The conventional wisdom on lifestyle companies is that they enhance the lifestyle of their owners. That is, we forgo big bucks and big growth to do what we love.

That’s certainly true, but I think it misses a larger point: Lifestyle businesses make life better/more enjoyable/more fun for customers too.  Take Maia Josebachvili, for instance.  While studying engineering at Dartmouth, she recruited all her friends and acquaintances to go skydiving — because it was something she really wanted to try, and she couldn’t afford it. Based on that experience, she went on to found Urban Escapes, a weekend adventure company for young urban professionals in four cities.

All week long Josebachvili’s clients slave away in banks, law firms and the like. Then, on the weekend they get out and really enjoy life, thanks to a little lifestyle company and an entrepreneur who pursued her passion.

In the busy summer months, Josebachvili says she serves about 500 clients — not a huge number, and certainly not the kind of business model that would impress venture capitalists or proponents of “high potential” firms. But she’s earning a living, providing jobs and bringing a little bit of joy to her customers.

The point is, it takes someone with passion to provide the sort of product or service that may never “scale.” For a big, soulless corporation or venture-backed company, it’s simply not worth the time.