GetMyBoat opening up the sharing economy for watercraft
The GetMyBoat app, which was launched in 2013 to enable users to find short term holiday boat rentals, has cut the time for chartering a boat from 30 days to 24 hours. The app offers a choice of 62,000 boats across 169 countries, it facilitates contact between renters and owners as well as payments and offers customisable by-the-day insurance.

Are you thinking about summer boating in Australia? Say hi to the...

With 62,000 boats in 169 countries GetMyBoat aka the Airbnb for boats has optimized the boat booking experience for travelers worldwide – including in Australia.

Renters can search and find the boat or adventure of their dreams. Once they’ve found the watercraft they’d like to book, renters can connect with the owner, work out the details of their trip, and process their payment all in one, secure transaction. For owners, GetMyBoat make listing a boat and managing reservations simple and secure. With the app, owners can connect with potential renters, update their listing, add pictures, and process payments. What has GetMyBoat been up to? Since launching in 2013, the start-up has worked hard to give its users the most on the water options with the least amount of friction when it comes to adventure planning. They have even brought down the booking time for a charter from 30 days to 24 hours with the app. The turnaround is amazing! It has also created a customizable, pay by the day, insurance product that was never before heard of in the marine industry and has recently begun processing payments. In Australia, GetMyBoat has approximately 2,000 boats from standup paddleboards to luxury cruises. Pricing has a similar breadth from $10 to $10,000+ AUD depending on the renters needs. Here are some of the best boats in Australia on this app.

Anthill caught up with COO, Bryan Petro for a brief interview about the company.

Who are the people behind GetMyBoat?

GetMyBoat serial entrepreneurs and co-founders, Sascha Mornell and Rafael Collado, were out on the water and asked themselves, “Why can’t more people have access to great boating experiences for less?”

A few years later, with a few more successful business ventures under their belts and inspired by the emergence of the sharing economy, Sascha and Rafael knew it was time to bring GetMyBoat to life. And thus the roots of GetMyBoat were born.

What gap in the market are you filling?

In the United States alone, there are 10 million registered boats with only 8 percent of these used on a regular basis. When GetMyBoat was launched in 2013, we received a very positive response from the boating community.

Owners utilizing GetMyBoat are not only offsetting the cost of ownership, but many also rent out their boat frequently enough to make it their main source of income.

We’ve also allowed owners the opportunity to expand their fleet and purchase additional watercraft. We’re seeing boats being listed and rented throughout the world.

How is GetMyBoat doing so far?

We have seen tremendous growth in the space to date. In our first year, it was 10,000 boats in 30 countries and now we’re up to 62,000 in 169 countries!

Year over year, we are meeting and exceeding our goals and we’re helping our users experience the water like never before.

The word of mouth growth that we’ve seen in the marine industry has also been exceptionally positive. We have boat owners that come to us, excited to use our insurance, our booking tools, and our payment processing technology.

We continually hear that our owners need to customize their insurance. Renters need a faster way to book. The need for innovation and transparency in this stagnant industry is very real and we are bringing this technology to owners and renters worldwide.

Additionally, the travel sector will only continue to grow as millennials continue to flood the market and splurge on experiences rather than “goods.” In a world where the on-demand economy is constantly evolving and making luxury assets more affordable and accessible, we’re excited to have an active role in this period of innovation.