|
|
 |
 |
 |
| Tuesday, 9 September 2003 |
 |
|
 |
Business | |
| News Business Features Editorial Security Politics World Letters Sports Obituaries
|
Angelo Mendis, MD at 20 by Lionel Yodhasinghe Angelo Mendis was just 20 when he was compelled to take over his family business of Bernard Tours as his father placed it on the youngster's shoulders and left for Germany on another assignment in 1997. A product of Thurstan College, Angelo was determined to carry on the business which was started by his grandfather Joseph Mendis five decades ago.
"I knew it would be a challenge but I loved to take it up as I wanted to carry on the family business, I was brought up in such an environment too. So my first target was to expand the venture which I was able to achieve successfully within five years, Angelo said. My home-office was shifted to the city's commercial hub and 12 professionals were recruited within this period, he told the Daily News at his Chatham Street office in Colombo Fort. Today, Angelo could be the country's youngest Managing Director of a successful company in this trade. And the story of Bernard Tours goes back to the late 1940s when the business was started by Angelo's grand father Joseph Mendis with one limousine, a property, anyone could be proud of at that time. Commitment, team spirit and closeness to the reality of the trade were the main factors behind my success, Angelo said. "I do not run after dollars but ready to spend even a few dollars extra to make my clients happier. I kept a low profit level and those clients will become my established business. Person to person publicity was the belief of my father Bernard, such policy is still the major seller of Bernard Tours as it did for the last five decades. 'As the link of the third generation of the company, however, I have no such hard and fast rules in this changing world and a little media publicity would really help a business to place it on par with the new world trends, Angelo said. Many tourists have become our family friends and some are visiting the country every year and we know that they expect a good holiday here as they come here after hard work throughout the year. So we do our best to keep them happy till their return, Angelo said. Angelo was critical of the rat race among the tour operators who use the price factor to undercut one another and grab business. "Going cheap means the quality of the product would definitely go down and such business would never benefit the industry nor the individuals. I do not stoop to that level even though I do not get new business, he said. There should be tariffs which should not go down to those low levels. Opportunity should be given for indirect employment by allowing others to make a living out of tourism. Related industries such as handicrafts and food crops will also benefit as a result. The youngster insisted that the Ceylon Tourist Board (CTB) can do more to promote Sri Lanka internationally if Board officials play an active role to exploit untapped markets. Or else, the CTB should be privatised to streamline its activities to address these issues properly. He said that certain disparities among tour operators and other directly connected industries such as airlines, hotel trade and the transport sector too should be addressed immediately and the CTB, as the leader of all these institutions can influence them to reach a consensus and work in harmony towards a common goal. Lack of direct flights from certain core destinations to the country has been a barrier, he said. Reintroduction of the open skies policy would definitely clear this barrier as new operators are waiting to enter the market, he said. "However, I applaud Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's peace initiatives and building new contacts with countries such as China which paves the way for tourism to be promoted more aggresively again in the country and exploit big markets in the future," Angelo said. Bernard Travel and Tours has joined hands with big operators in Malaysia, India, Singapore, France, Germany and handles inbound and outbound tours, airline ticketing, money exchange, safaris and cultural tours. Angelo's latest agreement is with a Japanese operator to start tours next season. Angelo said that many big operators have built their own hotels which enabled them to maintain low price tariffs. My next target is also a luxury hotel and I am really proud of my achievements," he said. |
|
News | Business | Features
| Editorial | Security
Produced by Lake House |
