We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful David Clapper. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with David below.
David , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?
I had spent over 20 years in the music business. From working with artists on the label side, to programming and marketing local radio stations across the country. I was very lucky to end up in Atlanta when I took a job working for MCA Records. After being in Atlanta for a while, I had developed a relationship with a local radio station and they recruited me to work promotions and marketing for 95-5 The Beat, which then led to marketing positions with B98.5FM and 97-1 The River, where I became the Director of Programming and Afternoon DJ. My career was going pretty well when I became a victim of a spreadsheet and was laid off from my position. This happened in June of 2015. Quite scared, I took the 1st job offered to me and that was back on the label side for a country music label out of Nashville. The fit wasn’t right for me as I knew right away that I was ready for something new but I had no idea what that was.
Just following being laid off, I had taken a trip out west with my then 9 year old son and girlfriend. We traveled along the coast of North California and into Yosemite in a rented campervan. The experience was epic and during the next year, I had attempted to rent something similar in or around Atlanta for an Outer Banks surf trip, No Luck – There was nothing like it in the Southeast, so my idea was hatched.
My girlfriend at the time (now wife) had just returned from Australia and was very familiar with the concept and service provided as there were a bunch of companies Down Under doing this sort of thing. I called up an old friend, convinced him to join me on the journey and then we began to put together or plan for sCAMPer Van.
The 1st van was funded from our own cash but our 2nd van was purchased after raising money through an Indie Go Go campaign where our friends and family helped us get the idea off the ground. We really needed to prove the concept as it was new to the area and we weren’t sure if it was something that people would gravitate to here. It was and they did. By the end of 2016, we were looking for angel investors to help us build the fleet.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers
Building a new brand is always a challenge but it is also veer rewarding. We brought a lot of attention to the industry and specifically to our brand of sCAMPer Van. The idea was to really build a general name for what we did. For people to call all camper vans – sCAMPer Vans. The Vanlife movement has taken off across the world actually and we haven’t quite been able to scale the way we would have lied to earn that over brand but for the region, we build something very special.
For years, we were the only game in town and even chased off a national brand that tried to launch in Atlanta. We take pride in making it easy for people to adventure and explore not only our area but the rest of the country., Seeing pictures from our customer’s journey is one of the most rewarding parts of what we do.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
I often hear about the need to pivot. That strong businesses often go through this transition at least once in their journey. A pivot to me always felt like a bad thing….Like something failed and now you need to fix. I have since learned that it’s bigger than that. That it can be more of a transition into something bigger and better to help your brand grow and reach new potentials.
We are the process of this currently. We launched as a rental business and still love that side of what we do, however, we have pivoted into the build space. Helping people design and build the vehicle of their dreams. We’ve taken the experience that we have and now hello others get into the vehicle of choice and create a beautiful tiny home on wheels based on their style and needs.
Can you tell us the story behind how you met your business partner?
sCAMPer Van has always been a very small team. As a small business, we’ve had small margins so staffing has always been an issue. My business partner and I have been friends since working together back in the early 2000’s so it was easy to get him on board and he’s such a hard worker, that it was easy to see his value to the company.
The real unsung hero of the brand though has been my life partner. My wife – she has patiently supported a pipe dream with time, money and love and has continuously offered valuable suggestions to the design of the vans, the operation of the business, the moral of the team and more. I’d say that she’s a SILENT partner but if anyone knows her, they know that she’s not so silent. She really has been the main ingredient in the success of our brand.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.scampervan.com
- Instagram: ScamperVan
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/deliveredadventure
- Youtube: ScamperVan
Image Credits
David Clapper Rhiannon Pickard
Suggest a Story: CanvasRebel is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.