b'INDUSTRY NEWSNorthgatesCampFimfoBrandedParksCampspot Hires Appealing to a Broader Range of Campers Stender to Lead With a name like Camp FimfoFun is Always More FunPictured is the entrance to Camp Fimfo in New Braunfels,Texas. Marketing EffortsOutside (Fimfo)it is hard not to notice the new brand of parks that Grand Rapids, Mich.-based Northgate Resorts in- Erin Stender troduced this summer.has beenAn established park developer, Northgate owns multipleappointedparks throughout the U.S., including a number of Yogi Bearschief marketing Jellystone Park Camp-Resorts.officer of Amid its efforts to expand further though, Northgate feltCampspot. it was time to create a brand that appealed to a broader de-mographic than the family centered Jellystone Park system.A reservation Our first Camp Fimfo park is only a mile or so away fromand manage-our existing Jellystone Park in New Braunfels, Texas, so wement software felt we had to differentiate it for that market, explained Zachprovider, Bossenbroek, Northgates CEO. That got the wheels turningCampspot fea- Erin Stenderon how we can make this brand work, not just solve the issuetures an online marketplace for RV at this particular site, but more broadly how we can developresorts, family campgrounds, cab-a brand that appeals to a broader demographic.ins, glamping options and more. Itsgoodtohavethisbrandthatconnectswithour campers on more of an emotional level, he continued. ItsStender will join Campspots senior getting this consistent voice with this consistent messageleadership team and report to CEO through our marketing, our properties and everything thatMichael Scheinman. As CMO, were offering. Then you start to really connect on a moreWhat can campers expect when they reserve a site at aStender will lead the companys emotional level with campers, which will make them tellCamp Fimfo park?marketplace programs as Campspot their friends and come back and be repeat visitors. Also, itWe try to keep it creative and keep the campers guessingcontinues its mission to help more lets you tell what the competitive advantages are at yourto some degree, said Bossenbroek. Campers will go aroundpeople get outdoors and make parks versus staying at other parks.a corner on a hike and we will have something there that they Opened on July 1, the New Braunfels park currently of- might not expect as a camper or a hiker. That is going to be acamping memories. She will focus fers 250 sites, with around 180 cabins planned during thecommon thread at all of our parks.on bridging the software and con-second phase of construction which is set to break groundWe also want to make our cabins extremely comfortable,sumer platform marketing pro-in October.well designed, well decorated and really pull in some of thegrams, while further expanding its Announced in late August, Northgate is also opening alocal flair, he added. I think thats going to be a cool elementadvertising reach, brand awareness second Camp Fimfo park next spring in Waco, Texas. In ad- that youre going to see it at each one of the Camp Fimfoand growth efforts. dition to more than 300 cabins and RV sites across 100 acres,parks. And of course, we are going to have really fun ameni- To combine my past experience the new property includes mainstays of the Camp Fimfoties. At our New Braunfels location, you are right on thewith my personal love for travel is a brand: a waterpark, mini-golf course, bike rentals and evenGuadalupe River where you can tube and fly fish, and just re-alternative glamping options will all be available by the parksally take in a lot of what that unique site offers.career dream come true, said opening, with more features to follow.While well-appointed RV sites are a given at Camp FimfoStender. While the industry has Bossenbroek said the company plans to expand the brandlocations, Northgate is also providing sites for tent campersbeen through several ups and outside of Texas, but that the current Camp Fimfo locationsand exploring the many ways Camp Fimfo can incorporatedowns over the last year and a half, offered some great opportunities to launch the brand.cabins and other unique accommodation units.there is no better time to create a I think Texas was the starting point because the site inCamp Fimfos Coyote Cabins are modern, yet rustic, ac- stronger bond between Campspot New Braunfels right on the Guadalupe River is amazing andcording to Brossenbroek, and include three bedrooms. Someand our mission, along with its cur-we are up to 350 acres on that site, he mentioned. The nextare treehouse cabins that are elevated among the trees.rent and future customers. I am ex-park in Waco is in a strong market that has so much going forThey offer great views, he noted. it. It is close to major cities like Dallas and Austin, and evenWhile the park does offer A-frame stick-built tents thatcited to accelerate the work the some from Houston will come to the Waco area. Then, ofcampers can utilize, Brossenbroek said that Northgate is ex- team already has in play and bring a course, you have the Chip and Joanna Gaines phenomenaploring other glamping canvas tent options at future parks.fresh view of Campspot to the pub-that draws tens of thousands of visitors a week to the area.Fimfo continued on page33 lic. Stender has nearly two decades of SaaS and e-commerce market-ing experience, with a track record of building brands, growing high-performance teams and designing impactful go-to-market, integrated marketing programs. She most re-cently held the role of vice presi-dent of marketing at Neon One, a nonprofit software company, where she led marketing and cor-porate brand strategy and spear-headed a comprehensive visual rebrand and a product unification effort. Prior to Neon One, Erin held sen-ior roles at industry-leading B2B and B2C organizations including Bodybuilding.com, Classy.org, Evernote and Active Network. Her experience across both start-up and mature corporate environ-ments, including an IPO, has cen-tered on scaling demand, building content-driven growth engines, and building customer-centric experi-ences. WCM6 November 2021Woodalls Campground Magazine'