Australia: New South Wales-based peer-to-peer caravan hire and RV sharing marketplace, Camplify, has gone public on the Australian Securities Exchange via a AU$11.5 million initial public offering [IPO].
The rental startup submitted the necessary documentation in May, with an offer price of $1.42 per share, giving the business an enterprise valuation of $42.1 million on completion. The IPO was oversubscribed by four times at a total of $11.5 million, with both institutional and retail investors showing interest.
Trading under the CHL stock ticker, Camplify has seen an average year-on-year revenue growth of 88 per cent for the last four years. It is also projecting revenue this year to increase from its initial $.6.7 million forecast to between $7.3 million and $7.6 million.
Founded in 2015, the startup has benefitted from a surge in demand for domestic travel during the pandemic, given the closures of state and international borders.
CEO Justin Hales told SmartCompany that he expected bookings to remain at a similar if not higher level even as lockdowns ease, but that the growth of the segment was also dependent on growing the supply of vehicles, including caravans, campervans and RVs, to meet the escalating demand.
Already operating in Australia, New Zealand, Spain and the UK, Camplify expects to accelerate its global expansion and further develop its footprint in countries where it already has a presence, now that it has gone public.
Hales said: “As we grow our network of vans, we will be able to service that demand. We felt the business was at a maturity level in terms of its operation, and from a corporate perspective, to be able to take on that next challenge.”
New services and products are also in the pipeline to take Camplify “to the next level”, according to Hales.
It coincides with a period of significant investment in motor home and RV rental companies, particularly in the United States, where the likes of Outdoorsy, RVshare, Cabana and RVezy have all secured funding in recent times.
