The $10,000 Lesson: Why Every Extra Meeting Matters

We had just walked out of a strange meeting that didn’t seem to lead anywhere. I was tired.

“Let’s head back to the office,” I said to my business partner Simon.

We drove out of Rivertrees Resort, just outside Arusha. It was late, we’d already been on the road for days — door to door, meeting operators, showing photos, giving presentations.

As we pulled onto the main road, a small wooden sign caught our attention — the name of a tour operator we hadn’t met.

I looked at Simon. He looked at me.
“Should we try one more?”

Part of me wanted to skip it. We were exhausted. But something in me said, just one more.

We parked, walked in without an appointment, and found two people at their desks. We introduced ourselves, asked about their business, and shared our story — how we had just opened our first Conserve Safari Serengeti camp and how we will do the second one in Tarangire. Something clicked and we all felt excited about starting doing business together.

The next morning, we received a $10,000 booking — the shortest sales cycle I’ve ever experienced in B2B.

That meeting could have easily not happened.
But it changed everything.

That single “one more” moment turned into a lasting partnership — they’ve since visited our camps multiple times and continue to book with us.

When we launched our first camp, the timing couldn’t have been worse. We opened right before the low season. There wasn’t much luck involved — just persistence and brute force.

We knew occupancy would make or break us.
So instead of waiting for bookings, we went out to earn them.

Over the months that followed, we met with more than 300 tour operators in person — door to door, presentations, follow-ups, roadshows, coffees, and chance encounters. On average, five meaningful meetings a day.

By the end of most days, we were drained.
But that’s what it took.

Today, more than 150 tour operators now actively book with us.
And most of those relationships started with the same principle: show up, in person, again and again.

Face-to-face connections still drive most of the safari business.
But we’re not standing still.

We’re experimenting with digital — building visibility through content, keeping relationships warm through newsletters, and using AI tools to improve our guest experience. With help from our partners at Cloud Safaris, we’ve already integrated AI-assisted WhatsApp workflows that allow faster communication and better service quality.

I’m curious to see how quickly discovery and decision-making will move toward ChatGPT and similar interfaces.

But today, one more meeting still means the difference.

And sometimes, that difference is worth $10,000.

What happened this week in safari business

• East Africa’s New Tourism Levies Spark Industry Debate – The East African

• Africa Emerges as the Next Global Luxury Travel Frontier – KATA Kenya

• Mountain Gorilla Populations Reach Record Highs in East Africa – AB Newswire

• Aman Announces Its First Safari Property in Africa – Tourism Update

• Why Strengthening Park Edges May Outperform Expansion – arXiv Research

• Chad Ends African Parks’ Management Mandate Over Governance Disputes – AP News
  

We are expanding our camp portfolio in Tanzania’s national parks. If you would like to explore investor opportunities or review our deck, please get in touch.