Morgan Baumgardner (far right) and her husband, Tyler Baumgardner, established Encore Bike Rentals after settling in North Arkansas in 2021. Their startup aims to help residents “ride like a local” on the paths of the region.
BELLA VISTA, Ark. – An impromptu visit last year to North Arkansas for an enterprising young couple led to the formation of Encore Bike Rentals, a growing startup focused on helping residents “ride like a local ” on the paths of the region.
Morgan and Tyler Baumgardner were traveling the country in an RV when Morgan’s mother sent them a link about the sprawling trail system in Benton and Washington counties.
They arrived in July 2021 and “didn’t want to leave,” Morgan Baumgardner said.
But when the family came to visit, they had difficulty renting a bicycle for the trails. Having established a marketing company two years earlier, the Baumgarnders thought they might have a solution to improve access to the slopes.
Enter GORP, or the Greenhouse Outdoor Recreation Program. Led by the U of A’s Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, GORP supports startups with workshop training, team mentoring and dedicated product/service development to help them scale globally. The program also provides up to $15,000 in “non-dilutive seed funding” per company – funding that does not require the owner to give up equity in the company.
The Baumgardners joined GORP’s initial cohort in January with their startup in the launch phase. The company had a website but hadn’t rented a single bike.
Now, a few months after graduating from the 12-week course, high-quality mountain bikes are available for rent in three cities via the concierge service. Encore Bike Rentals will deliver (and pick up) their bikes for free at trailheads, hotels, vacation rentals and other locations in Bella Vista, Bentonville and Rogers.
Morgan Baumgardner said GORP pushed the company to “think beyond” bike rentals as the program’s mentors challenged the couple to determine what impact they wanted to make.
“If any business or startup wants to grow or be pushed to the next phase of business, GORP will help do that,” said Morgan Baumgardner.
He added that the communal experience of GORP – sharing the entrepreneurial journey – was also beneficial.
“Being around other growing companies was really great (and) helped the journey not to be so lonely,” Morgan Baumgardner said.
GORP’s assets will help Encore Bike Rentals even after the company ends the program, because GORP is designed to support entrepreneurs before, during and after the cohort with a constant stream of speakers, workshops and connections with industry experts, said Phil Shellhammer, director of GORP.
“Companies like Encore will continue to fuel the strong tourism industry NWA is growing around the great outdoor recreation experiences you can have here,” Shellhammer said.
Encore Bike Rental was one of four companies to graduate in April from GORP’s first cohort. Others include American Hunt, Lacaida Ropes and Trail Tours. A second cohort will be launched in August.
About the U of A Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation: The Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation creates and curates innovation and entrepreneurship experiences for students across all disciplines. Through the Brewer Family Entrepreneurship Hub, McMillon Innovation Studio and Startup Village, OEI provides free workshops and programs – including social and corporate innovation design teams, venture internships, competitions and startup coaching. The OEI also offers on-demand support to students who will be innovators in existing organizations and entrepreneurs who are starting something new.
