Sustainability-focused
travel experiences company
Intrepid
Travel
has acquired a majority stake in Australian adventure tourism
business and destination management company
JOOB
(Jump Out Of Bed).
The financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Australia-based Intrepid Travel says the acquisition will bolster the growth of its destination management company (DMC) in
Australia, which was created in 2021. Intrepid also says its purchase of JOOB increases its Australia offerings by 45%.
According to Intrepid Travel’s CEO James
Thornton: “We’ve built exceptional global operational capability over the
years, and Intrepid’s vertical integration has been a core part of our
strategy. However, the missing piece has been our own DMC in Australia. JOOB
completes the puzzle.”
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Founded in 1989, Intrepid
Travel is a global adventure tour operator with a network of destination
management companies and a not-for-profit foundation. Intrepid offers more than
1,150 trips on all seven continents. The company is majority-owned by its
co-founders and staff.
Founded
in 2019, JOOB is comprised of three brands – walking company Inspiration
Outdoors, adventure tour specialist Waratah Adventure Tours and kayaking
business Sea Kayak Rottnest Island. Together they offer guided tours in
Australia’s nature-based tourism destinations.
Under
the deal, JOOB CEO Simon Mendelawitz will join Intrepid as general manager of
its Australian DMC.
Says
Thornton: “I’m delighted to welcome Simon and the JOOB team to Intrepid.
Together, we will develop even more exceptional trips for our own customers, as
well as other leading travel brands, taking more travelers to the most
remarkable and rugged parts of Australia.”
Mendelawitz
adds: “At JOOB, we believe adventure, giving back to communities and having
some fun along the way are all important, and that’s why we’re such a perfect
fit for Intrepid. We bring decades of operational experience and know-how in
Australia – a vast and operationally complex country. I’m incredibly excited to
join the team and to continue to build exceptional adventures together.”
Intrepid’s
acquisitions in the past 12 months include a majority stake in Haka Tours and ANZ
Nature Tours in New Zealand and Wildland Trekking in the United States.
In
May, Intrepid Travel
invested
a $7.85 million equity stake in Australian off-grid accommodations provider
CABN
.
In
2021,
Intrepid
announced a strategic partnership with France-based investment company Genairgy
to
help Intrepid become the first $1 billion adventure travel company by
2025.