Today we’d like to introduce you to Vicki Carson.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
Back on 2006 I was teaching surfing lessons in Coronado and buying apparel for Emerald City Surf shop. The owner there, long time ripper Kelly Kraus, brought a “sup” into the shop. I immediately ordered one for myself the next day and was hooked. It was a great way to still catch waves without freezing after being submerged in the ocean all morning teaching lessons. I started to bring the paddle board to the summer camps and everyone wanted to try it. The owner of Coronado Surf Academy, Teevan, took a chance on me and we started “SUP CORONADO”, storing boards in his garage and the surf school van. At first I would only take clients in the ocean! I thought the bay was silly at the time; we even had a brief stint offering ocean yoga. After a year or so I ended up buying Teeven out, getting my own van, and acquiring a permit to teach lessons and offer rentals at Tidelands Park, the best bayside location in all of California, if not the Country. For a few years it was just myself and my sister teaching all the lessons (no one was ready for rentals back then) and there were days we would each paddle 3 or 4 times. . In 2012 I was able to quit my “real” job and focus solely on Sup Coronado. That really changed the business for the better as I was able to answer every call and meet every demand, and even hire a few employees, which are still with me today. This last slow season Brianna Frazier and I got together and started offering SUP brew tours for AirBNB experiences (paddle for 1 hour then hop into a sprinter van and visit 2 breweries) I had to take the month of January off the calendar we were getting so busy. We have opened then up again for February and already have bookings. I have noticed lessons start to taper off as rentals pick up, and now of course there is competition with Groupons and all, so with the added brewery tours we should be able to maintain another few years at the least.
Has it been a smooth road?
Well, I would say it cost me a serious relationship due to the stress of wanting to answer every call and not ever having time off in the summer. My ex loved sailboat racing and I can recall this one day I knew was going to be busy. At the time I still refused to forward calls when I was in the Country and just as I went below to answer a call, in the middle of the race, the sail tore! I was blamed. That relationship was probably doomed from the start BUT the point is the struggle as a sole business owner is not knowing when to turn the engine off. Social media has become a hassle too now, an added pressure that I feel brings in no return but is expected…all in all though the freedom to work at your own pace towards something you love is priceless. It is true, the effort you put in is what you get out of it, but the struggle is finding where to put that energy when there are no guidelines and I’m really just making it all up as I go along.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Sup Coronado – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
At Sup Coronado we work on a fluid schedule, which means as clients call, I personally answer every single time (very rarely do I let it go to voicemail and if I am out of the Country I do forward calls to another employee) as well accept text messages. This allows us to cater to each group based on their needs. We offer lessons and rentals, the lessons are usually with myself or my sister or 2 other very competent paddle board instructors, and rentals are on an appointment based system so as not to waste manpower. We have top of the line and even kid’s size boards and paddles, no aluminum paddles here, which is rare in the rental world. With our equipment, kids as young as 5 years old can learn to paddle on their own. In 10 years I have never paid for advertising, and not even come close to offering a Groupon. I prefer quality over quantity, so we pride ourselves on excellent customer service with added amenities such as free waterproof phone cases for rentals, plenty of photos taken during lessons, free sunglass holders and a wide array of board sizes. As seen on Yelp, Google, Facebook, and Airbnb, every client walks away stoked to have come to us. We always offer family discounts too.
What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
A passion for exercise, human connection, the ocean, and San Diego. When I first started taking people in the bay I quickly realized how lucky I was to still get to paddle every day while engaging with people I would have never met otherwise. I sure do meet the neatest folks, sometimes I want to pay them for coming out with me! Even when no one calls I still paddle every day, so there isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t want to be out on the water, and it shows. In my spare time I read books on the local history to share that knowledge with my guests. Of course being business savvy is important, and I learned from the best, Teevan Mcmanus, of Coronado Surf Academy. Having a retail background thanks to my career at Emerald City has proved to be an asset when it comes to inventory and such. The most essential quality? The desire to never stop learning.
Pricing:
- 35$ rental as long as you want to go
- 60-80$ lesson, group discounts available
- 90$ SUP brewery Tour , discounts avaialable
Contact Info:
- Address: 2000 Mullinex Drive
- Website: www.supcoronado.com
- Email: vicki@supcoronado.com
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