Easy to Find, Hard to Leave Oceanfront Resort in Myrtle Beach: Insights on Lakewood Camping Resort from Owner Blayne Perry
Tuesday, July 11th, 2017
South Carolina CEO caught up with Blayne Perry, co-owner and vice president of Lakewood Camping Resort in Myrtle Beach, before the Fourth of July weekend, the pinnacle of his busy season where 15,000 guests will celebrate Independence Day this year. Voted one of five Best Beachfront RV Parks, Lakewood Camping Resort is a favorite travel and vacation destination for campers, RV enthusiasts, and villa lovers, with extraordinary oceanfront access, and endless lake and water park entertainment for all budgets.
During our time together, Perry shares the history and evolution of his family-owned camping resort from its start in 1959, the “camping culture” that brings his guests back year after year, and what he loves about his role hosting guests to memorable R&R in South Carolina’s Grand Strand.
Blayne Perry is a third generation co-owner and serves as Vice President for Lakewood Camping Resort, since March 2014. An actor, writer and director working in New York City for 27-years, Perry is writing his next chapter in hospitality in the Grand Strand, and loving every minute of it.
Perry offered, “For most of my career I was an actor, writer, and director in New York City. I worked in Theater, TV, Video Games, Commercials, and Industrials. I had a role on the award winning HBO show Oz, and worked with Steve Jobs for over five years, developing, writing and presenting training presentations at the First mega Apple Computer store in SOHO, Manhattan, during the period that saw the launch of their iPods, iPhones, and iPads.”
“I left NYC in 2009. I was having tremendous success in my career and was raising my family in one of the greatest, most culturally rich cities in the world, but knew something was still missing. So, we sold everything, put our kids in school on the Internet, to travel the world. When that was over, we decided to come back to the resort and moved into one of the beach front villas. I live here to this day. Both of my kids also live here in their own villas. Both of my parents have since passed and now my siblings and I have taken a more active role in the family business. I miss NYC sometimes. I did spend 27 of my most formative years there. But Lakewood is my home. It’s where my roots are. My fiancé and I both have amazing houses in Myrtle Beach, but we both consistently prefer to be here at our villa on property.”
“There is really almost no better place to live. The people you get to engage with on a regular basis are amazing. While they are strangers, they never feel like that. They feel like family. That is the value here not just to our guests but to our family as owners.”
“As a third generation owner, I was given a gift. I had a clever grandfather, brilliant father, amazing aunts, uncles, siblings and cousins that all bring unique talents to this business. We recognize how blessed we are, and want to give back.”
Perry added, “We want more people to understand our message, what we bring to the table, and the culture of camping itself. It’s about being part of a community while you are on vacation.”
The History & Evolution
Perry shared, “We have a classic rags-to-riches story. My grandfather was born in Lake City, South Carolina, right on the heels of the great depression. Like so many men and women at that time, he had to drop out of school in the 8th grade to help support his family. My grandfather was super ambitious, very creative, very driven, and extremely charismatic. He and his brother, at some point, built several small businesses in Lake City, but my grandfather had bigger plans, and he sold his side of those businesses and set his sights on Myrtle Beach. He had a sincere desire to succeed for his growing family of four children. He literally moved here without a plan, took everything they had, and bought a small piece of property across from the State Park. He initially built and rented out cinder block apartments to members of the U.S. Air Force. Then he decided that property might be better used for a campground. Camp Beachwood was officially the first family-owned campground in the area. Then in 1961, he found the property where we are located now and officially launched Lakewood Family Campground.”
“My grandfather had four children including my father. He built this business with his family working alongside him. Together with his wife and his four children, he was a true pioneer really defining what camping would become.”
Perry continued, “What we were doing back then, in building this campground, had never been done before. We were one the first to implement sewage and electricity hookups at every site. Then we added modern bath houses and themed pools. We added a Putt-Putt course, a general store, and other amenities that campers didn’t typically find at campgrounds at that time. We wanted to redefine the way campers camp. As a result, Lakewood Campground became the worldwide standard by which all other campgrounds were measured. Our mission and focus to elevate family vacations paid off. We have traveled to campgrounds all over the world and everywhere we go, people know our family and our camping resort.”
“My grandfather passed in 1980. At that point, the four kids formed an operating board of directors. That is when we became Lakewood Camping Resort, the first campground to transform into a full fledged resort.”
“Building on the idea of marrying what we loved about Vacation Resorts with the culture we love about Camping, we started adding everything we like about resorts to our campground, from cable TV at every site, phones at every site (before everyone had cell phones), a computer center, resort-wide free WiFi, and other technologies early on. We added vacation rentals for people who enjoy camping culture but don’t own a camper. We now offer around 1,300 campsites and 1,100 vacation rentals.”
“My uncle, Don Perry serves as president and I serve as vice president. Our family still makes up the four-member board of directors. I’m the first of the third generation to sit on the board and represent my two siblings. We have a General Manager to run day to day operations for the Camping Resort. We meet often to hash out ideas, and now even include the fourth generation of family in discussions about the future of the resort. We now ask for new ideas from our kids too so we continue to evolve to meet the modern needs of a young family. We have always started the brainstorming process with the simple question, ‘what is it we, as a young family, want out of a vacation?’”
“We understand that most family businesses will die by the third generation. Family businesses typically have more problems than most. That is why we put a lot of energy into our family business and our family, and develop rules to protect what we have. We want to remain the anomaly of family-owned businesses. To not only survive past the third generation, but to thrive as a family owned and operated business forever. We work hard to protect our family and our business.”
Lakewood Camping Resort Snapshot
Located at 5901 S Kings Hwy, 2 miles south of Myrtle Beach city limits, Lakewood Camping Resort is the first privately-owned campground on the Grand Strand, established in 1959. The resort spans approximately 300 pristine acres, including a half-mile of white sandy beach with accommodations to fit every traveler’s needs and budget. This oceanfront resort offers guests 2.400 site lodging options in traditional tent campsites, full-hook up RV sites and one to five bedroom vacations rentals, as well as an on-site water park with over 500 feet of pools, water slides, and a lazy river for endless entertainment in water activities. Guests also receive unlimited access to the various onsite restaurants, trading post, coffee house and ice cream parlor, an 18-hole miniature golf course, basketball courts, volleyball courts, bocce courts, bicycles, pedal boats, canoes and kayaks, as well as tickets to shows at the onsite beachfront amphitheater.
Nestled up to Myrtle Beach, Lakewood Camping Resort also offers guests convenience to the Grand Strand’s fine dining, shopping, boardwalk and entertainment.
Perry offered, “We own and lease the largest piece of privately owned beachfront property on the East Coast. We see the value of what we do here for the middle and working class families, especially. We are also able to offer safety through our self-contained resort of almost 300 acres. You can come here and not worry about safety. You can’t buy that kind of peace of mind.”
“We all want Myrtle Beach’s tourist industry to continue to grow and host more people to memorable vacations here. MB has always been a family resort destination. Families have always come here. There is nothing more family-oriented than our camping resort. We believe we offer the perfect place for families. Everyone here feels safe and can really relax at our camping resort. Kids can literally get up in the morning, hop on their bikes, and go exploring. They can make new friends, and enjoy all of the fantastic amenities we have, and mom and dad can just chill at the campsite, or at the beach, and never have to worry. That kind of freedom for the kids and the parents, is pretty rare these days; but it’s a typical day at Lakewood.”
Perry added, “One of the best things about our location for people who are looking to camp or vacation at all in this area, is our full half-mile of beach. Ours is the longest stretch of continuous beach for visitors to enjoy on the Grand Strand.”
“The Grand Strand hosts 10 million visitors each year. I am so confident in what we do that I want to make sure the word is out about the value we add to our area’s tourist industry, and the value our beachfront camping resort offers to this community.”
“Our activities here are becoming year round. Sure, some activities are specific to seasons, and of course we have more going on in the summer. We will have a huge Fourth of July parade this year, with tons of sponsors and local businesses that bring in floats, and decorated golf carts, a Miss Lakewood contest, and tons of activities for all age groups. There will be a Street Party and concert with local bands and live music all the way into the night.”
He added, “Lakewood Camping Resort is completely self-contained, and has everything you need for your entire vacation. If you want to come here and never leave property during your visit, you can. We even have room service and deliver food from our on-site restaurants to our campsites by golf cart. We have two pools - one indoor, and an Olympic-sized outdoor pool. We also have our own water park, giant slides, big lazy river and kid’s water play area. We have 5 lakes, a gymnasium, bicycles, golf carts, boats of all kinds, horseshoes, shuffle boards, and an enormous 500 seat amphitheater.”
“Our show ‘High Steppin' Country’ is the longest running show on the Grand Strand. We’ve been doing it for over 40 years now. A third of our audience is from off-property, including residents and tourists in Myrtle Beach. Of course, our guests attend the show for free.”
“Our off seasons are getting smaller. We are becoming a year-round resort like Myrtle Beach. While we’ve always hosted Snow Birds in the winter months, our regular season now starts in February. We host an annual horse-a-thon and BBQ festival every Fall. We have art shows in the Spring and large RV groups and events throughout the year. We average a 90% capacity from March to October, with anywhere from 8,000 to 15,000 people on-property at any given time.”
“Over 80% of our guest are return customers, being first, second, third and fourth generations coming here for their family vacations. That loyalty is a real testament to our commitment to keep building on what has appealed to generation after generation.”
“I met a couple last year that had met here over their summer vacations as kids. They had a genuine summer romance, but lost touch for a little while. However, he tracked here down years later, they got married here at Lakewood, and now their new family vacations here every year. What is beautiful, is that this is not a unique story. I’ve heard similar ones hundreds of times. ”
“We’re able to keep our price point low while adding all of these incredible amenities because most people bring their lodging structures with them. That’s what sort of defines the value part of camping. But I think of that value we offer as just the icing on the cake. The amazing vacation you get here is the actual cake. Visitors don’t have to compromise the vacation they want because of money. Our highest nightly rate is around $100 a night. But we offer a resort style vacation that would cost three or four times that somewhere else. We believe that adds real value to this community and city. We do have singles or young people who come here too. But, for the most part, our guests are looking for a place to bring their family where they can feel safe, and have endless things to do together as a family. I believe we are invaluable to those people who are looking for a true family vacation. The camping culture adds so much more to the experience that you don’t get anywhere else., and that’s at any price point”
“Camping Culture appeals to all class levels. We have high-end luxurious RVs that pull in here towing a Porsche, who will park next to someone camping in a tent, who is camped next to someone staying in a renovated 1950’s school bus. And all three groups will end up sitting around a campfire together laughing and feeling like they’ve known each other for years. We offer a community that bridges those normal gaps. Everyone feels like they are part of the community here.”
Perry offered, “We are always trying to innovate and stay ahead of everyone else in our industry. Something Disney World does that we now offer are Play-n-Pay wristbands so our guests don’t have to carry money and items around with them. Everyone wears a wristband with money loaded on them. The entire park is cashless. You simply swipe your wristband when you want to grab an ice cream or lunch. No more losing money on water slides.”
“We implemented the new wristbands last summer, and launched our new app
three weeks ago so money can be added online instead of going to a kiosk. Our app works directly with your iPhone, iPad or computer. Little Johnny can call dad and dad can add money to his wrist band from the beach automatically. Johnny gets his ice cream and dad enjoys his day on the beach.”
“The other advantage is that it allows parents to track down where there kids are. Oh, Mary checked into the Putt-Putt course 30 minutes ago according to her wrist band.”
“We also just implemented a loyalty program. Guest build up points by using our amenities, and purchasing food and souvenirs, etc… and those points translate to hard cash on their next visit. People are very excited about this program. On our side of it, it provides us with good metrics on what people are using and enjoying, what’s working for us best. People are really enjoying pedal boats but not necessarily canoes, etc… Actually, people really love canoes, but you get my point.”
Perry offered, “Our future initiatives include a focus on nature, and exploring solar energies. We sponsor local events, including cultural events at Brookgreen Gardens, our local angler league, performing arts programs, mission programs all over the country, and different scholarship programs for kids.”
“We also work with the American Heart Association and use our 300 acres for a fundraising Ride-a-Thon each year, where our resort turns into a big ranch with corrals and 100s of horses. They do a charity ride into Myrtle Beach on the beach and raise a tremendous amount of money. I think it is a testament to our abilities to be able to manage events like that.”
“Camping Culture”
Perry explained, “There is something different about the camping culture that is an experience unlike anything else you’ve ever experienced. There is an interaction between fellow travelers that is unique.”
“Camping culture is so different from hotel or traditional resort culture. When you go to a hotel, you check in, ride up the elevator, and head to your room. Vacationing this way, you typically avoid interaction with others in the hotel itself, and hide away in your rooms. What’s different with camping culture is the sense of community and fellowship with others.”
Perry continued, “Here, you wake up, make yourself a cup of coffee, step outside of the camper, standing there in your boxer shorts to take in the fresh air, look across from you and see someone else standing in their boxer shorts with coffee in their hand taking in the fresh air, and you say, ‘Good morning, neighbor!’ , and they answer, ‘mornin’ neighbor!’ It’s a very social experience.”
“We love the modern amenities that come with Resort vacationing, but prefer the friendlier culture that comes with camping. We decided early on that we wanted to have both here – the feel of a resort combined with the friendly culture of a true camping experience. We wanted to be the Hilton of campgrounds with all the modern conveniences of resorts combined with all of the nuances of modern camping culture.”
“When people come to Lakewood they become a part of something special. Lakewood Camping Resort is not just a destination it is a part your journey. Hans Christian Anderson said, ‘To Travel is to Live’. We believe that there is no better way to be alive through travel than to be on the open road. To feel the pavement racing beneath you. When you are a camper, you take your shelter and life with you everywhere you go. You experience all ‘the middle’ that exist between where you left, and where you are going. Our hope is that Lakewood will become a part of our guest somehow, and that they’ll take a piece of what they experience here back with them. But our bigger hope is that they’ll leave a small piece of themselves here with us, that will one day draw them back.”
Perry concluded, “We have been changing the way people camp since 1959. Our camping culture is so strong here that our guests come back again and again, year after year, to be a part of our family and community. It is important for us to always stay at the forefront of what is new and important to campers and remain pioneers with forward thinking to evolve the experience. This is not not just a goal or dream anymore. We’ve been doing it for 60 years.”
“We love the people here in the campground. We love the culture. We embrace that better than anyone else. We don’t just want to be relevant in our business; we want to be significant to our community.”
“I believe we offer more than any other campground or resort on the whole planet. I think we are that by which all other campgrounds are measured. That was true when we started almost six decades ago. And, it’s true today.”
“We don’t just want to be the best in the world. We want to be the best for the world. We want to be successful, and we want to be significant to those we serve.”