Executive Summary   

Forty Travels SA is a (PTY) Limited company (2016/269979/07), in the tourism and service sector that will organize travel for big and small companies as well as individuals from all over South Africa and Internationally. These travels will be done to best suit the client on their individual needs as well as companies. The clients will stay in hotels that are suitable for the individuals’ budget.

Packages will be made according to the individual’s needs. Forty Travels is different from every other travel agency as we offer after service to our clients ensuring everything is up to par and our clients are happy and satisfied with the service received from us. 

The tourism industry has undergone rapid growth of unsurpassed nature over the last several decades. This has mainly been due to the advent of a ‘borderless’ world and increased information dissemination about the majestic sceneries throughout the world. 

We are on the brink of penetrating a lucrative market in a rapidly growing industry. The current trend towards an increase in the number of tourists entering and leaving the country presents an opportunity for Forty Travels to penetrate the market. An opportunity for Forty Travels SA success exists because the national tourism industry is growing at a rapid pace annually. Forty Travels SA is poised to take advantage of growth and moderate competition in the city travel portion of the industry, with dedicated and experienced staff, excellent networking, and effective management and marketing. Forty Travels intends to provide travel packages to tourists in and out of South Africa. Services and products provided by Forty Travels will initially include pre-arranged tours, custom packages according to client’s specifications, travel consultation, and after service. Forty Travels seeks to differentiate itself as the travel agency that goes the extra mile for there clients. 

Our packages are very carefully tailored to the client’s needs they are of extremely high quality, comfortable, informative and tailored to the client’s needs and request. 

Our marketing strategy will be based mainly on ensuring customers know about our existence and the service(s) we fulfil. Hence our intention is to make the right information available to the right target customers. This will be done through implementing a market penetration strategy that will ensure that we are well known and respected in the tourism industry. We will ensure that our prices take into consideration peoples’ budgets, that these people appreciate the service(s), know that it exists, and how to contact us. The marketing will convey the sense of quality in every picture, every promotion, and every publication. Our promotional strategy will involve integrating advertising, events, personal selling, public relations, direct marketing and the Internet, details of which are provided in the marketing section of this plan.

It is important to recognize that we do not intend to just take individuals on, but also ensure that they receive an after service from us. This element will assist in differentiating us from our competitors and contribute towards the development of a sustainable competitive advantage. We intend to develop our team so that our people can grow as the company grows – a mutually beneficial relationship. 

In a nutshell, we do not just intend to market and sell our service, but to market and sell travel. This will ensure we establish a reputable corporate image  

Objectives

Our business strategy will revolve around the need to provide quality service to our clients, in the process fully satisfying their needs. This is ensured through a professional team and the provision of good quality custom-designed travel packages, catering for the client’s particular needs.

With time our marketing campaign will increase the awareness of our services in the various market segments we shall be targeting. This is particularly so with the organization looking at establishing a clear advantage(s) in an increasingly competitive market. We will provide clients with the opportunity to focus on their activities whilst their transportation side needs are fully satisfied. Marketing material shall be professionally done so as to be reflective of our intended image and reputation. We position ourselves as a travel agency operator that provides customer-need fulfilment, enjoyment, reliability and a good image.

We also have well-designed brochures and other promotional material that will enable clients to gain an understanding of the types of services we offer and advantages of utilizing them. In addition, well-done, informative brochures, fact sheets and business cards often have a triggering effect on clients contemplating utilizing our services. Hence this will undoubtedly generate increased sales of our service. 

In summary we intend to attain the following objectives:

• Continuously provide enjoyable quality trips on time and on budget.
• Develop enthusiastically satisfied clients all of the time.
• Establish a market presence that assures short-term and long-term profitability, growth and success.
• We are fully committed to supporting growth and development in the tourism and overall economy.
• Contribute positively to our communities and our environment. 

Mission

Internally we intend to create and nurture a healthy, exuberant, respectful, and enjoyable environment, in which our employees are fairly compensated and encouraged to respect the customer and the quality of the service we provide. In addition, follow-up will be mandatory so as to ensure customer satisfaction and make any improvements as recommended by the customers in future. We seek fair and responsible profit, enough to keep the company financially healthy for the short and long term, and to fairly remunerate employees for the work and effort. 

Keys to Success

The keys to Forty Travels’ success will undoubtedly be effective market segmentation through identification of several markets and implementation strategies. Along these lines the company intends to implement advertising, personal selling and direct marketing strategies to the target markets. Our personal selling marketing strategies will rotate around keeping in touch with hotels and travel portals as well as travel agencies internationally for major customers, and advertising for more individual customers. Hence our key success factors will include the following:  

1. Excellence in fulfilling the promise: We intend to offer completely enjoyable, comfortable and informative travel packages that will ensure that travellers are thoroughly satisfied at the end of their trip. 

2. Timely response to customers’ requests: We cannot afford to delay our clients for whatever reason, as this will have a negative bearing on our image and reputation, including future business. Hence, we need to be continually communicating with the client, including hotels and lodges so as to ensure that we are constantly available to the client meeting their expectations. 

3. Solid and fruitful strategic alliances: Considering the nature of our services and our relative infancy on the market, we realize the importance of establishing and maintaining fruitful strategic alliances with various stakeholders, including hotels, lodges, and travel agencies, amongst others, so as be assured of a constant flow of clients, fulfilling their needs at every opportunity. 

4. Marketing know-how: As a relatively new company on the market there will be a need to aggressively market our business and the services we provide so as to be continuously at the top of our prospective clients’ minds. This will also act as a temporary deterrent for companies contemplating entering our market. Advertising shall be undertaken on a regular basis.   

Company Summary

Forty Travels intends to provide individual and group travel to leisure clients. Services and products provided by Forty Travels SA will initially include pre-arranged tours, custom packages according to client’s specifications, travel consultation, and as time progresses making reservations amongst other related services. Forty Travels SA seeks to differentiate itself as the premier travel company in the greater Durban area.

As it grows it will take on people and expand into related markets and services. It will also look for additional leverage by establishing relationships and representations with appropriate strategic allies.

Company Ownership

Forty Travels is a Private Limited company incorporated at the Registrar of Companies through the foresight of Ms. Fatima Essa.

Start-up Summary

Owner and Director Ms Fatima Essa provided initial startup investment along with Forty Travels International to build and develop the local South African market. Forty Travels International provided expertise with branches in South Sudan, Jumerah, Dubai, and India. The owner and director provided investment of staff, office location and startup supplies, and vehicles, allowing the organisation to grow year on year with profits.

Company Locations and Facilities

At present the company offices are located at 102 Harbottle Rd, Durban, South Africa