Why buy when you can rent?

Rebranding Tapprs

I have to confess.

Inspite of all the cribbing in my earlier posts about how rentals is not exactly a great market and how the market signals aren’t great, I have been hooked onto the idea of Tapprs (mind you, not to the idea of rentals).

The reason is, I feel Tapprs could be woven into a nice brand if done well. Not necessarily rentals, could be anything else too. I have stuck my neck out on Tapprs. I can’t explain why. Perhaps, its because it’s your baby, even if its ill-conceived. Or perhaps, I feel that it needs to be given more time and patience.

I have put all my tech ideas on hold to give Tapprs some concentrated effort in the coming 1-2 months.

Whatever, I am here now. Looking at re-branding Tapprs. I don’t want Tapprs to be identified as a rental place and would love to create a brand out of it.

I want Tapprs to be attributed with a few characteristics. And that means change from the ground up.

I’ve tried to work things out towards that effect. So here goes.

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Snake and ladder

It’s been a couple of months since I had taken Tapprs seriously.

However, I know very well that I cannot sustain it on rentals alone and certainly cannot scale it up soon.

Naturally, the question is ‘what next for Tapprs?’.

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Great Travellers Series-1: Ibn Battuta

Here’s a post that I wrote on Tapprs’ site. Reproducing it here.

In the year 1325, a 21 year old Morroccan young man named Ibn Battuta left his home in the city of Tangier to go on a trip to Mecca, a journey that would take ~5000 Kms, one side.

However, he loved travelling so much that he decided to extend his trip.. by a cool 115,000 Kms. A trip that would keep him away from home for 24 years!!!

And this was more than a century before Columbus and his ilk popularised globe trotting!

When locomotives didn’t exist, when travel was dangerous and dacoits were rampant, when Black Plague was a menacing epidemic.. Battuta almost covered half of the world!

A trip covering Egypt, Turkey, Syria, Somalia, Swahili and other parts of East Africa, Iraq, Persia and almost every corner of the Arab peninsula, Spain, Russia, Byzantium, India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Mauritius and China!!!

A trip that took him to the Pharos of Alexandria, the City of Damascus, the city of Jerusalem, the Great Pyramids of Giza, the Taj Mahal, the Great Baths of Baghdad, Anatolia, Constantinople, Black Sea and Shanghai just to give you a short list.

Phew! 24 years! And we think so much before we can even take a 2 day trip!

He recorded details of his trip in the book Rihla, or “My Travels”. You could get a translated copy from Flipkart.

Read more about him on Wikipedia, or here.

This Monday, let Battuta inspire you to take that long pending trip.

Now, what should you do?

Hmm.. get out of that damned cubicle!

If you are a regular backpacker, you already know what to do next… go ask your manager for leave!!!

If you aren’t into travelling much and don’t know where to start, here’s a bit of help.

1. Join a good group (for eg, this or this) in your area and go on a trip / ride / trek.
2. Rent (or buy) a travel guide and see if you can travel to places that interest you on your own.
3. Join good forums (like this or this) and read through existing travelogues and ask questions you may have.
4. Or talk to a good travel company and go on an organized trip (or trek) or two, if you don’t prefer DIY stuff.
5. Understand the do’s and dont’s of ethical travel.
6. Search for awsome travel bloggers from your area and follow their trips to inspire your own.
7. Once you have an idea of travel, we suggest DIY styled backpacking trips, treks and bicycling tours.. whichever may suit you. Not that we are against packaged trips, but most don’t give you the true experience a DIY backpacking trip can give.
8. Here’s a list of things to carry on a trek. Or on a bicycle tour. Or on a photography trip. However, we advise you to buy only stuff you know you will need. Most people get carried away by lists and buy everything listed.. only to later regret its non-usage. The stuff goes waste too.
9. Rent stuff wherever possible. Later, buy those that you think you really need for your travel.
10. Save money for more travel!!!
11. Share your travel stories with the couch potatoes and fill them with envy!

Travel Rental | Nikon Rental | Canon | Photography Book Rental

Win upto 40% Tapprs discount voucher!

Tapprs, our Travel and Photography based venture is running an offer!

You get a chance to win upto 40% discount voucher.

Head over to www.Tapprs.com to know more about the offer.

Please do spread the word around!

UPDATE: The offer ended on June 3 at 5pm. However, you can still visit Tapprs and see the awesome stuff listed there!