7 Kayak Store Success Stories [2023]

Pat Walls

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Updated: July 24th, 2023

Start A Kayak Store

Kayaking has shown steady growth in the last decade. According to data, touring kayaks anticipate revenue growth in the coming year. The demand for kayaks is attributed to increased awareness about fitness & health. Kayaking and rafting are effective cardiovascular workouts, and people across the globe are increasingly taking an interest in these sports.

If you love watersports, you can start a kayak store. Your business can focus on renting kayaks to water sports tourists or manufacturing and selling kayaks at wholesale and retail prices.

Here are some real life success stories of starting a kayak store:

1. Oru Kayak ($4.8M/year)

Anton Willis (from Emeryville, Ontario, Canada) started Oru Kayak over 10 years ago.

Revenue

$400K / month

View case study

Team

2 founders / 10 employees

Location

Emeryville, Ontario, Canada

Case Study

I’m Anton Willis of Oru Kayak. We make origami kayaks that fold up into a portable box. Our revenues are around $5 million per year.

how-we-started-a-400k-month-origami-folding-kayaks-business

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How We Started A $400K/Month Origami Folding Kayaks Business ➜

2. Bay Sports ($1.2M/year)

Hamish (from Sydney, New South Wales, Australia) started Bay Sports over 10 years ago.

Revenue

$100K / month

View case study

Team

2 founders / 1 employees

Location

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Case Study

Hi, I'm Hamish from Bay Sports. We offer a wide range of Kayaks, Stand Up Paddle (SUP) Boards, Inflatable Air Pontoons, Surf Skis and growing. We started with just kayaks, and branched out to become a more holistic online water sports business.

Being able to run the business online via Shopify has allowed us to offer pricing well below what our customers see in bricks and mortar shops, and as >70% of our customers shop online via a mobile device, a beautiful mobile experience has been importance and imperative for us to deliver.

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Growing A Kayaks & Outdoor Gear Company to $100k/mo ➜

Learn more about starting a kayak store:

Where to start?

-> How much does it cost to start a kayak store?
-> Pros and cons of a kayak store

Need inspiration?

-> Examples of established kayak store
-> Marketing ideas for a kayak store
-> Kayak store slogans
-> Kayak store names

Other resources

-> Kayak store tips
-> Kayak store manufacturers
-> Kayak store hashtags

Part of

Starting A Kayak Store: Everything You Need To Know

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5. NRS

Shop raft, kayak and camping gear, SUPs, paddling apparel for men, women & kids and river supplies with the NRS Rock Solid Guarantee and Free Shipping over $75.

Website traffic: 350K/month
Business rank: #86.5K

Check out their full website ➜

6. Rack Attack

Rack Attack began as a solitary store back in 1996 and has developed into North America's head retailer of vehicle rack arrangements. Starting at 2017 Rack Attack the executives have bought the organization from the first author and have more than a million happy customers. They also have 23 locations across North America to ship from, their online customers experience shipping to their door in less time, for no cost.

Website traffic: 540K/month
Business rank: #126K

Check out their full website ➜

7. Austin Kayak

Website traffic: 550K/month
Business rank: #136K

Check out their full website ➜

Pat Walls, Founder of Starter Story

Want to find more ideas that make money?

Hey! 👋 I'm Pat Walls, the founder of Starter Story.

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