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Sēkr develops a comprehensive mobile application designed for outdoor enthusiasts, particularly those engaged in vanlife, RVing, and road tripping. The platform provides a robust database for discovering free and paid campsites, amenities, and overnight parking, complemented by an AI-enhanced trip planner that streamlines the process of organizing multi-stop journeys and connecting with a wider community of travelers.
The company was co-founded in 2016 by Breanne Acio and Jess Shisler. Both founders were early participants in the emerging vanlife movement and recognized a significant gap in accessible, community-driven resources for mobile living. Their initial insight stemmed from their personal experiences and their desire to foster a more inclusive and simplified outdoor travel experience for others.
Sēkr primarily serves the growing population of vanlifers, RV owners, and road trippers seeking efficient and reliable ways to explore. The company's vision extends to continually simplifying the outdoor travel planning experience while strengthening connections within the mobile living community, aiming to make adventurous travel more accessible and enjoyable for everyone.
Sēkr has raised $3.1M across 3 funding rounds.
Sēkr has raised $3.1M in total across 3 funding rounds.
Sēkr has raised $3.1M across 3 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $2.3M Seed in February 2022.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 9, 2022 | $2.3M Seed | Andy Ballester, Jeffrey Hunter | AD Astra Ventures, Backstage Capital, Crescent Ridge Partners, Techstars | Announced |
| Jan 1, 2021 | $700K Seed | — | AD Astra Ventures, Golden Seeds, Techstars, Nancy Hayes | Announced |
| Jan 1, 2020 | $120K Seed | — | Techstars | Announced |
Sēkr is a mobile app and web platform for outdoor enthusiasts, campers, and vanlife travelers, offering crowdsourced campsite discovery, community connections, and AI-powered trip planning.[1][2][6] It serves nomads, road-trippers, and occasional campers by solving challenges like finding safe, amenity-equipped campsites (e.g., showers, Wi-Fi, van parking), planning itineraries, and linking users for activities like rock climbing or skiing, with over 100,000 users and 50,000+ U.S. campsites listed.[1][2] Basic features are free; premium unlocks offline maps, unlimited search, and discounts for $4.99/month, showing strong growth post-2023 acquisition amid booming camping demand.[1][4]
Sēkr was founded in 2016 (initially launched in 2018) by women and minority founders Breanne Acio and Jess Shisler, who met through their separate full-time vanlife experiences and identified the pain of locating safe overnight campsites with key amenities in a tech-lagging outdoor space.[1][2][3] Originally "The Vanlife App," it gained early traction with a focus on U.S. National Parks, raising $2.25–2.5 million in seed funding in 2022 from investors like Storyteller Overland, Backstage Capital, Techstars, and GoFundMe co-founder Andy Ballester, reaching ~10,000 monthly active users.[1][3] Facing a tough 2022 fundraising climate, founders planned to shut it down until Peace Vans CEO Harley Sitner—a seven-year user, ex-Microsoft product manager, and vanlife expert—acquired it in December 2023, revitalizing the app under new leadership.[1][3]
Sēkr rides the post-pandemic camping and vanlife surge, with the market "skyrocketing" due to demand for outdoor escapes, digital planning in a traditionally analog space, and AI's rise in travel tech.[1][4][6] Timing aligns with 2023–2025 trends: AI tools like Copilot address fragmented apps, while economic shifts revived it via acquisition amid funding droughts.[1][3] Favorable forces include U.S. National Parks' appeal, sustainability focus, and community-building amid remote work nomadism; it influences the ecosystem by digitizing outdoors (e.g., like hotel booking simplicity), boosting connections over isolation, and competing with The Dyrt/Hipcamp via social/AI edges.[2][3][6]
Sēkr is poised for expansion with AI enhancements, premium monetization, and Peace Vans synergy driving user growth beyond 100,000.[1][3] Trends like AI-personalized travel, electric van conversions, and sustainable nomadism will shape it, potentially dominating as the "go-to" for outdoor recreation synonymous with camping.[2][6] Its influence may evolve by deepening human-AI hybrids, scaling globally, and powering vanlife marketplaces—transforming a near-shutdown startup into an ecosystem leader, much like its founders' vision of seamless outdoor planning.[2][3]
Sēkr has raised $3.1M in total across 3 funding rounds.
Sēkr's investors include Andy Ballester, Jeffrey Hunter, Ad Astra Ventures, Backstage Capital, Crescent Ridge Partners, Techstars, Golden Seeds, Nancy Hayes.
