Boston Globe: Boat-docking startup Dockwa raises $2m

Worked for me...
 
Mike Blake said:
The page won't open unless I join. So, what good it the link?
Click to expand...

Sorry about that Mike, it opened for me on mobile without making me join. Some highlights:

Dockwa, a local startup that allows boaters to reserve marina slips and moorings over the Web has raised $2 million from private investors in its second round of funding.

Since launching in June 2015 out of Newport, RI, Dockwa has opened an office in Cambridge, expanded to more than 400 marinas, and nearly doubled its employees to 15. The number of boaters using the service has grown to more than 20,000 in one year, Melillo said.

The company dropped a 5 percent booking fee for boaters this season, making the reservation process free.

Marinas pay Dockwa a 3.5 percent fee per transaction that mostly covers credit card fees. Dockwa also just launched its first paid subscription service, where marinas can pay an additional $299 per month for access to analytics and consulting services to boost their marketing reach with customers.


Dockwa, now in more than 15 states and four countries, is rapidly expanding in the Midwest and is heavily focusing on Florida and the Caribbean, Melillo said. The company’s goal is to sign up 1,000 marinas by the end of the year.
 
Thanks for the link and info. I have a suggestion regarding the service.

I tried the web based version, and when I searched for San Diego it gave me options in places like Texas, Florida and Chicago, but none in California. I am assuming that you must not have any marinas in California signed up yet, but that was not made clear.

I would suggest that if someone searches for a location where the service is not yet available, your search results should clearly state that first. And then if you want to provide alternatives in adjacent areas, that would make sense. But someone looking for a slip in Southern California next weekend probably wouldn't consider Chicago or Florida a reasonable alternative.

Good luck with the service. I think you are addressing an important need.
 
TechDoc said:
Thanks for the link and info. I have a suggestion regarding the service.

I tried the web based version, and when I searched for San Diego it gave me options in places like Texas, Florida and Chicago, but none in California. I am assuming that you must not have any marinas in California signed up yet, but that was not made clear.

I would suggest that if someone searches for a location where the service is not yet available, your search results should clearly state that first. And then if you want to provide alternatives in adjacent areas, that would make sense. But someone looking for a slip in Southern California next weekend probably wouldn't consider Chicago or Florida a reasonable alternative.

Good luck with the service. I think you are addressing an important need.
Click to expand...

I checked San Diego also. Many of the marinas are near capacity and for places such as the Marriott, only the registered boat can ever park in the slip. I'm interested to see how this works.
 
Mike Blake said:
The page won't open unless I join. So, what good it the link?
Click to expand...

PS - I think I realize why it let me open the article: I always leave my Safari in "private browse" mode, so websites can't keep track of my visits and try to charge me! Just thought I'd share in case it comes in useful for ya sometime. Cheers. :)
 
TechDoc said:
Thanks for the link and info. I have a suggestion regarding the service.

I tried the web based version, and when I searched for San Diego it gave me options in places like Texas, Florida and Chicago, but none in California. I am assuming that you must not have any marinas in California signed up yet, but that was not made clear.

I would suggest that if someone searches for a location where the service is not yet available, your search results should clearly state that first. And then if you want to provide alternatives in adjacent areas, that would make sense. But someone looking for a slip in Southern California next weekend probably wouldn't consider Chicago or Florida a reasonable alternative.

Good luck with the service. I think you are addressing an important need.
Click to expand...

Thank you so much for this insight, TechDoc! I'll let our engineering guys know. You make a great observation and the entire team always takes boater feedback to heart.
 
Magic34 said:
I checked San Diego also. Many of the marinas are near capacity and for places such as the Marriott, only the registered boat can ever park in the slip. I'm interested to see how this works.
Click to expand...

As are we! Interesting to know about San Diego, I'll let the team know. Thanks for trying us out! I hope you'll stay tuned for when we branch in to that region.
 
I am wondering if you will be expanding to take on private piers or dock slips and or swaps for dock space on a short term basis sort of an Airbnb version for slips. Seems like it would be another option that would serve a need.

Good Luck
 
TracyT said:
I am wondering if you will be expanding to take on private piers or dock slips and or swaps for dock space on a short term basis sort of an Airbnb version for slips. Seems like it would be another option that would serve a need.

Good Luck
Click to expand...
We've thought about it! We're currently focused on bringing as many marinas on board the platform as we can, but the functionality you've described is on our radar as well. Thanks for the suggestion. :)
 
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