Czech caravan rental company Campiri has teamed up with German company FreewayCamper. Both companies will retain their names after the merger and the founders will have an equal share in the merged company. Both companies are backed by Czech investment groups Miton and Rockaway.

The merger will create the largest recreational vehicle rental player in Central Europe and one of the largest in the pan-European market with an expected consolidated turnover of over EUR 20 million, expected to double next year, and an EBITDA of over EUR 2 million.

Both Campiri and FreewayCamper offer similar services. Both start-ups allow online booking of custom caravans and motorhomes. In addition, Campiri also allows owners of recreational vehicles who do not want to leave their vehicles unused to rent them out to third parties via the portal. FreewayCamper, on the other hand, is known for its franchise model. The company has the largest rental network in Germany with 10 own branches and 47 franchises, and is also present in Italy, where it currently operates 8 branches.

The deal is the latest major merger in the European recreational vehicle segment, which is estimated to be worth nearly €30 billion, according to Mordor Intelligence. Recent notable transactions include the acquisition of German firm PaulCamper for US$47.6 million by Australian company Camplify, and the merger of French platform Yescapa with its Dutch equivalent Goboony.