CAMPING in style and without the hassle is the successful business model which has earned Caitlan Zukauskas a 10-day trip to the United States following her participation in the New Venture Institute (NVI) Venture Dorm program.
Ms Zukauskas was crowned the gold award winner at Thursday night’s eNVIes, taking out the coveted major prize for her pitch promoting Luxe Glamping.
“I am passionate about the outdoors and growing up I spent a lot of time camping, fishing, four-wheel driving and exploring,” Ms Zukauskas said.
“However, as much as I love the outdoors, I was not that keen on sleeping in a swag and all the effort and arguments involved in setting up a campsite and I missed the luxuries of home.
“I launched my business Luxe Glamping with beautiful canvas bell tents for hire.”
Each tent is individually styled complete with bedding, linen, side tables, fairy lights and decor items.
“We pitch it and we pack it up so you can simply turn up and enjoy,” Ms Zukauskas said.
“Clients pick the tent size and location – either at one of our preferred parks or your own property.
“We have teamed up with eight of the best caravan parks around our region to offer clients stunning locations.”
Ms Zukauskas said her target market continued to grow.
“We are currently focusing on 16 to 35 year old females, couples and parents of 10 to 16 year olds for our party tents,” she said.
“What sets us apart is that we are mobile – we travel around South Australia and Victoria.
“We have had over 120 hires and currently demand far outweighs supply.
“Since participating in venture dorm I now have a clear direction of where I want to take Luxe Glamping and how we will expand and duplicate our already successful business into other areas.
“Initially we will be looking for a regional partner in Robe and we will then expand into Adelaide.
“We have purchased a beautiful property and we are in the process of developing semi-permanent glamping sites.
“This will increase our profit margins as there will be no set-up or pack-up required.”
Ms Zukauskas will join other business founders and previous eNVIe winners to attend more than 30 events, pitch competitions, site visits and networking opportunities in San Francisco, Silicon Valley and Austin in March next year.
