think it’s going to be worth it.”

Mike Gast was the Vice President of Communications for Kampgrounds of America, Inc. for the past 20 years. Now, he’s on to new adventures, helping others tell their stories through his freelance company, ‘Imi Ola Group. You can reach Mike at mike.imiolagroup@gmail.com