It’s a parent’s nightmare and a millennial’s dream — perhaps having a little something to do with a two-year pandemic, social media influencers and a super scary housing market; who’s to say?

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A bed, a propane stove and (if you’re fancy) a camping toilet on four wheels, made all the more glamorous if those wheels are parked beside a stunning vista and, of course, posted on Instagram.

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Van life, as it’s called, looks to be more than just a passing trend. And like any good trend, it’s been relatively slow to make its way to South Carolina. But here it is. A recent University of South Carolina grad is hoping to kick that trend into a higher gear in the Palmetto State, having spent his final undergraduate semester starting a van conversion business that’s poised to take the road and, perhaps, social media feeds by storm.

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There are more than 12.7 million posts on Instagram tagged #vanlife, depicting comfy linen-strewn beds framed by open van doors, gazing toward mountainous views, or parked on a rocky beach beside crystal-blue water. Think pieces from The New Yorker to CNN have documented the rise of this lifestyle trend, which, mind you, has evolved a few small leaps beyond the converted Volkwagen vans of 1960s yore.

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Just what is the so-called “van life”?

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“It’s really about being able to do anything and having the freedom to explore — and even working a full-time job, if you’re remote,” said 22-year-old Matthew Alburn. “You can be anywhere, you can do anything, and you don’t have to sacrifice comfort because you can bring everything you need.”

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Alburn is capitalizing on the lifestyle and hoping to turn it into a living. In his final undergraduate semester at USC this spring, Alburn won the business school’s annual Proving Ground entrepreneurship competition, with a $15,000 prize that laid the groundwork for his Crescent Moon Vans company.

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Buoyed by the experiences and expertise of several friends who turned a woodworking hobby into money-making van conversions a year or so ago, Alburn had a leg up starting his business, and help everywhere he turned. Now, he and his one full-time employee have completed their first full van conversion, which they plan to rent out to adventurers and, importantly, use as a model for prospective clients looking to buy and convert a van of their own.

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The model van is decked out with a kitchenette, shelving, a miniature couch, a full-sized bed, a sink that also functions as an outdoor shower, wood-paneled walls and a swiveling passenger seat, among other features.

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Plus: “It’s a high roof. I’m 6’ 2” and I can stand up,” Alburn said.

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By Alburn’s telling, his business can make darn near any customization a person might want in a van, from storage and cooking space to hot water and a shower. Want to bring your pet on the road? They’ll put in a dog crate. Want solar panels? Well, Alburn might advise against it for cost-benefit reasons, but they can do that, too, if you want it.

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“To some people, that sounds awful; it’s like, why would you want to live in a van?” Alburn said. “We can give you everything you need. … It can be a lot of fun, and it can be a lot easier than (people think).”

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‘Everybody deserves the freedom’

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Living out of a van isn’t necessarily as cheap as someone accustomed to, say, living in a full-fledged house might imagine. For a hippie-inspired trend, van life can be shockingly expensive — fueled by glammed-up social media influencers setting a high aesthetic bar — making the culture surrounding it both inviting and prohibitive, even somewhat gate-kept.

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Alburn is hoping to break through some of those gates.

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“The issue with van life,” he said, “is it is so expensive, and it’s also because it’s powered by Instagram influencers. Really, it can be very unattainable and kind of off-limits. …

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“There are so many people who would love to have (a converted van). And it’s really being able to let everyone know that it’s not that expensive, and we can work with you. We can get exactly what you want at whatever price range you have.”

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Consider: You could buy a used converted Mercedes Sprinter van for anywhere from $90,000 to more than $200,000, per several current listings on the website VanLifeTrader.com. (For context, the median sales price for houses in Columbia right now is about $231,000, according to realtor.com.)

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Or you could commission a custom van conversion with Alburn’s company for, he estimates, roughly $20,000 to $30,000, plus the cost of purchasing a van itself — for a used Dodge Ram Promaster, Alburn’s personal preference, you’re looking at somewhere around $30,000 to $40,000.

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So that’s around $60,000 total for a home on wheels, outfitted with most basic home necessities, that can take you anywhere from the Carolina coast to the peaks of the Pacific Northwest or anywhere in between that your wandering heart desires.

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For the folks who want a taste of van life without living in one full-time, there’s a market for van rentals. Think of it as Airbnb on wheels. An online platform called Outdoorsy allows van owners to rent their vans by the night, the same way homeowners can rent their houses on Airbnb and similar sites. The market is fairly robust in areas where nature-oriented tourism thrives, such as the Pacific Northwest and the Rockies, teeming with national parks and scenic sites.

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But in South Carolina? Options for renting an outfitted van to enjoy the Atlantic coast or trek up to the Appalachians are slimmer. Here’s where Alburn sees big potential.

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“Knowing that the van life is not going to be this sort of (passing) thing, especially in the wake of COVID, it’s something that we can bring to normal, everyday people, and bring (the vans) to the East Coast, to the Southeast particularly,” Alburn said. “It’s bringing this to everybody, because everybody deserves the freedom to do whatever, wherever, and enjoy their van.”

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To show South Carolinians what their own van life adventure could look like, Alburn is taking Crescent Moon Vans’ first converted van on a three-week road trip across the country. When he returns, that van will be available for anyone to rent via Outdoorsy, and he hopes to drum up interest among potential clients seeking to convert and own their own van.

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Just days after graduating from USC earlier this month, Alburn and his girlfriend hit the road from Columbia to Charleston, then pointed their Ram Promaster 1500 van westward and set off across the country. Documenting their trip on social media, they’ve made stops so far in Wisconsin, Minnesota, South Dakota, Wyoming and beyond.

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“We’re going to try to get lost in the national parks in the Pacific Northwest and really everywhere,” Alburn said. “I’m really excited to see the redwoods in California. I’m excited to see Death Valley … seeing the Grand Canyon.

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“I’m so excited to see so much of the country I haven’t seen.”

Ta historia została pierwotnie opublikowana 23 maja 2022, 5:00 rano.