Owen and his family had spent years travelling around Europe in an old, ten-metre American-style RV, when they thought it time to invest in a new one. Taken aback by the cost of a modern-day motorhome, he listed his new flashy machine for hire on Goboony, unaware of how quickly he’d see his money returned to him.
So your love for campervanning comes from that big RV?
Seriously, it’s one of those Breaking Bad monsters. We’ve done all the family holidays in it. We’ve travelled all over the French Alps, to the lakes, cities and beaches of Italy, Spain and even Portugal. We love it dearly, but it’s very old, from 1988. Always had a lot of work to do on it, with bits falling off left and right.
That's probably part of its charm, no?
Absolutely! We can’t get rid of it but we never really use it. So we thought we’d get a newer motorhome. Something a bit smaller, something a bit more practical. But they’re so expensive! I thought, what if could earn back some of its costs somehow?
Is that how you found Goboony, while looking for a way to cover the cost of a new motorhome?
Yes. Hiring out was on my mind, but at that point, I had no idea as to the potential of it, or how much I could make from it. With the possibility of earning back some of its costs in mind, I decided to pay a little more for my new vehicle than I had originally planned. I ended up settling on ‘The Kub’. A luxurious 2020 Fiat Roller Team.
We initially bought it to travel in ourselves and easily access all the places in Europe we love so much. So we went away in it for a month. When we came home and had no real plans of using it in the near future. I was doing a lot of work on our house at the time, so I decided to give hiring out a go. I had no earlier experience with a platform like Goboony and no idea what to expect. I thought maybe I’d get a few hires.
So what happened after you created your advert on the platform?
You won’t believe it, but my first ever booking was for two whole months! I’d never used the platform before, so I was a little worried at first because it sounded too good to be true. My estimated earnings for this booking came out to being around £6,000… It didn’t feel real.
But it was! The booking was made by a guy named Phil. In his message, he told me about how his mum had passed away, and how he planned on taking his dad on the motorhome trip around the UK he’d always dreamed of. It was a really sweet message actually.
Still, you’d be a little reluctant at first, to send your brand-new motorhome on the road with a stranger? For two whole months?
Absolutely, but everything was legit so I said yes. Phil and his dad came around in April. They were really cool people. The booking went amazing. I have a tracker in the van, so I’d check where they were a couple of times. Just out of interest in their trip. They were actually parked up by their house in London for a few days at first, packing and getting ready for their trip. Then they went to Wales, came back to London for a couple of days again, and so on. It was a great first booking, they had an amazing time.
Did any more bookings come in after that first big one?
That was the thing! While Phil was out on the road, the bookings just kept rolling in. Each weekend, cause that’s when most people put in requests, it kept going: “Ping, ping, ping. Goboony, Goboony. Look, another one.”
So were you getting booked up for your first summer on the platform?
Pretty fully booked. I actually got a booking this morning. Two weeks, for the end of September. Then I have another long one for the whole month of August. The lady who made that booking wanted to try out a motorhome trip first, so she hired it for the Easter weekend and took it down to the New Forest. She loved it, so she booked again for a whole month.
We do see a lot of these bookings on Goboony, but it does seem like you were especially lucky. Any idea why?
Well, the team did help me with my advert. Typical me, when I was creating it, I procrastinated for months. Trying to get the pricing and description right, among other things. When I finally published it, I didn’t get any bookings for a long time. So I phoned up Josh, your onboarding and quality manager, to find out what was going on. He said: “Where did you get the pricing idea? Your rates are very high. You haven’t had a booking yet, and therefore no reviews.” He recommended I lower my rates, for the time, to get a few bookings. Even though he said I could always increase my rates again after that, I was quite disappointed with the figures he advised me. But I thought, I’ll do what you say, you’re the pro. His advice was bang on. Phil made the two-month booking not long after.
Did you ask this traveller why he chose your motorhome for his long trip?
Yeah, the lower daily rate had something to do with it, of course. But he mainly said he really liked my write-up, or description. He said he looked at loads of motorhomes but that’s what pushed him over the edge. That’s the one, he thought. The funny thing is I don’t even remember what I wrote at first, but I know now that a personal touch works miracles. People often envision themselves in your motorhome, so painting a picture of what their trip could look like really helps.
Do you ever get nervous when hiring out to strangers, even though they send you nice, personal hire requests?
Of course. If you’re really precious about your vehicle, for example, you can’t bear the thought of a little damage, then it might not be for you. Things do happen, and you’re always fixing bits and pieces. But that happens to motorhomes anyway. I even have to admit that no one has ever done any kind of damage to it like I have myself. I just fix it and get on with it, it’s part of the process.
I also know that Goboony has vetted all the people on the platform, so people have already jumped through a few hoops to be able to message me about my motorhome. So why not have trust that they will do everything they can to treat it with care?
Have you ever felt hesitant when someone then came to pick it up?
There was one person once who hired it with whom I felt a little cautious because she was quite nervous to drive it—but so was I when I first picked it up at the manufacturer! In the end, if you think about it, people who are more nervous about driving a motorhome actually take greater care of it because they’re more cautious. That’s a good trait to have for your hirers.
Do you feel weird at all about people living in your personal property?
I have chatted to some people about what I do and they say exactly that: “Oh no way, you have people sleeping in your bed?” Then I’m like: “Well, we have mattress protectors and we change them all the time. Don’t you go to hotel rooms and stay there? Isn’t that the same?” It’s all about the attitude.
It sounds like you're making some nice money on Goboony, but are there other things you enjoy particularly about hiring out?
Well, I get to send people on their holiday. I like that because they’re always excited about it when they set off. And then when they come back and are raving about how they’ve had had an amazing time, yeah, I really love that.
I enjoy giving people tips too. For example on great places to wild camp in the area, stuff like that. Things that only someone who’s local could know about. Sometimes I even get inspired by their plans. It’s generally a really nice way of just meeting very happy people. I’ve met a son and his father, dads with their daughters, older couples celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary or just looking to experience something new, and people visiting far-away relatives. It’s heartwarming, really.
Do you see potential in hiring out during less popular periods of the year, not just summer?
Absolutely. I’m even trying to think of ways to get more bookings for winter. We’ve done ski seasons in a motorhome ourselves and had an incredible time. It’s a great way of going about it. I’m also already seeing of people booking for later in the season. For autumn trips, Halloween or even to visit family over Christmas.
Do you have any tips for motorhome owners who are getting started with hiring out themselves?
I think communicating and building a relationship with people is super important, especially before you meet them. You have to make them feel confident you’ll supply them with a great vehicle for their holiday, which gets them to confirm a booking. In the end, it’s all about mutual trust. They take good care of my motorhome, I make sure they have everything they need to have a great time in it.
Benefits of hiring out your motorhome on Goboony
-Hiring out on Goboony is free
-You decide how, to who and when you want to hire out
-Hire out safely and with peace of mind by opting for our Goboony Day Insurance
-We provide support throughout the whole process
-We offer a secure third-party payment system
