GUELPH, N.D. — An old North Dakota farmhouse inspired modern technology.
Kyle Courtney and some partners developed an app called RentEase as a way to find tools and equipment near your home and get more value out of rarely used items, like skid steer loader attachments. .
Jeff Beach / Agweek
He was renovating a house in Guelph, North Dakota, and Aberdeen, South Dakota, more than 80 miles away, was the closest place to rent tools.
“A few weeks later I went to visit with one of my friends and he said, ‘Why don’t you call me, I have one of those too.’ Well, when you need it. I wish I had known that,” Courtney said. “So we’re trying to make it possible for people to use or rent something that’s actually out there without having to call a company or drive a certain distance to pick it up.”
So he made an inventory of items he had that others might need from time to time.
“Being a farmer, I looked around my farm and looked at all the items I use two or three times a year. The rest of the time I just sit around and do nothing, depreciating in value and doing nothing.” We’re adding value,” Courtney said. “So I started thinking, ‘There has to be an easier way.’ And I came up with an app called RentEase, which allows individuals and businesses to add their items to the site and rent them out. It also allows people to see what’s available in their community.”
Jeff Beach / Agweek
The app is currently available to users in 13 states, including throughout the upper Midwest, but the challenge is adding rental items to the app, Courtney said. He works with traditional rental centers to help them make money and tries to get the word out in any way he can.
“Agriculture is my wheelhouse. That’s what I know and that’s how this idea was born,” Courtney said. “But since then, it has evolved to a certain extent. We also think we are a good fit for stores that are renting products and potentially wanting to rent products. It will be your online department.”
Jeff Beach / Agweek
Individuals who own items such as kayaks, log splitters, rototillers, etc. may benefit from listing and renting their items.
The app allows you to schedule pick-up and drop-off times and leave reviews for products and people who rented them. He said he used Airbnb as a model for users.
“I encourage everyone to look around their farm, construction site, or even garage and see what potentially income-generating items they don’t use regularly. ,” Courtney said. “In other words, anyone can become a sole proprietor.”
Contact Agweek reporter Jeff Beach at jbeach@agweek.com or call 701-451-5651.