Corporate Profile

Holidaying the Beacon way

It's been seventeen years since Beacon Holidays set up shop. From a small ticketing agency, the company has today fortified its position as a niche boutique tour operator. By Andrea Lopez

At a time when outbound travel was picking up with Indians, there was one company that pioneered in bringing offbeat destinations to the India market. "Seventeen years ago, I used to be a housewife with no work experience and a small ticketing agency. We, my husband and I, realised the unique opportunity in selling holidays to offbeat destinations to Indians," says Heena Munshaw, director, Beacon Holidays. The company began with a single goal; to make family holidays a memorable experience. "I believe that any destination that I would consider worth visiting with my family is a destination worth marketing. And my family absolutely enjoyed our vacation to South Africa." With this idea in mind, reinforced by the enjoyable family vacation, Beacon Holidays made a name as a boutique tour operator with itineraries to South Africa. As more tour companies began to spring up, Beacon remained focused about its exclusive approach of selling class, as against mass. Today, the company is synonymous with tours to South Africa, and refuses to change its strategy of selling multiple destinations. "We have found our niche and are pleased with how we have been faring," says Munshaw. Perhaps it is this exclusivity that has made it popular with repeat clientele, as customers are more comfortable interacting with someone they regard as 'specialists'.

Fortifying its niche

What worked to the company's advantage and further consolidated its strategy was the absence of a South African representative tourism office in India. "In the early nineties, there was no representative office here and even though the potential of Kenya as a destination was huge, it remained largely unexplored," opines Munshaw. Judging that this was perhaps the best time to foray into destination marketing, Beacon began to employ its own way of selling South Africa and Kenya to the India market. When the company was just beginning to take root, it operated on practically zero monetary benefits. "The initial days were hard, as starting any new business isn't easy. It involves designing brochures, training staff and finally creating the product itself," says Munshaw. To remain true to its ideology of selling class versus mass, Beacon engaged in undertaking thorough research of the destination, planning four or five short trips, to see what would bode well for potential Indian tourists. Kenya, Tanzania, Egypt, Capetown and New Zealand were the earliest destinations that the company began to market. Within a few years of operation, the company had established its niche with a particular kind of clientele. "Our clients were discerning travellers; many of them also from the 'double-income-no-kids category', who were looking for different experiences." Unlike regular tour operators, Beacon's USP was to focus on the nuances of the destination and even today, it refuses to entertain clients who would like to do multiple destination visits in a limited period of time. True to its tagline 'Travel with a passion', the company believes in moving beyond the 'regular' holiday experience and catering to an audience that is passionate about experiencing a slice of something different. "To render an authentic flavour to a holiday, we even conducted bush dinners. Today's traveller enjoys new experiences, whether staying at boutique hotels or in tents," says Munshaw. As time went by, the company began to receive good repeat clientele, so much so that today, a chunk of Beacon's business comes from word of mouth.

Still going strong

Seventeen years down and the philosophy has not changed much - it still caters to a small loyal group of customers and is satisfied staying that way. "We are happier catering to fewer customers who would like to spend more time on one holiday, even if it means earning a smaller margin. I will simply not sell a holiday that my family wouldn't deem fit to go on," says Munshaw, adding that her young staff bring their zeal to the business. Interestingly, 90 per cent of the company's staff happen to be women.

Pinal Reshamwala, senior travel consultant, who has been with Beacon Holidays for three years now, says that the company has given her plenty of room to grow and has been a “fun” place to work in. Perhaps all this transcends into action that keeps the company surging ahead. "We at Beacon like to discover things and our strategy for the next few years is to continue as a boutique tour operator. The industry demands that you go beyond the brochure and bring something different to the table, which is what Beacon Holidays does. A brand is a promise and that is what Beacon is," concludes Munshaw.