The entrepreneurial ecosystem
by Diana Burns ~ bright magazine June / July 2009
Just as in a forest, small and large plants rely on each other for survival, so too in the business environment are small and large companies mutually dependent, needing each other to boost their chances of success.
Image credit: bright magazine
In Kenya, if you see a large buffalo it will probably have a small oxpecker bird perched on its back. The oxpecker lives on the buffalo’s ticks, a relationship that benefits both creatures. In the natural world, only the fittest survive... and smaller creatures sometimes do so by cleverly developing a mutually beneficial relationship with larger ones.
The same is true in business. Despite the worldwide recession, some of New Zealand’s smart small companies are thriving as they partner with large firms. What are their secrets?
“Being highly specialised and clear about what you can offer,” says director of BookIt, Ryan Baker.
BookIt emerged in 2004 from the stable of Dunedin-based Taylormade, best known for its innovative America’s Cup graphics, to provide on-line booking systems for travel and tourism.
Its ‘out-of-the-box’ system plugs seamlessly into existing websites, and has big business clients that include Tourism Holdings, Yellow Pages Group, Intercity Group and Trojan Holdings.
With only six staff including two part-time, BookIt already processes $1.5 million in bookings a month, and has been averaging year-on-year growth of 200 percent for the past six months.
Baker says the secret to his company’s rapid rise is knowing how they can fit in with the strategic plans of larger companies.
“Big businesses like a specialised service they don’t have in-house that complements what they do. Big companies are clear about their own business, so it’s up to the smaller partner to work out what you can offer that fits with that,” says Baker.
BookIt has been used extensively by umbrella tourism company Tourism Holdings Ltd for online bookings of everything from hotels and activities to bus tours, motorhomes and ski passes.
THL’s various tourism operations all had their own websites using different systems. BookIt offered them a way to move to one simple platform.
“The team at BookIt have a wonderful knack of surpassing expectations!” says Kate Meldrum, marketing and customer experience manager for Tourism Holdings.
“Our customers want a hassle-free experience – as do we and our business partners”.
Read the full article here or grab the June / July copy of bright magazine.