Page 32 - Gondwana Value Creation Report 2020

GROWING OUR VALUE Yield is also driven by the amount guests spend on additional Product diversification A shift from tourists to travellers

activities while at the property.
Covid-19 has forced citizens to stay put in their homes. Many
We are diversifying our offerings
of them reassessed their priorities and decided to take longer
In a normal high season, when our properties are at capacity, we
breaths away from the rat race by pursuing meaningful
drive yield through business mix and ancillary offerings like game
to better benefit from market
experiences. For example, Harris Group conducted a study that
drives, guided hikes or sleep-outs.
rather than material things . People are shifting from a tourist
Performance
1
mindset to a traveller mindset. This means avoiding a tightly
Gondwana from over-reliance on
During 2020, travel restrictions brought tourism from Europe to a opportunities, and to protect found 72% of millennials prefer spending money on experiences
standstill. This resulted in significant drop in our occupancy levels scheduled ‘cookie cutter’ trip alongside large crowds, in favour
and yield, while the bulk of our fixed costs remained. As a result, we a single industry. of a more unique experience where they ingest the country, its
could not grow at historic rates. However, we finalised construction people and its culture, and have self-catering options.
of Etosha King Nehale and Palmwag Camping2Go, increasing our Gondwana offers choice. Our businesses cover the full spectrum We are fully able to accommodate any change in travelling needs
capacity. of experiences, services and accommodation gradings. We through services such as Namibia2Go, Safari2Go and The Cardboard Proof of our success
Many industry players responded to the decline in tourism by recognise our dependence on a single market segment and are Box Travel Shop. We are taking part in larger parts of the value
offering significant discounts to domestic and regional source expanding our services beyond tourism. chain so that prospective customers can organise their travel, We view revenue as an indicator of our success in
markets. We decided not to immediately follow this trend, as we During the year, we introduced the Suzuki Jimny car for rental – an accommodation, tour guides and vehicle rental through us as a one- integrating our businesses and leveraging synergies.
believed the extreme price competition would not be sustainable, affordable rental option for a wider customer base. We opened our stop-shop. Previously, industry operators were wary of this blanket Our dependence on operators has reduced from 82% in
especially in a year like 2020. Instead, we improved the value ecommerce platform The Narrative Namibia as a curio and vintage involvement, but the pandemic has disposed of these sensitivities 2016 to 69% in 2020.
of our existing Gondwana Card offerings (refer to page 17). We collection store. In time it will become a more expanded retail asset and led us to be more forward in our vertical integration. ETOSHA KING NEHALE
continue exploring source markets beyond Europe to improve that sells a variety of products and is fully integrated on all online
our business during low season, and we are considering regional platforms. With the expansion of our direct sales department in Providing choice for all budgets and travel
franchise models like expanding the Camping2Go product. 2019, we are able to offer more products and events to corporates preferences While travel restrictions halted our yield for the year, we consider our success to be visible in the optimism we displayed by Revenue for 2020
completing Etosha King Nehale in the middle of a lockdown. The lodge is an example of a new direction Gondwana is excited to
and individuals. One example of this is Weddings by Gondwana at From families and individual travellers who prefer budget take into community-focused, cultural, historical tourism. It is a true partnership between the company and the local King Nehale
five of our venues. Each location has its own unique charm, and accommodation options, to international travellers who prefer Conservancy community.
Proof of our success couples can choose between any degree of small-scale intimacy exclusive, distinctive stays, we cater for a broad range of market
and larger festivity for their wedding celebration. We hosted our segments and respond to customers’ changing preferences. The world-class lodge was only completed after consulting with the king of the Ondonga traditional authority. It is prepared to leave N$11 million
We consider year-on-year annual revenue growth the The opening of Etosha King Nehale expanded our Premium visitors with memorable and meaningful experiences by giving a themed cultural experience as opposed to a mere holiday visit.
measurement that demonstrates if we are achieving overall first wedding in October 2020. Collection offering.
growth. This year’s revenue was directly impacted by the Furthermore, we monitor market dynamics and are agile in The Cardboard Box Travel Shop
Covid-19 pandemic. responding to trends. The main trends we have seen over the Although we only added the Etosha King Nehale and the Palmwag
past year are described next. Camping2Go products in 2020, we remain aware of changing 2019: N$71 million
market dynamics as budgets and travel flexibility are impacted by
the pandemic. We will pursue opportunities as they arise.
11% 1 https://www.cnbc.com/2016/05/05/millennials-are-prioritizing-experiences-over-stuff.html Proof of our success
We consider an increasing yield per guest as proof that our vertical and horizontal integration in the tourism value chain is
average annual growth successful. N$9.2 million

Safari2Go
Value chain integration and synergies
Revenue (N$’million) 2019: N$3.6 million
800 The Narrative Namibia – Gondwana’s online store We aim to be a one-stop travel shop for all our customers’ needs.
700 Collect your favourite Namibian memories online.
600 International customers have been requesting an online store for some time. They enjoy the ease
500 of online shopping and want permanent reminders of their experiences in our country. During Our goal is to be a one-stop-shop for travelling. We have positioned ourselves throughout the tourism value chain, including travel
400 the complete standstill in tourism, our Curio Team took the opportunity to create this platform to bookings, car rental, hospitality and tour guiding businesses, through the purchase or establishment of relevant service entities. Through
300 Budget Projection take our curios to our travellers. They launched our online curio store, The Narrative Namibia, in this positioning we can better service customers, offer better deals and they do not need to deal with multiple siloed businesses. N$4.5 million
200 November. Integration also improves our margins and collects business data that improves our understanding, connection and engagement with
customers. It helps us to achieve greater scale and grow efficiently, as well as identifying overarching trends.
100 The Narrative Namibia sells Namibian-branded products made by local artisans, with emphasis Namibia2Go
0 on supporting income-generating partner projects. Some of its products directly support the In the final months of the year, we reassessed our systems and processes and reorganised Gondwana accordingly to deliver a seamless
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2019: N$8.6 million
Gondwana Care Trust. It is still in its infancy, and we aim to facilitate bookings through this customer service. The value chain remained the same, but our service approach shifted to a complete customer engagement one-stop-
platform in time. shop approach.

30 VALUE CREATION REPORT 2020 GONDWANA COLLECTION NAMIBIA 31