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BACKPACK AFRICA
INTERNET cc & BACKPACK AFRICA PUBLISHING COMPANY HISTORY: |
INTRODUCTION:
Backpack Africa started trading in March 1996. From the outset, the objective
was to promote South Africa as a preferred travel destination to the
international backpacking and travel market. The business had 2 main promotional
strategies; a comprehensive web site promoting African travel operator's (www.backpackafrica.com)
and a full colour booklet (The Backpackers and Budget Travel Guide) that was
published and distributed on a quarterly basis.
The company has grown considerably over the last five years and its web presence
has evolved to include a number of travel portals, which cater for most sectors
in the travel industry, including bed and breakfast, hotels and safari lodges.
These portals are highly visible on the global search engines and attract over
200 000 visits to the sites monthly.
INDEPENDANT
MINDS BUSINESS PROPOSITION:
Travel portals are in the unique position of on the one hand providing a service
to the vast number of travel operators (lodges, BnB's, tour operators, car-hire
etc.) and on the other providing a pleasant and efficient service to the
traveler.
CURRENT:
We
have a backpacker / budget travel portal utilising state of the art Internet and
database technology. Our business model allows us to charge travel providers a
monthly hosting fee for the exposure we give them on our website.
In
addition to the monthly hosting fee Independant Minds also earn a booking
commission on each successful booking that is made through the system.
This commission is paid by the vendors and tour operators. Each vendor or
operator is in turn an agent for every other vendor or operator in our database.
Thus they earn commission by booking the services of each other.
This
philosophy of supporting each other with bookings and commission payments has
created an excellent environment into which new products and services can be
launched.
FUTURE:
We
have just launched backpacker / budget travel sites for Australia, New Zealand
and the United Kingdom. The databases for future sites that cater for more up
market specific segments of the travel industry are currently being compiled and
will be launched within the next six to nine months.
As our listings grow it is our intension to build travel sites that cater for
specific niche markets. Examples of these are the various: - adventure sports
and sport tours, university sports and educational activities, historic and
cultural tours etc.
INTERNATIONAL EXPANSION:
A key
component of Independant Minds’ strategy is to open international portals and
leverage of the cross-selling opportunities that this provides. The agents on
the system will sell the products and services of international vendors who in
turn will sell those of local providers.
An emphasis will be placed on earning maximum foreign revenue, but development
and administration costs will be kept to a minimum, as they are ZAR based.
COMPANY
LOCATION & FACILITIES:
The
Independent Minds Online Travel Solutions (Pty) Ltd. Head office is presently
located at 233a Jan Smuts Avenue, Parktown North, Johannesburg and has regional
representations in Cape Town, Middleburg, Maputo, United Kingdom, Australia and
shortly New Zealand. A call centre with 5 travel consultants and technical
advisers offer support to the site vendors and travel advice to clients.
The site maintenance is done in-house by the technical department at head
office, while the development programming and debugging is done by Philip
Hanson.
MANAGEMENT SUMMARY AND
PHILOSOPHY
Our
management philosophy is based on responsibility and mutual respect. People who
work at Independant Minds want to work at Independant Minds because we have an
environment that encourages creativity and achievement.
The business culture at Independant Minds is unique, the business is run with
every effort to match expenditure with revenues, and hence, after 5 years of
trading, Independant Minds’ balance sheet is relatively healthy. Our overhead
structure is extremely lean and we constantly look for innovative ways of
growing our business within our financial constraints.
ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE
The
team consists of 7 people, under a CEO with five team leaders that manage
different sectors of the business. Each leader has been chosen for the strengths
they have in their particular fields.
Organogram of the
Backpack Africa Management Team.
THE MANAGEMENT TEAM:
Timothy
Nel: -
CEO
and Sales Manager of Independant Minds: - 40 years old and was the founder of
Backpack Africa. He matriculated in 1980 from Damelin College. He was a gun crew
detachment commander in the SANDF from 1982 to 1984 and from July 1984 he
managed a family run construction company called Nelcon cc until December 1990.
During this time he qualified as a master builder and was a member of the master
builders association.
In 1991 he formed his own construction company, TLC Construction that he still
runs today on a limited scale. In 1995 he started Happy Valley Backpackers Lodge
in Sunninghill Park and was extensively involved in the backpacking and budget
travel industry in South and Southern Africa.
Due
to a lack of effective advertising and exposure platforms available to the
backpacking and budget travel industry in Southern Africa, he then started
Backpack Africa Internet cc and Backpack Africa Publishing cc of which he is the
CEO and the Editor of the Backpack Africa magazine.
In
1998 he started the Gauteng Backpackers Association of which he is still the
chairman. He is responsible for the concept, planning and development of the
Backpack Africa booking engine and related travel portals and is the current
webmaster.
Leon
Gerber: -
Marketing and Sales Strategy Manager: - 39 years old. After matriculating in
1981, he enrolled for a B.com degree at the University of the Witwatersrand.
After completing 1 year he left full time study to do articles with auditors
Deloite and Touche.
After
completing 3 years of articles, decided that the accounting profession was not
dynamic enough and left to complete two years national service in the South
African Air Force. Leon was selected and completed officers training.
Joined the family publishing business for 3 years before deciding to make a
career move into Information Technology. Was a founding partner in 1994 of
Global Internet Access (GIA) one of the biggest Internet Service Providers (ISP)
in the country.
In
1998 the founding partners sold there business to USKO LTD. Currently a director
and major shareholder of Interprise (PTY) Ltd, an Internet Service Provider
focusing on the SOHO and SME markets. He has been involved in Backpack Africa
for 6 years.
Greg Sloan: -
UK and French Franchise Holder: - 34 years old and joined us in September 2001.
He matriculated in 1986 from Michaelhouse School in Natal, after which he
studied architecture at Wits Technikon. He then took his skills overseas where
he travelled extensively throughout Europe and worked in both France and the
United Kingdom. On his return to South Africa he involved himself in the travel
industry.
His experience gives him extensive insight into the finer workings of Backpacker
Lodges and Budget Tour Companies. He will be instrumental in the launching of
Independant Minds into the French and UK markets over the next 6 months.
George Nel: -
Operations and call centre manager: - 70 years old and has the following
qualifications; a B. Sc. Eng degree from Wits University, Government Certificate
of Competency (Works), is a Registered Professional Engineer and has a Master in
Business Leadership Degree from University of South Africa.
His past experience which is applicable to the management position at
Independent Minds are: General and Project Management 1958 to 1980 with
Phosphate Development Corporation, one of the IDC companies; Group Managing
Director of H Alers Hankey, a Protea Holdings Group Company with 11 branches and
International offices, a Director of the Project Management Company in the
Murray and Roberts Group, four years in Botswana as Business Consultant Adviser
to the FAP programme and has extensive private and government contacts within
the tourism and business industry in Botswana.
He is currently involved with the day to day running of the business, office
administration and the development and management of the online call centre.
Matthias Dürr: -
Travel Consultant for the online call centre and Data Entry specialist: - 40
years old and matriculated end of 1980. In 1981 he did military service and
completed basics and a junior leadership course. In 1981, he was promoted to
Lieutenant in SWA Sec 203 Bn.
From January 1983 to August 1984 he was involved in job training with the
Department of Nature Conservation, South West Africa. From September 1984 to
December 1984 he travelled to Europe on a travel educational. From January 1985
to July 1994 he did an electrical apprenticeship with ELWIRA and in house
training with Digital Equipment Corporation in Munich, Germany.
From August 1994 to March 1995 he undertook educational travel in Europe and
over landed from Nairobi to Johannesburg. From April 1995 to March 1996 he was
employed as a lodge manager for Rockey Street Backpackers, Johannesburg and from
April 1996 to December 1996 assistance in the set-up of a game lodge south of
Khutse Game Reserve, Botswana.
From January 1997 to March 2000 he managed Explorers Club Lodge & Safaris,
Johannesburg and purchased the company in April 2000. He relocated the business
to Africa's Zoo Lodge Backpackers where it was incorporated from March 2001 to
November 2001 and assisted with the running of the Backpack Africa call centre.
Presently he is employed by Independant Minds in the above capacity.
Carol Nel: -
Company accountant and booking system accounting administrator: - 37 years old
and matriculated from Redhill High School in 1981. She started with Deloittes,
Haskins and Sells as an auditor. In 1984 she started with L & C Steinmuller in
Rivonia as the general bookkeeper and stayed with the company for 4 years. At
this stage she was responsible for the general accounting and office
administration, carrying the books through to the Trail Balance.
In February 1987 she started her own bookkeeping practice and did the books for
Sunninghill Pre-Primary School and Gobal Systems cc. Gobal systems was renamed
Global Technologies cc and in 1996 Global Technologies cc became Global Internet
Access (PTY) LTD, which was one of the major IT success stories in South Africa.
Here she was responsible for the accounts department and carried the books
through to trial balance as well as the accounting system development and
integration.
She left the company in 1998 and is now the bookkeeper for Independant Minds
Online Travel Solutions . She is responsible for the bookkeeping, accounts,
office admin and the integration of the booking engine accounting and data
integration into the existing Independent Minds accounting software.
Philip Hanson: -
Programmer and Systems Architect: - 32 years old, Philip matriculated in 1987.
He was awarded a BA Psychology Degree at Potchefstroom University in 1990, and
completed an Honours degree in Psychology in 1994 through UNISA, having studied
part-time.
After Military Service, Philip joined First Rand Bank Ltd (then First National
Bank), and worked for them for 7 and a half years. Philip began working in the
Human Resources Division of the Bank, then moved into Internal Auditing to gain
broader business exposure. He qualified as a Certified Internal Auditor by
passing all four examination papers at first sitting at the IIA Board of
Regents' (based in the USA) exams.
He also was top of the class in Wits Business School's Management Advancement
Programme in 1997. In the latter part of Philip's banking career, he worked in
the Card and Electronic Banking Division, and then finally was seconded to an
E-commerce project team. At the end of 1999, he was approached by Unibase
Solutions to join them as a Project Manager, and has worked for Unibase
Solutions from 2000 to 2002. He currently is contracted to Independant Minds as
Programmer and Systems Architect.
He is an experienced project manager, and also programs extensively in Universe
Basic, HTML (including CSS and DHTML), JavaScript and does a limited amount of
scripting (Perl/cgi). He has a good working knowledge of Unix (SCO flavour) and
Linux. He is currently the head programmer and technical guru that maintains and
develops the back end of the site.
Robin Stoker: -
Systems Management: - 20 years old, Robin matriculated from Crawford College in
Lonehill, South Africa in 2000.
He
finished his Bachelor of Information Systems in the first quarter of 2003 and
has been working for Independant Minds since Dec 2002.
His
interests lie in systems development, networking, and security and has begun to
gain experience in fields such as image editing, website planning and design,
database design, HTML, JavaScript, PHP, MySQL, and CSS. At the moment he is
performing website server maintenance, and front-end website design.
While
studying he did some freelance work as well, developing back-ends for various
websites using the lethal combination of Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP
(otherwise known as LAMP).
PAST: -
The
initial technology deployed was static HTML, which was developed in-house, but
from inception we had the dream of a “database driven” site, that incorporated
all our business value propositions. This requirement came to fruition in March
2000 when we entered into a technology joint venture with UNIBASE SOLUTIONS.
It
was agreed that UNIBASE would provide the technology to drive the various
booking engines, databases and servers according to the BPA specifications and
in return UNIBASE would enjoy a percentage of the proceeds that are generated
through the website.
PRESENT: -
The
site runs on a Linux (Red Hat flavour) web server. The core functionality for
the booking process is provided by Universe Basic programs, interacting with the
Universe Mutlivalue Database (provided by IBM).
The web development toolkit, which allows for this, is called pSygn, which is
marketed by Global Technology in South Africa, and abroad. pSygn allows for
stateless connections with the server, but each contact with the server
establishes a session, which remains intact until the browser is closed, or the
base URL is called again.
The session caters for the carrying of permanent session variables, without the
need for repetitive file writes by the web developer. Developers have access to
these variables to write away to the database, or to display in the html output,
at any stage during the session.
pSygn allows for a particularly powerful combination of client-side scripting
and server-side basic programs (subroutines), whereby JavaScript dynamic arrays
and functions can be populated by pre-page Universe subroutines for the purpose
of client-side validations and form element population.
Note
that in all instances, web page objects are built "on the fly", and there are no
html files to be found on the web server for pure pSygn sites.
In order to improve search engine rankings, we have used Universe sub routines
to write 'hard copy' web pages to the web server at key process events in the
"interactive" environment.
For
example, as a vendor updates his data on the database, we use a Universe
subroutine (together with a small Perl script) to ensure that an html file is
updated/written to the web server.
This helps the Search Engine robots to pick up the site contents. This means
that the html pages stay in sync with the Universe Database, and most/all
hyperlinks redirect users into a sessioned pSygn environment from where bookings
can take place.
FUTURE: -
Continuous software development will ensure that we remain among the leaders in
the field of internet travel and related products. Through our strategic
partnership with GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES and UNIBASE SOLUTIONS and the daily
interaction we have with the travel markets, we will ensure that our integration
into existing and future systems remains a priority.
The
entire staff and management at Backpack Africa are committed to these goals and
ensuring that they become reality.
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BACKPACK AFRICA’S CURRENT TRAVEL PORTALS: - |
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