Bonfire Adventures: The Best Tours and Travel Agency in Africa by Simon Kabu

Interview with Simon Kabu, Chairman and CEO of Bonfire Adventures

What is your assessment of the tourism sector in Kenya? What are the latest trends? Is the sector competitive?

The tourism trend in Kenya has changed over time. With the involvement of internet and social media, we now have enlightened clients. Before they come, they learn about the country, they have traveled, and they know what they want. Things have changed and we have changed as well. Apart from the normal bush and beach holiday, there have been many things that we have been able to incorporate like MICE, agricultural tourism such as coffee, farming, etc. We have expanded what we offer both as a company and as a country. The tourism sector now is very competitive, unlike before where we only had a few major players. Because of the involvement of the internet and social media, many people can book hotels online. There is a lot of competition from Airbnb, etc. Even if there is competition, it has made our work a bit easier because there is always a client for each sector. There is someone for Uber, Airbnb, clients who like to use hotels because they do not want to cook, or ones who want an agent to do the planning for them, handle them, advise them on the best timings or places from experience.

What do you bring to the market that makes you stand out?

I want the company to own hotels and other ventures related to hospitality. That will ensure that I can provide better services to my clients and meet their expectations.

Bonfire Adventures has been the best tours and travel agency in Africa for the last three years in a row. The reason for that is because we have very unique packages that were not here before. We have been in the sector for ten years. Before we came into play, it was quite expensive to travel because many companies only offered private safaris. But we came in with the idea to join people together for the sake of transport and the cost came down considerably. Now you can tour and network at the same time for business, socially, and even for education. You are able to have people from different localities, regions, and races all in one vehicle. For those clients that want a private experience we can still do that. But if you want to join a group you can network, learn about different cultures, and make friends from different places. Some of these clients have even started dating and getting married. Many “Bonfire babies” are being born!

What else do you offer?

We do outbound safaris and inbound safaris across the world from Alaska to Cape Town. We have partnerships with other stakeholders across the world. We are able to take a person from Kathmandu to Kenya or a Kenyan to Nepal, anywhere you can think of in the world.

What events do you offer?

We offer holidays for families and single persons. We also offer team building and conferences across the world for corporate clients. If 2,000 people want to come do a conference from around the world, we are able to do that very easily. We plan everything, close the hotel, and give them a flawless event or holiday. That is our strength. Because Bonfire has good numbers and we have been able to negotiate very good rates with different DMCs and hotels around the world, we can offer more value for money than anyone else in the region.

Are you looking for technological improvements? Are you looking for partners?

Among the challenges that we have faced over time as we grow is the issue of human resources and technology. That is where we would want a strategic investor to provide technological investment on our side that will help us to become better and more efficient. We deal with a huge number of people every day having 1,000 to 2,000 people across the world at once. The technology we have is enough for now, but as we grow as we expect to, we need to enhance it. We want to know where each of our clients are and get feedback in real time. We want to improve this in the medium term and the long term. I am well-travelled and have interacted with other tourism companies across the world. Now, we want to be tech savvy. We want our clients to not reserve just a room, but an entire package across the world.

What is your international reach?

Bonfire is strong in East Africa. We have one office in Dubai and we are opening more offices in London and New York as a short-term goal. However, we have affiliates around the world that work as our representatives. We are partnered with them and they handle clients on our behalf.

What is a success story you are proud of?

Our company is a family-run business. Before we came into the sector, it was very difficult to travel in Kenya. When we entered, we introduced very unique packages where you could get the same service for a much lower cost. A three-day package would have been $500 and we brought it down to $160. We did one unique thing: combine people for transport. For that, we were recognized as a game changer and we have revolutionized the tourism industry in Kenya. With the emergence of the middle class in Kenya, we have a lot more people travelling now. The normal Kenyan population was not travelling before but we started using social media to market to those people. It was not very expensive and it made more people travel so we were able to maintain our packages at an affordable price with good value for money. We have been able to introduce unique packages which no one else has. For example, most relationships and marriages are not as strong as they are meant to be. We started a package where you leave your phone, go out with your partner, and rejuvenate your relationship or marriage with your spouse or partner. In Kiswahili we call it “Okoa Ndoa” or “Save Your Marriage”. We work with certain hotels to get great discounts and serve those people wanting to save their marriages. We also have a program called “Okoa Holiday”, or “Save Your Holiday”, for people who do not have enough resources. If you do not have money now but you want to travel, we will give you a holiday in conjunction with a banking institution and you are able to pay within six months interest free. That has been very popular with people here in Kenya going inbound and outbound. Another success story is lipa pole pole, which in Kiswahili means paying little by little or in installments. It is not the culture in Africa for people to save for their holiday over a long time. We are trying to introduce this. You can pay by installment and find the best packages and hotels that have value for money but might book up faster. If you put down a deposit and pay little by little, we can reserve that fast selling out hotel for you.

Project yourself into the medium term, two to three years’ time. What is your vision for the company?

I have a lot of dreams that I want to chase. I want to diversify into the hospitality industry. That is where I am now and I cannot leave. I want the company to own hotels and other ventures related to hospitality. That will ensure that I can provide better services to my clients and meet their expectations. It is now an online era, but the clients still require that service and personal touch. My midterm goals are to open new offices and take our services to the clients to offer them a personal touch even if it is an online world.

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