A San Francisco-based startup company that offers an online marketplace to find local surfing lessons has expanded to Oahu.
Hokali, a member of the most recent cohort for Hawaii-based accelerator Blue Startups, chose Oahu as its fifth place of operation, after beginning in San Francisco and expanding to Los Angeles and San Diego in California, and Jacksonville, Florida.
The surf lessons marketplace acts as a broker between students and surf instructors. People choose the day, time and beach they want to take the lesson, and the instructor. They may also rent gear from a nearby surf shop through the platform. Lessons for adults and kids are offered at beginner, intermediate and advanced levels.
Hokali was founded in January 2020 by a pair of Argentinians, Ignacio Viau and Tomás Bisi, who realized there was a demand for surfing lessons in San Francisco.
Oahu, as the birthplace of surfing, was a no-brainer for expansion about a year and a half later. Viau called the Islands the "surfing Mecca."
"We didn't find any hurdles [launching] here in Hawaii and we realized that the problem is the same in every location that we open," Viau told Pacific Business News. "Surf schools and local instructors need help with marketing, sales and daily operations."
Hokali's goal is to onboard 10 local surf schools in its Oahu marketplace by the end of the year — it says it is able to onboard a new surf instructor to its platform in a matter of days — between Waikiki and Haleiwa. It is eyeing expansion to Maui, Kauai and Hawaii Island in 2022, with a target of 500 surf lessons per month in Hawaii by that time. To date, it has connected people for about 1,500 surf lessons at its other locations.
The company launched in Oahu on Sept. 15. Prices for a solo lesson for an hour and 30 minutes at Hokali's other locations range between $80 and $129.
Its business model is a 30% commission per transaction for the surf schools. Students are not charged extra by Hokali, Viau told PBN.
"We started onboarding the first surf schools from Oahu a few weeks ago into our platform with great results," Viau said. "They are open to [receiving] clients while they can handle the daily operations into the same platform."
Hokali has designs on eventually offering other watersports like kitesurfing and scuba diving. Those are being targeted as an offering in Hawaii for 2023.
