It was five years ago that Malin and Lars Mellstrand identified that there were interesting and clear areas for development in the growing camping sector. And now big things are happening, literally pushing the boundaries of their business.
Sweden has a large number of campsites, but not everyone is aware of their existence. That's how campsite owners Malin and Lars Mellstrand reasoned in 2016. A few years later, in 2019, they had launched Hollistay, a digital platform that connects campsite hosts with campers and aims to create new value.
- We were surprised that no one had gathered campsites on a single digital platform. When traveling through Sweden, you see camping signs everywhere, but you have no idea what these facilities look like. The vision of our platform is to make it easier for campsites to be seen while giving campers a quick overview of all types of camping accommodation, and not least importantly, enabling a booking with a few clicks.
And Hollistay is independent and we can therefore gather all campsites in one place, before it was more difficult, with divisions between independent campsites, various member campsites and SCR's facilities. Today, Hollistay is available both on the web and as an app. Users can find over 2,400 campsites in the Nordic region and book over several hundred of these online directly with the campsites.
- We are very happy with where we are today, but at the same time you have to respect the process, where we have tweaked our business idea several times. And it has been useful, because you learn something all the time. You think you know everything about the market inside out, but that's really not the case, even though we have ten years of experience in the industry and know what both guests and campsite owners want.
Other crucial help along the way has been provided by the business incubator at Dalarna Science Park.
- We were involved between 2018-2021 where we received very good guidance and coaching. Although we have run companies before, help may be needed when you encounter new challenges and new companies are to be started. It's amazing what support you can get there and they really make sure that the right coach is deployed at the right time during the business journey.
Added value with the guest at the center
Malin and Mats chose to release the app for free and it has now been downloaded over 50,000 times.
- In the fall of 2021 we developed and in 2022 we launched an in-app community called Camp & Talk, a social and local network. We connect campground hosts and campers where they can find each other and communicate. Before, guests often joined different groups on Facebook and looked for information there. But those groups are starting to grow in number and it can be difficult to find information in the particular place you are in. And with the help of our app, we solve that and now the campsite host can have a relationship with the guest even after they have checked in. With Hollistay's app and Camp & Talk, we are building a clear added value for both the guest and the campsite host by bringing them together. We make camping a bit more fun and this can mean, for example, that an individual camper can suggest a barbecue evening, invite to a televised football match in the awning or ask a question about sights in the area. The campsite hosts can also send out push notifications with information about, for example, activities, what is on the menu in the restaurant and so on.
New for the summer of 2022, Hollistay is introducing an activity calendar for the month of July. The calendar, which is available both in the app and on the web, shows various digital events that all users can take part in - regardless of which campsite they are at.
- We will organize training sessions, active quizzes for children and adults, competitions and beer tastings led by a sommelier. Guests will prepare themselves according to our instructions and then relax just in time for the activity to start. This is completely new in the industry. We do a test summer, learn from the experience and tweak things in the next step, that's how a developing business works.
Camp & Talk and the activity calendar are part of the business concept of being something more than "just a booking platform".
- And the 50,000 downloads of the Hollistay app are proof that we are on the right track.
To date, the Mellstrands have invested over seven million euros of equity in the company.
- We have also raised external capital and have partners in the company. In the fall, we will seek additional external capital to be able to develop at the pace we want. It's important to keep up, not least when we move in an IT industry, through our platform, where everything is constantly changing.
Malin believes that Hollistay has completed the important brand journey of the first few years, and that the company is now ready for the next step.
- It always takes time to build. We notice that actors are starting to contact us in a different way now about collaborations. The vision is clear: we want to be able to scale up the business and become a major international player. A first step on that journey is to become the largest in the Nordic region, and then take it further out into Europe. And it's great that, starting this fall, we are involved in collaborations that will strengthen and build our company for the future in several ways.
Victoria Ställberg, Head of Business Development at Dalarna Science Park, has followed Hollistay's development journey.
- Malin and Lars are a real entrepreneurial couple who have the drive to implement their ideas and plans, which they have shown time and time again. I am impressed by their journey but at the same time not particularly surprised that it has gone so well for them. It is really great that they have realized several of their early ideas, that new ideas have been added and that they have established themselves outside Sweden's borders. This is going to be something big!
Hollistay
- The platform was launched in 2019 and is available in seven languages.
- The app was launched in April 2021.
- The majority of users are from Sweden, but also Norway, Finland, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Austria.
- 50,000 have downloaded the Hollistay app.
- 12 000 used the app daily in July 2021.
- 2,400 Nordic campsites are available on the platform.
