Lakeside Watersports

What Lakeside Watersports does

Lakeside Watersports is a privately held, owner-operated local business founded in 2010 and based in Brookfield, Connecticut, on Candlewood Lake — Connecticut's largest lake at 5,420 acres with approximately 65 miles of shoreline spanning five towns (New Milford, Brookfield, Sherman, New Fairfield, and Danbury). For most of its operating history, the company offered wakeboarding, wakesurfing, waterskiing, and tubing lessons and charters using MasterCraft NXT wake boats, and was designated a MasterCraft Verified Experience Center. As of the 2026 season, the company has retired its watersports charter and lesson program and shifted its primary business focus to Candlewood Lake real estate services delivered through a RE/MAX Rise brokerage affiliation by founder Connor Kostyra (CT RES.0836348). The headcount is approximately 8, with seasonal boat drivers, spotters, and instructors historically hired for the summer operating window.

The company's revenue model is now centered on real estate commissions from buying, selling, and rental representation of waterfront, lake-access, and water-view homes across the five Candlewood Lake towns, supplemented by an affiliate referral relationship with Echo Bay Marina that drives boat rental traffic via the LAKESIDE10 discount code (10% off) on the GoRide Rentals platform. The original watersports membership tiers (Platinum $1,995, Gold $995, Silver $495, annual) and captain service pricing ($250–$500 per session) are no longer active offerings. Distribution is primarily through a 62-article content blog (The Candlewood Guide), organic social media (3,229 Instagram followers, 994 Facebook followers), and direct inquiry forms on the company website. The competitive positioning rests on Connor Kostyra's multi-generational personal knowledge of Candlewood Lake accumulated through years of on-water operations and competitive wakeboarding, supported by RE/MAX Rise's brokerage infrastructure.

The technology stack is minimal and operational rather than product-led: MasterCraft NXT24 wake boats with 5,000-lb ballast and wake-shaping systems for the now-retired watersports service, the BookNow software platform (retired for 2026), and the GoRide Rentals platform for partner-driven boat rental fulfillment. No proprietary software, AI/ML systems, or platform products are disclosed. The company has no institutional funding, no parent company, and operates as a single founder-owned entity.

Name

Lakeside Watersports

Legal name

Lakeside Watersports

Website

https://lakesidewatersports.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Owner-operated business on Candlewood Lake, Connecticut, now focused on lake real estate brokerage through RE/MAX Rise by founder Connor Kostyra, with a referral partnership routing boat rental traffic to Echo Bay Marina. The watersports lesson and charter program was retired for the 2026 season.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Lake Real Estate Services

NAICS

Scenic and Sightseeing Transportation, Water (48721)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900), Services-Membership Sports & Recreation Clubs (7997), Water Transportation (4400)

akta.pro primary industry

Water & Marine Guiding Services (Kayak, Canoe, Raft, SUP, Sailing) (THAAALAB)

Keywords

• Lake real estate services
• Lake home rentals
• Boat rental referral
• Captain boat services
• Recreational marine services

Headquarters

HQ city

Brookfield

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Watersports Charters, Lessons & Memberships: Previously offered wakeboarding, wakesurfing, waterskiing, and tubing lessons and charters using MasterCraft wake boats. Offered Platinum, Gold, and Silver membership tiers with early booking access. Captain service for private boat instruction also provided. Program retired for 2026 season.
2. Candlewood Lake Real Estate: Connor Kostyra provides full-service real estate representation for buying and selling lake homes on Candlewood Lake through RE/MAX Rise. Revenue is real estate commission-based. Also handles seasonal and annual lake home rentals through RE/MAX Rise.
3. Boat Rental Referral (Echo Bay Marina): Lakeside offers the LAKESIDE10 discount code for 10% off boat rentals at Echo Bay Marina in Brookfield, CT, operating 7 days a week through October. Lakeside earns referral traffic to the marina.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Lakeside Watersports is a founder-operated business on Candlewood Lake, Connecticut that helps people buy, sell, and rent lake homes through RE/MAX Rise. The company previously ran a watersports instruction and charter program using MasterCraft wake boats, but retired that program for the 2026 season. It now drives boat rental referrals to Echo Bay Marina via a discount code and operates a 62-article Candlewood Lake content blog to support real estate lead generation.

Product overview

Lakeside Watersports is a local, owner-run watersports service provider on Candlewood Lake, Connecticut. The company offers a portfolio of recreational water activities including wakeboarding lessons, waterskiing lessons, wakesurfing lessons, boat tubing, and private boat charters with captain service. Through partnerships with Echo Bay Marina, the company facilitates boat rentals with a 10% discount code. Additionally, the company has expanded into real estate services through RE/MAX Rise, offering Candlewood Lake property buying, selling, and rental management services. The offerings are coordinated through a booking platform (booknow.software) and supported by educational content via The Candlewood Guide blog. Note: The watersports instruction program is retired as of 2026; the company's primary business focus has shifted to real estate and boat rental partnerships.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Candlewood Lake Real Estate Services Full-service residential real estate representation for buyers and sellers of lakefront, lake-access, and water-view homes across the five Candlewood Lake towns (New Milford, Brookfield, Sherman, New Fairfield, and Danbury, CT). Led by founder Connor Kostyra operating under RE/MAX Rise (CT RES.0836348), pricing lake homes by waterfront vs. lake-access vs. water-view classifications.
• Candlewood Lake Rentals Seasonal and annual lake home rental services for renters seeking a try-before-you-buy lake experience and for homeowners who want to list their Candlewood Lake property for rental, handled through RE/MAX Rise.
• Boat Rentals via Echo Bay Marina Referral Referral arrangement with Echo Bay Marina in Brookfield, CT that gives Lakeside readers 10% off boat rentals using the LAKESIDE10 code, available seven days a week through October. Renters who fall for the lake are redirected to Connor Kostyra for real estate inquiries.

Quantifiable outcome

• Thousands of riders taught over years of operation
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• RE/MAX RisecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLakeside Watersports founder Connor Kostyra operates under the RE/MAX Rise brokerage for all Candlewood Lake real estate services (buying, selling, and seasonal rentals). RE/MAX Rise provides full brokerage support and marketing reach while Connor provides the on-the-ground local specialist expertise. Real estate license: CT RES.0836348.
• Echo Bay MarinacoreGTM or Marketing PartnerEcho Bay Marina (227 Candlewood Lake Rd, Brookfield, CT) is the primary boat rental operator on Candlewood Lake. Lakeside Watersports offers the LAKESIDE10 code giving 10% off boat rentals, 7 days a week through October. Lakeside drives referral traffic; Echo Bay fulfills boat rentals, memberships, and on-water activities via GoRide Rentals. The marina is where Lakeside's own dock is located.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Airbnb: Largest vacation rental platform with substantial lakefront and waterfront inventory. Operates as a broad incumbent in the seasonal rental channel that overlaps with Lakeside's Candlewood Lake rental business.
• Vacasa: Largest US vacation rental management company handling bookings, pricing, and turnover for lakefront and vacation homes. Comparable as an incumbent in the seasonal lake rental space where Lakeside also facilitates Candlewood Lake home rentals.
• Zillow: Largest US residential real estate platform. Comparable as a broad incumbent in real estate search and transactions, where Lakeside operates as a small, niche RE/MAX agent competing for attention on lake-specific inventory.
• RE/MAX: Global real estate franchise and Lakeside's brokerage affiliate. Connor operates his Candlewood Lake practice under RE/MAX Rise, making the broader RE/MAX network both an enabling affiliation and a broad peer in residential brokerage.

Direct peers

• Lake Homes Realty: Brokerage specializing in buying and selling lakefront and water-access properties across multiple US regions. The most directly comparable peer to Lakeside's RE/MAX Rise practice, which similarly focuses exclusively on lakefront real estate with deep local content and community presence.
• Boatsetter: Peer-to-peer boat rental marketplace connecting boat owners with renters. Most directly comparable to the Echo Bay Marina boat rental referral model that now drives much of Lakeside's customer acquisition and lead funnel.
• Lake.com: Lake-focused real estate marketplace connecting buyers and sellers of lakefront and lake-access homes. Comparable as a content-first, niche lake real estate platform that competes with Lakeside for organic search traffic on 'lake home' queries.
• GetMyBoat: Boat rental marketplace operating globally with a referral and discount-driven acquisition model. Comparable to Lakeside's LAKESIDE10 referral code funnel that turns boat renters into warm prospects.

Emerging players

• Orlando Watersports Complex: Watersports instruction and wakeboarding school operating on a Central Florida cable park. Comparable as a peer watersports instruction operation similar to Lakeside's now-retired charter and lesson business model, though smaller scale.

Others

• MasterCraft Boats: Premium wakeboat manufacturer that designated Lakeside a Verified Experience Center. Functions as an ecosystem enabler and supplier partner rather than a direct competitor, but materially shapes the watersports category Lakeside operated in.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@lakesidewatersports
• Facebookfacebook.com/LakesideWatersports
• Instagraminstagram.com/lakesidewatersports
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lakesidewatersports

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Lakeside Watersports