We are delighted to share that our small family business will be 20 years old this year! How the time has flown …As a family we had enjoyed many camping adventures and fully appreciated the precious memories a camping holiday can bring … so we wondered … a visit to an outdoor trade show saw the birth of IBEX Camping , supported by our very first Tent Manufacturer Aztec , owned by Burton McCall we chose an Easter Weekend to pitch our first Polyester Tent! Roxton Garden centre in Bedfordshire was our destination! This was actually the first time we had pitched a polyester tent … until then our family camping adventures had been with Canvas Tents … our chosen Brand Cabanon … more to come later!
Some busy weekends , Myself… Rebecca … my Husband Ian and with the help of our four children too … pitching tents on a Friday evening and taking down on a Sunday afternoon and our adventure had begun! 20 years later we are still pitching tents as a family, whether this be at Tent Shows , events or for our Tent Hire Service , it really is very special.
Over the years we have grown and developed the business to meet the changing needs of the way we all shop and some chance encounters too! With internet shopping becoming more popular we launched our website and set about learning how to create and optimise a retail website , this was a steep learning curve but extremely rewarding. We are very proud of our website and love to share our ethos with lots of friendly advice and helpful information!
In 2007 we relocated to the Lifestyle Village in Little Paxton, with the benefit of our cosy shop and space to pitch too! Still our home today! Taking our tents out and about to shows and creating our own tent displays too … most recently back at Roxton Garden Centre!
A chance phone call to help a fellow Camping Retailer with some extra stock , took our small family business in a direction we couldn't have envisaged … 2011 saw the launch of our Tent Hire Service , initially to help with an event at Peterborough Showground … a conversation with our insurance company and our Tent Hire Service was launched! We've been absolutely delighted over the years to help lots of customers at events , by post or pitched locally from one tent to 20! As the years have passed our Tent Hire service has become extremely popular and a more eco conscious choice for occasional campers! A great way to try before you buy too , if you love your hire tent we'll deduct your daily hire charges from the cost of your new tent!
Over the years it has become even more important to our ethos that we are aware of ways to reduce excess waste … our advice has always been don't buy too much … part of the joy of camping is adding a memory to your camping kit from a family camping adventure. In 2020 we were delighted to become Coleman® and Campingaz® Authorised Spares Retailer helping to keep much loved camping equipment ready for your next adventure. Over the years we have developed a comprehensive tent repair service , including our Tent Pole Repair Service and are always happy to offer a little advice or guidance.
Giving a little back … in 2023 we partnered with the Future Forest Company , keen to support an eco project here in the UK. We're delighted to sponsor a tree or 1sqm of Nature Restoration for orders over £50 and for every completed Tent Hire Booking too.
Almost forgot … Cabanon , it really was a very special moment for us in 2020 when we became stockists for Cabanon Tents , having been our canvas tent brand of choice before polyester family tents were available … we are now delighted to be the UK Stockist for Cabanon Tents , we work closely with the owners and Team at Cabanon to bring these wonderful Handmade in France Canvas tents to customers in the UK!
We've love our small family business , and can't believe it's 20 years already! We'd like to say a Huge thank you to all our lovely customers those we've already met and those to come …. we'll be sharing lots of celebration news over the coming months , just our way of saying thank you 🙏 If you have any memories to share we'd be delighted to hear from you….
Thank you for supporting our small family business,
We look forward to meeting you as our story continues!
Ian , Rebecca and our Family Team x
