Warm Showers
| Type of business | 501(c)(3) organization non-profit organization |
|---|---|
| Area served | Global |
| Owner | Warmshowers.org Foundation (as on the website); WARMSHOWERS ORG (as filed in the IRS form) |
| Founder(s) | Terry Zmrhal Geoff Cashmen |
| Key people | Lance Bickford, chairman Jerry Kopack, treasurer[1] |
| Products | Homestay |
| Services | Social networking service, Communication |
| URL | www |
| Users | More than 180,000[2] |
| Launched | 1993 |
| Part of a series on |
| Homestays |
|---|
| Hospitality exchange services |
| Hospitality for work |
| Hospitality for money |
| Home exchange and others |
Warm Showers (WS) is a non-profit hospitality exchange service and support network for people engaging in bicycle touring, whereby members offer each other free lodging, meals, and support.[3][4][5][6][7][8] It is operated by WARMSHOWERS ORG, a Colorado 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization headquartered in Boulder, Colorado, US.[1] It is accessible via a website and mobile app. It uses a subscription business model, and while hosts are not allowed to charge for lodging, members must pay a fee to access the platform.
History
The concept was inspired by cyclist John Mosley in 1976 by placing an ad in the U.S. magazine Bike World, which requested to sign up for a hospitality list.[9] A list of 800 names and contact infos was put into a rolodex for almost 30 years. The name of the organization was Touring Cyclist Hospitality Directory. Mosley provided touring cyclists with copies of pages from the rolodex.
A Canadian couple, Terry Zmrhal and Geoff Cashmen, founded Warm Showers in 1993 as a continuation of Touring Cyclist Hospitality Directory.[9][10][11] They created a database from the existing members of biking-hospitality organizations. In 1996, Roger Gravel became responsible for the platform.[12] In 2005, Randy Fay created the website based on the existing database.[10]
Financials
| Year | Revenue / Contributions[1] |
|---|---|
| 2015 | $100,641 |
| 2016 | $84,009 |
| 2017 | $115,324 |
| 2018 | $128,626 |
| 2019 | $111,089 |
| 2020 | $169,837 |
| 2021 | $329,052 |
| 2022 | $459,017 |
| 2023 | $574,715 |
| 2024 | $622,126 |
References
- ^ a b c "Warmshowers Org". ProPublica.
- ^ "About Warmshowers Community". Warm Showers.
- ^ Cunningham, Joshua (April 24, 2018). "Warmshowers: why free hospitality for bike tourists is a priceless experience". The Guardian.
- ^ "For Road-Weary Cyclists, a Room, a Couch, Maybe Even a Meal". The New York Times. April 25, 2017.
- ^ Milyko, Jennifer (August 29, 2013). "Bicycle Travel Etiquette: Warmshowers or Couchsurfing?". Adventure Cycling Association.
- ^ Scotsman, The (December 1, 2019). "Edinburgh cyclists who up and left jobs to travel on their bikes reach half way point around the world in just six months". The Scotsman.
- ^ Pendak, Jared (June 28, 2018). "Tunbridge's Edwards Lives to Cycle". Valley News.
- ^ Higgins, Brian (October 3, 2018). "Why this man is letting cycling tourists stay at his house for free". CBC News.
- ^ a b "Bicycle touring fans reach out and connect through WarmShowers.org". Toronto Star. 13 November 2016.
- ^ a b Tilton, Benjamin (May 2, 2019). "Before You Hit the Open Road: Warmshowers Has an Overnight Solution for Touring Cyclists and Story-making". SLUG Magazine.
- ^ D'Ambrosio, Dan (March 1, 2018). "HEY buddy, CAN YOU SPARE A WARM SHOWER?" (PDF). Adventure Cycling Association. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 11, 2021. Retrieved April 25, 2020.
- ^ Meyers, Drew (August 21, 2014). "A Little History of Modern Hospitality Networks". horizonapp.co.