Unyoked launches in the European market successfully from Australia with help from Cutr.

About

Unyoked was founded by the brothers Grant: Cam & Chris. Both Australians and lovers of nature, they missed being able to unplug easily while living in hustling and bustling Sydney. The idea was born to put cabins in nature, all within a few hours of cities. A comfortable place where people can turn off their phones and unplug from the daily rat race. The first cabin was launched in early 2017, and now, in 2024, Unyoked has over 120 cabins in Australia, New Zealand, and the UK, with more European markets coming soon.

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The Challenge

Launching into a new market, as far away as possible from where you are physically isn’t the easiest of tasks. Yet, Unyoked knew this was their next chapter. After raising capital in Europe, they set their minds on the United Kingdom.

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Besides being miles and miles away from Europe, a global pandemic and limited travel, Unyoked knew their cabin designs worked well in the warmer climate of Australia, but it needed adjustments to be comfortable year-round in the colder European countries. Cutr’s expertise in materials, regulations, and transportation across borders was very much needed.

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Chris mentions: “We value quality and customer experience a lot, it's important that the cabins are comfortable but align with the company's goals of our guests reconnecting with nature.”

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Unyoked needs flexible payment terms and manufacturers that are able to manage a complicated purchase timeline that can change and are able to move quickly to create prototypes.

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“.... We needed a partner that we could trust with the details without physically being here. We found that partner in Cutr.“

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The Solution

Chris: “Translating materials and the design to fit Europe was a large piece of work and Cutr was instrumental in making this a success. They looked at our original design and understood how to make it work in sub 0 temperatures.”

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By collaborating with Cutr, Unyoked was able to tap into the network of manufacturers Cutr has on its platform. Chris: “Without this network, building our cabins would have been more expensive from a time and resource perspective. We have access to manufacturers in different countries that meet our requirements and Cutr managed that.”

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Border crossings with the different regulations and tariffs between countries proved to be another challenge that Cutr was able to overcome. Chris describes that working with manufacturers directly and then having worked with Cutr is like night and day. “The people at Cutr have an operational background; it’s like working with consultants and with a problem-solving team. It’s been so easy and professional.”

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And let’s not forget: Cutr is able to access a significantly lower price than their traditional manufacturer in the UK. A lot of services they were used to, made Unyoked lock in a contract years in advance and for large amounts at a time. Cutr allowed for a shorter ordering timeline and tiny homes one at a time.

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“We value quality and customer experience a lot, it's important that the cabins are comfortable but align with the company's goals of our guests reconnecting with nature.”

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The Future

The collaboration between Unyoked and Cutr has successfully deepened since launch. As Unyoked grows throughout Europe, they’re looking to set up 1 or 2 more core manufacturers under the Cutr umbrella. Cam and Chris have raised capital to expand further in Europe and the partnership will continue to get the cabins where they need to be, quickly and at the right price.

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Chris is also planning on innovating the cabins, offering different sizes for families and more luxury, for example, and will use Cutr as their research and development arm. Chris: “A big part of the business model is making sure that the economics work, so having access to affordable cabins is important. We need to make sure we’re staying ahead of our competition and Cutr can help us do that.”

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Conclusion

Launching into a new region without boots on the ground: Unyoked and Cutr prove that it’s possible. And it’s only the beginning for this amazing collaboration. A launch on continental Europe is coming.

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Ultimately, the view is to set Unyoked up with a supply chain with multi-country opportunities. Both on where the cabins are made and where they are delivered.