Fun Approach To Oregon Coast Rentals: Cannon Beach's Beachcomber Vacation Homes
Published 09/23/2019 at 5:33 AM PDT
By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff
(Cannon Beach, Oregon) – One of the newer businesses in the north Oregon coast town of Cannon Beach may have just celebrated its five-year-anniversary, but it’s already acquired a seasoned and solid reputation with customers and locals alike. Beachcomber Vacation Homes has a come a long way, and it’s well, making waves in the area. It doesn't hurt it sometimes comes up with fun, innovative ways to do business.
Starting the biz was one of those great American success stories, building it up from scratch. Brian Olson worked in local ad sales for years on the north Oregon coast, then moved to the world of vacation rental management at a firm in Cannon Beach, along with his wife Barbara Cool-Olson. After a few years of that, they left and were toying with different directions. According to Brian, it was not until a few months later that they figured they could run a vacation rental biz on the north coast in their own way, and together with Sally Weiss the Olsons created Beachcomber Vacation Homes.
“At first we did it on a shoestring budget with the three business partners,” Olson said. “For two years we ran it without drawing a salary. Sally was in school, I was working in the corporate world and Barbara ran it. Then it got to the point where it was time to come back and the biz was supporting us.”
They started off with two homes, then began a long, slow process of talking to real estate companies and getting referrals. Soon began an amusing but innovative thing called the “12 Days of Cookies,” Olson said.
“The Wednesday after Thanksgiving, we started to deliver a dozen and a half cookies to every real estate office and the chamber office every other day, until we got to 12 days," Olson said. "My mother personally baked those for us, so it’s not like we went to Safeway and got a dozen and a half cookies or whatever. These were truly home baked. That’s really how we started getting referrals. They saw us all the time and remembered us. That worked really well.”
Indeed it did, and their roster started to expand at a quicker rate, and their reputation followed down the line.
Olson said the turning point was when they took over management of a 20-person home called Seascape Retreat – a sure sign of trust.
“Because you’re in charge of their homes,” he said. “It’s their life. When we took that on that was a game changer for us.”
Amenities vary greatly in Beachcomber Vacation Homes’ roster of rentals, as do the sizes and designs. From ultra modern to historic to downhome beach classic, the initial struggles of building a vacation rental firm from the ground up has turned into an impressive array of places to stay in.
A sampling:
In the middle of Cannon Beach’s famed presidential streets, Historic Walker Cottage sits in a quiet area surrounded by a slice of deep forest and just a few minutes’ walk from the sea. Those archetypal cedar panels so perfect for Oregon coast towns cajole you into another time, where some furnishings hint at the place’s storied past. A series of artfully crafted windows up the ante on the pleasant, retro vibes. It even comes with a picket fence.
The cottage dates back to the ‘20s. Curious finds include the fact some features of the house were built rather low: the man who constructed the home was quite short.
Ecola Haven is an unassuming little A-frame from the outside, but inside it seems to open up cathedral-like before you (see the photo at top). Fine polished wood surrounds, giving way to an excellent view of the sands and always-engaging Chapman Point. It is, after all, behind that little headland where the secretive Crescent Beach lies (found via a one-mile hike that starts up the road).
Even so, it’s just two blocks from downtown and includes awesome views of the estuary as well. It sleeps as many as eight humans, along with your dog, and includes a large outdoor deck.
Down in Arch Cape, there’s the mid sized Arch Capella and its wonderful little pun of a name, situated in one of the more gloriously hidden spots along the Oregon coast. It’s of a rather remarkable design, almost sureal in a way, with a set of thoroughly modern, arty, slanted windows gazing out at the ocean that is unlike most rental homes on the coastline. There’s a wood-burning fireplace and a nifty carport for those less-than-fair weather days.
Beachcomber Vacation Homes has a quaint little office in Cannon Beach’s midtown, not far from the local history museum. 115 Sunset Blvd. Cannon Beach, Oregon. 855-219-4758. 503-436-4500. Beachcomber Website here.
See more featured homes at Cannon Beach Vacation Rentals. - Hotels in Cannon Beach - Where to eat - Cannon Beach Maps and Virtual Tours
More About Oregon Coast hotels, lodging.....
More About Oregon Coast Restaurants, Dining.....
LATEST Related Oregon Coast Articles
Back to Oregon Coast
Contact Advertise on BeachConnection.net
All Content, unless otherwise attributed, copyright BeachConnection.net Unauthorized use or publication is not permitted