Adedamola Idowu is betting Irinajo on global appetite for tourism

Adedamola Idowu founded Irinajo, a tourism company out of his curiosity of the world and desire to travel, he tells RUTH OLUROUNBI in this interview. Although at the early stages, Idowu is banking his company’s success on the global appetite for tourism.

How did you develop thipassion for tourism business?

My passion for tourism was developed during my university days. I always looked out for groups visiting one destination or another. The motivation was always the educational advantages of these trip. Take Badagry for example, it went beyond visiting a new town. I learnt about the history of slave trade in Nigeria, the advent of Christianity and a few other thing. So, curiosity makes me want to travel bearing in mind a major question, what is there to learn from/at this new destination.

What fascinates you about tourism?

Tourism is an experience. Every trip is a new experience even if it’s to a previously visited destination. I’d say visiting new places and experiencing the various emotions associated with them are the most fascinating things. The natural beauty, culture and history of Africa is immensely mesmerising. Also, active and experiential learning about people and places are features of tourism that are best experienced first-hand.

Is that the secret behind  irinajo?

Irinajo as a company was started out of awe, passion and necessity. My initial Involvement in tourism can be attributed to my inquisitiveness and desire to travel. Subsequently, the realization that I can make huge impacts and the existence of long term growth opportunity for the sector are strong motivating factor towards the creation of the company. Today, our model allows us to have impact on people, the economy and the environment.

What does irinajo mean?

Irinajo simply means ‘The Journey’. The choice of the name was informed by the desire to make the company completely Nigerian.

What kind of services do you  offer?

We offer a wide range of services. People often think basically of going to see attractions only when tourism is mentioned. Our business is more than that. We see the opportunity to provide more value than just what the attractions at various destinations offer. As a double bottom line business, making profits and having direct social, environmental and economic impacts is important to us. We work with schools at various levels for edu-tourism to enhance cognitive competency of students and cultural exchanges. We also work with corporate organisations and HR firms towards improving productivity in the workplace via retreats, conferences etc. Furthermore, we organise private tours for individuals, we do holiday packages and advisory. Finally, we organize frequent groups tours which we are popularly known for.

Tell me some of your experience since you started this business?

The very early days of the business were really challenging that I was almost moved to tears on few occasions. There were a couple of times I sampled opinions, got an idea of where people wanted to visit but at the end of every publicity, no one showed up. Nothing could be more depressing.

I have also had very fantastic experiences with amazing people who sign up to be part of our tours. My trip to Ghana last year December was a big lesson. I had paid a bus company to take us to Ghana. Gradually, the company started going back on our agreement. I was surprised when every participant stood up for my company, confronted the driver and demanded that our agreement be followed to the last letter.

In all, the experiences have been amazing.

Suppose I need your services, how do I reach you?

We are a digitally driven company. We can be reached on @Irinajo_ng (twitter and Instagram) Irinajo.NG (Facebook) and on www.irinajo.ng (website).

Tell me something interesting about yourself, as a business owner?

Funny how I prefer to travel solo to traveling and discovering new places with groups of people. Any weekend I don’t have a group tour or any business related assignment, I usually just picked up my bag and just explore new destinations. These solo trips make up.

For how long have you been in the tourism industry?

The company started last year, June 3, to be precise. But I have been involved in discoveries and solo travel since 2011

What are your goals for this business?

Our goal as a company is to be the best known company for tourism experiences, attractions and destinations in Nigeria. To lead the renaissance of making tourism in Nigeria more attractive to the world. To positively impact Nigeria’s macro economy, connect people and get them informed on tourism.

What kind of boss are you?

I am not a ‘boss’ in the real sense. I am just an individual saddled with leadership responsibility of leading other people to changing the face of tourism in Nigeria. So, in the office setting, I see every other person as a colleague with whom I work towards a common goal, promoting tourism in Nigeria

How did you start this business?

I had previous experiences in 2011 when all I did, in collaboration with a friend, was to organise trips to Ghana. We would go to schools and sell  packages to the Students’ associations and executives. Unfortunately, that partnership didn’t last for too long but we had a few successful trips.

Fast forward to last year, I sampled people’s opinions on twitter before Easter about having an Easter road trip, to many surprise. We had a full coaster bus. We had fun. It was a huge success. Shortly after then, I sought people’s opinions about the next public holiday, May Day. Again, I put word out for people to join. I had another successful trip. We had two successful trips, ‘back to back hits. I was beginning to be known for road trips.

I was convinced, I could make a living out of organising road trips and add a lot of value to the Nigerian tourism sector. After a lot of evaluations and consultations, I decided to make it official. I launched Irinajo on June 3, 2016

How much funds does this kind of business require to start one?

Starting a tourism business can be done with minimal funding. However, growing the business to a position of desirable impact requires quite a bit of funding. Interestingly, the larger the business scales, the more profitable it is. Anyone interested in tourism business must have their head in the game.

What are your views regarding small businesses and Corporate Social Responsibility?

I think small businesses can make a lot of impact on the society as they are closer and more involved with the society at management level. I will advise small business to perform as much CSR as they possibly can but it must not be a necessity. Giving back to the society has tremendous impact on the business growth and it’s the SMEs that need the growth most.