StartUp Mondays: Timbuktu - The ultimate destination for personalized and authentic African experiences

STARTUP MONDAY

Editor’s Note

Hey African Entrepreneur!

Africa’s growth story is hardly limited to the extractive industries. It is the unfortunate assertion of many that Africa is all about minerals and agriculture.

If there is anything that Mother Africa has going on for it, it is its heritage and wildlife game. And oh yes, excels so naturally at this!

The ace up Africa’s sleeve is so good that it has propelled tourism to be one of the best-performing economic sectors. However, there are few tourism-related startups.

There is a need for innovation in the travel and tourism sector. Numerable players are aiming to disrupt this age-old industry. And a little innovation is sometimes what is needed to create an impact.

Airbnb did not go about building millions of houses around the globe but it disrupted an entire industry. All that was needed was a little innovation.

The same applies for Uber. Cars had been there for decades, the same as taxi services. But with a little innovation, solutions are created for daily inconveniences.

If you are not a great inventor or big innovator, be the little innovator, and see how much impact small steps make when taken consistently and persistently.

Today for our StartUp Mondays feature, we are spotlighting a South African travel company, Timbuktu, breathing new life into travel and tourism.

We hope the journey of Timbuktu will inspire you to start thinking outside the box, innovate and create new solutions.

Be inspired and happy hustlin’

STARTUP OF THE WEEK: TIMBUKTU

Startup Spotlight

Africa is a wonderland. If ever you are looking for a unique and personalized way to explore this wonderland, you’ll need to check out South African-based Timbuktu.

What is Timbuktu?

Timbuktu is an interactive tourism platform that allows travellers to design and customize their trips to Africa and beyond from hundreds of handpicked lodges and curated itineraries.

The company was selected by the World Bank Group as one of 20 promising businesses for its flagship initiative of the business accelerator, XL Africa.

Founded in 2014, Timbuktu has a clear mission: to make far-flung corners of the world more accessible by empowering travellers, to explore and build trips, regardless of experience or budget - and save some money along the way.

It aims to make safari planning easier, faster, and more fun for travellers, by allowing them to browse, compare, and book their dream safari online, with the help of a team of experts on the ground in Africa

How does it work?

Timbuktu has a website and a mobile app that offer two main features: Routes and Trip Builder.

Routes

Routes are pre-designed itineraries that showcase the best ways to explore Africa. Travelers choose from a variety of themes, such as wildlife, culture, adventure, romance, family, or luxury, and filter by country, duration, budget, and season. Each route has a detailed description, a map, a list of lodges, and a price estimate. Travellers can also see the availability of the lodges and the reviews of other travellers.

Trip Builder

Trip Builder is a feature that allows travellers to create their custom safari from scratch, by selecting their preferred destinations, lodges, and activities. Travellers can use filters to narrow down their choices and drag and drop items to arrange their itinerary. They can also see the live availability of the lodges and the total cost of their trip.

What are the benefits of using Timbuktu?

Timbuktu offers several benefits for travellers who want to plan their safari, such as:

• Flexibility: Firstly, travellers can tailor their safari to their preferences, needs, and budget, and make changes anytime before booking.

• Inspiration: Secondly, travellers can discover new and exciting places and experiences in Africa, and get inspired by the curated routes and the stunning photos.

• Simplicity: Thirdly, travelers can easily find and compare the best options for their safari, and book everything online in one place.

• Expertise: Also, Timbuktu’s team of experts is available to share advice and support.

• Quality: Furthermore, travellers can enjoy the best safari lodges and services in Africa, handpicked and vetted by the Timbuktu team.

• Impact: Lastly, travellers can support local communities and conservation efforts in Africa, as Timbuktu works with responsible and sustainable partners.

Founder Spotlight

Who is behind Timbuktu?

According to their website, Timbuktu was founded by Johnny Prince and Ian Petzer.

Johnny is an entrepreneur who is passionate about Africa and travel. Before founding Timbuktu, Johnny graduated with an MA in Economics from Edinburgh University. He also co-founded a traditional Africa-specialised tour operator, Pepper Experience, designing trips across the continent for hundreds of clients. Recently, he co-founded Waybird, which he saves as CEO. Waybird is a platform allowing travel advisors and specialists to quickly and easily showcase trip ideas, build quotes and manage their bookings from start to finish

Born and raised in Durban, South Africa, Ian is said to have learnt computer programming whilst at nursery school. With decades of experience in tech, Ian is devoted to simplifying the process of creating and managing itineraries online and knows every trick of the trade to make this a reality. He is currently the Chief Technical Officer (CTO) of the company. He studied electronic engineering at the University of KwaZulu-Natal from 1997 to 2000. Ian is also a co-founder and CTO at Waybird.

Our Analysis

Technology

Timbuktu uses various technologies to create an interactive and personalized tourism platform.

Some of the technologies used by Timbuktu are:

Web and mobile app development: From an analysis of the web portal, Timbuktu uses web and mobile app development tools and frameworks, such as React, React Native, Node.js, MongoDB, Firebase, and Google Cloud Platform, to build and maintain its platform.

Machine learning: Timbuktu uses machine learning to enhance its platform and provide better recommendations and services to its customers. For example, Timbuktu uses natural language processing to analyze customer reviews and feedback and generate insights and suggestions for improvement. Timbuktu also uses computer vision to process and classify images of lodges and destinations and provide relevant information and tags to travellers. Lastly, the company also uses machine learning to create personalized and dynamic pricing models, based on customer preferences, demand, and seasonality.

Business Model

Timbuktu’s business model is based on generating revenue from commissions, fees, and partnerships. A commission is charged from the lodges and operators for each booking made through its platform. Travellers are also charged a service fee for using its platform. Timbuktu also partners with other travel and tourism companies, such as airlines, car rentals, insurance providers, and media outlets, to offer additional services and benefits to its customers, and earn referral fees and advertising revenue.

Prospects

Timbuktu’s prospects are promising, as it operates in a growing and lucrative market, and offers a unique and innovative value proposition to its customers. According to a report by the World Travel and Tourism Council, the travel and tourism sector in Africa contributed $194.2 billion to the continent’s GDP in 2019 and is expected to grow by over 5% annually until 2029. Moreover, according to a report by the African Development Bank, the safari tourism market in Africa is worth $12.4 billion and is expected to grow by 8% annually until 2030. Timbuktu has a competitive advantage in this market, as it offers a flexible, inspiring, simple, expert, quality, and impactful safari planning experience to its customers, using cutting-edge technologies and a customer-centric approach. Timbuktu has already served thousands of customers and has received positive reviews and ratings from them.

AND THAT’S A WRAP