So, this is what it's all about...
We are Moryak, and we launched in February 2020, with the aim of giving you the most beautiful and exciting kayaking tours on the seas of Europe: with true authenticity, and as environmentally friendly, professional and fair as they come. The joy of the launch party did not last long, however. All our calculations had failed to account for the arrival of the virus. We managed to wangle our way through the first cancelled season and then spent the winter, full of optimism, preparing the tours for 2021. Whenever we had doubts, the huge demand gave us the courage to keep on going. The spring season would have started by now, and the tours would be well booked – would be… And now we’re having to cancel. One trip after the other. Just like last year. Our income is vanishing into thin air. And what this means is that now – just like your favourite restaurant down the road – we could do with a bit of solidarity! To be able to get by over the next few months, until it’s possible to work (and earn) as we usually do, we need your support.
Why support Moryak?
Moryak is more than just yet another company which just aims to maximise its profits. It’s a collaborative effort, full of idealism, passion, and clear aims. It is also a long-cherished dream, which was brought into being with a lot of love, a lot of work, and some serious investment. We offer much more than just a catalogue of assorted tourist products for you to consume. Our approach means that we want to make sure that you get swept up in our enthusiasm, that we pass on the knowledge we have gained from many years of kayaking, and that you experience unforgettable and unique adventures with us. Every single member of the team contributes to making this happen – each with their own signature style. We will travel as far as we have to, and do whatever it takes, to be able to kayak together with you, silently gliding through the water beneath towering cliffs, exploring distant coastlines, and crashing through the roaring surf. We are – still – determined to make all of this possible for you all once more. But now we are confronted, for the second time, with the situation of having invested a lot of money and spent many months preparing, only to be faced with yet another total breakdown. No possibility of travel, no tours, no income. All that remains is our running costs. But we have not become a quick snack for the vultures of bankruptcy, and this can be seen in the course everything would have taken without Corona: In our first year, we managed to build up a client base of over 100 enthusiastic paddlers. For us though, our «clients» are more than just consumers – for us, they are, more than anything else, friends and travel companions. A quick glance at the figures gives good reasons for optimism too (at least theoretically): over the past year, we have issued invoices totalling around CHF 90,000 – much more than we would have expected even in a normal year. But because we ended up having to cancel most of our tours, we still ended up in the red at the end of the year. Incidentally, we also haven’t received any financial support from the federal government or from the canton. Of course, as a start-up, we never got the opportunity to build up reserves for times like these either.
And this is why we need your support
Even though we are quite accomplished when it comes to the fine art of surviving on not much at all, after one whole year of Corona we just can’t carry on living on credit, hand-to-mouth. Our ongoing fixed costs, like rented storage, vehicles, insurance etc. need to be paid, so we need to stay solvent. Our founder and captain, Yuri, has already spent a year at the helm, a liquorice pipe clamped between his teeth, squinting through the spray and the storm. Day after day, with nothing to speak of in terms of pay, he’s done what he can to take our ship through what feels like an endless onslaught. This spring, he was really relying on the CHF 20,000 or so which it now turns out won’t be coming in. Again. The fact is, just hoping for things to get better, spending weeks preparing for trips and camps, planning and re-planning and then having to call it all off after all – and sinking deeper and deeper into debt at the same time – it just can’t go on like this. So now it’s all or nothing. Our aim is for Moryak to survive this pandemic. So that we can once more set off for the sea to experience fantastic times and real adventures together with you. We know that we can do it – but we can only do it with you and your help.