BELOIT — The Beloit City Council on Monday night approved a contract with a fast-growing Madison-based company to rent one- and two-person kayaks on the Rock River in downtown Beloit.
The Surf Shack, LLC should have kayaks ready for rental by mid-July, company owner Nathan Olson said.
Originally from Eau Claire, Olson began thinking about ways to allow more people access to Wisconsin’s many lakes and rivers about five years ago. Three years, ago he formed The Surf Shack LLC and started renting kayaks and paddle boards on two lakes in Madison.
Since then, he’s expanded to having equipment for rent under the name Instapaddle.com at 23 locations in Madison, Eau Claire, Kenosha and Brookfield. Beloit will make it 25. The key to its success is it is a self-serve kayak/paddle board business.
“You do everything online,” Olson said. “You make your reservation. You sign your waivers and forms electronically. You enter your credit card and you get a code to unlock your kayak.”
If his equipment is damaged or stolen, he can easily charge the customer for replacement.
Although Olson rents paddleboards at several locations, he said Instapaddle will start in Beloit just with kayaks and “see how it goes.”
The kayaks will be available at docks near the Rotary River Center and at the John Rose Canoe & Kayak Launch behind the Mill Street parking lot.
The city sought bids for a company to rent kayaks on the Rock River because the Downtown Beloit Association recommended having a rental option in downtown as part of its strategic plan and a private business that used to offer kayak and paddle board rentals went out of business.
The Downtown Beloit Association is paying the $4,500 start-up fee to the city. The four-year agreement requires the Surf Shack to pay the association 10% of gross annual revenues collected at each dock.
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