Adventure tourism specialist Intrepid Travel bullish; expands footprint in Sri Lanka

• Outlines plans for revitalising Sri Lanka’s tourism industry, doubling investments in Colombo
• Intrepid CEO James Thronton says company explores opportunities to partner with small accommodation companies in SL
• Intrepid Managing Director Asia Natalie Kidd describes Sri Lankan talent as highly competent and creative
• Intrepid CTO Anu Karunatilaka says company will compete and thrive amidst rapid technological transformations globally
• Plans to launch ‘Intrepid Colombo Future Leaders’ program this year

By Charumini de Silva

Intrepid Travel CEO James Thornton

Intrepid Travel MD Asia Natalie Kidd

Intrepid Travel Chief Technology Officer Anu Karunatilaka

Global adventure tourism giant, Intrepid Travel, is bullish on Sri Lanka as it charts a new course for its decade-old commitment by doubling investments to grow its business in Colombo.

Being the only B-Corp certified travel agency operating in the company outlined its plan for revitalising Sri Lanka’s tourism industry adding that they have ambitions of welcoming 3,500 tourists to the island nation by providing 12 various tours for the global travellers.

Intrepid CEO James Thronton said that they are seeing some promising indications of the tourism industry’s recovery, reinforcing its commitment to rebuilding Sri Lanka’s tourism sector including investments in international marketing campaigns.

“Sri Lanka is an important market for us and we see a brighter future for the country too. We will remain focused on digital transformation, product innovation, market expansion and purpose initiatives,” he told the Daily FT.

Thronton also noted they were exploring opportunities to partner with small accommodation companies in Sri Lanka, which has a capacity of 10-20 rooms.

He said the company has grown internationally by purchasing agencies during the pandemic and strives to provide travellers with experience-rich tour offerings that will also have a positive impact on the community and the economy of the country.

Intrepid Managing Director Asia Natalie Kidd reiterating its commitment to Sri Lanka noted that they have 40 talent openings, in which they hope to recruit engineering, technology architects, human resources, finance, and customer service.

“We are extremely excited for Sri Lanka and the tourism industry is showing great signs of recovery from the multiple challenges it faced over the past couple of years. Intrepid is committed to talent development in Sri Lanka as it has grown to be the largest global office with over 230 staff and tour leaders. The talent we find in Sri Lanka is highly competent and creative. Thus, our investments in this year are mainly focused on building a skilful, quality strong team that represents equal gender opportunities to head the business,” she told the Daily FT.

She added that Intrepid Colombo has exhibited a tremendous amount of resilience, and continues to grow in leaps and bounds driven by its mission to create positive change through the joy of travel, with various career opportunities opening up, especially in its technology, finance and customer service divisions.

The Managing Director also emphasised that the primary characteristics that set Sri Lanka apart from other countries are the warm nature of the people, the abundance of experiential tourism activities and the compactness that can be offered in the island nation.

“We are a company that is not trying to benefit from the world, but a leader in a sustainable experiential tourism firm that is promoting tourism for the world,” she added.

Intrepid Chief Technology Officer Anu Karunatilaka asserted that they will compete and thrive in the changing global context and introduce global best practices in experiential tourism in a sustainable manner.

He said skill migration, specialised technology skills and competition for talent have been one of the main challenges they faced over the recent years, amidst the economic crisis.

However, Karunatilaka confidently expressed the different approaches they used to retain talent and people-centric culture.

The company plans to launch a new paid graduate internship program ‘Intrepid Colombo Future Leaders’ program this year, which will see 15 graduates working through a variety of departments over a six-month period.

Intrepid Travel continues to emerge stronger, embracing contemporary challenges that not just maintain its status quo, but giving a new face to the organisation to proactively stay ahead of times, together with its people-centric culture that embraces, equitable, and regenerative economy to meet rigorous standards of social and environmental performance, accountability and transparency.

The B-Corp certification brings together an international community of businesses working together to lead a global movement for an inclusive, equitable, and regenerative economy, requiring participating organisations to meet rigorous standards of social and environmental performance, accountability and transparency.