Durangoans know…there’s no better way to explore the outdoors than through human powered adventures.
But, when you’re traveling out of town, that’s not always as easy as it seems.
Both Reet and Julie Singh worked for Home Depot Corporate in Atlanta for a number of years. Reet served in operations, where he worked with tool rental and rental systems, and later, merchandising, where he managed service providers and home product installations. Julie worked in finance, operations, and merchandising. When they weren’t working, the Singhs spent their spare time biking, kayaking, and adventuring.
Through their travels, they often found it challenging to find the best guides, gear rentals, and local resources. Often, they spent more time researching and planning than actually adventuring.
Thus, the idea of TripOutside was born.
In 2017, the Singhs left the corporate world and spent five years traveling in their RV. Their goal was to find all of the best local outfitters and guides and create a hub where they could be all in one place.
In 2018, they launched their website and focused on two destinations: Moab, UT, and Crested Butte, CO. In 2022, they were ready to settle, and they moved to Durango full time. They became part of the SCAPE cohort, which is how they connected with the SBDC.
The Singhs met with Bert Carder several times, and he was instrumental in reviewing their different marketing avenues. He helped them develop their customer value proposition, analyze their ideal customer, and work on partnerships within marketing.
TripOutside now features 350 destinations and more than 5,000 adventures. And, they are adding more every day.
“Our biggest challenge has been awareness. Since we are a marketplace, we started by working on the supply side. Now, we have 5,000+ adventures on our platform for our users, so we’re working on the customer and marketing side, which includes building traffic and improving conversion rates.”
This summer, the Singhs again met with Bert. He helped them build landing pages, do AB testing, and determine which messaging resonates most with customers.
“We’re excited to be part of the Colorado community—there are so many resources here! The SBDC helped us find the resources, bootstrap the business, and identify partnerships. SCAPE was really instrumental in helping us identify ways to grow. Startup Colorado recently sponsored us to attend an outdoor event, which was valuable for building awareness and making connections in the outdoor community,” Julie says.
As the Singhs have found, Colorado has a great network for entrepreneurs, and they encourage other new business owners to tap into the sources around them and collaborate as much as possible.
“Everything and anything is a challenge when you’re first starting out. It’s hard to launch, get funding, find resources, etc. So, take the little wins along the way and find the right partners and support. Also, spend time researching and involving all stakeholders in your launch process. There are many great products and resources out there, and recreating the wheel is not a good use of time or money. Others have done this before, so find supporters and take advantage of their insight and wisdom.”
