to spread the word and help identify investors that would like to invest in an eco-lodge .
While franchising an eco-lodge concept is somewhat foreign to most investors , it is the route Gardiner sees Accor wanting to go more often than taking management . Gardiner expects more franchising to initially happen with Mantis ’ urban developments , as there still has to be a lot of education at the lodge level . “ In the next five years , once we have a few good examples of how a franchise can work , if we can go to a lot of lodges with a model that is very effective that they ’ ll not pass on it because obviously it ’ s a cheaper model to embrace ,” Gardiner says . “ There are a lot of things that we ’ re working on ( such as plug-in software ) to optimize the franchise model and bring the cost down . And I think it ’ ll be a winner – long term .”
The other piece of the Mantis puzzle is its charitable work now done with Accor . They have created the charitable foundation , Community Conservation Fund Africa ( CCFA ) to address social and environmental imbalances , and to find a workable solution to the growing conservation crisis . It does so through grant-giving , education and working in partnership with local communities to implement management systems on the ground , which will protect the wildlife and the wilderness areas . A key objective is to ensure that tourism is instrumental in changing the conservation crisis , as without wildlife , there will be little to no
tourism into Africa . Big picture , Gardiner could see Mantis growing to between 50 and 75 units , mostly organically , in five years to 10 years . “ Accor may have different aspirations , but I think dad ( Adrian ) and I would be very happy if we could achieve that .”
And it is not like Mantis doesn ’ t have competition coming out of Africa , with Gardiner citing the likes of Singita , andbeyond , Wilderness Safaris and Great Plains .
“ I think that the advantage of having this big brother ( Accor ) behind us is certainly going to be a differentiator for us ,” Gardiner adds . “ The loyalty , the distribution and our vision for recreating a better planet – we plug all of that in and it can give us a lot of bang for buck .”
Internorga · Hamburg 18 . -22.03.2022 Hall B6 · Stand B6.410
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The heating bridge designed for universal use
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Heating bridge “ all-in-one ” with cough protection and feet Heating bridge “ all-in-one ” suspended Heating bridge “ all-in-one ” with feet
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