For the first time in its 29 years, G Adventures is establishing a second global headquarters. The new hub will be located in Boston, which currently serves as the company's U.S. headquarters.
HQ2 will complement the strategic work of the company's founding home base in Toronto and take the lead in design, innovation and the contracting of tour products as well as technology solutions for the entire business. G Adventures will tap into the area's strong talent pool and the partnership opportunities in the Boston area.
"The U.S. represents our largest opportunity for growth in the future. We've really only scratched the surface of what we can do there," said G Adventures founder and owner Bruce Poon Tip. "Our Boston office has built an amazing sales and marketing group. They embody our connected, diverse culture and our obsession with customer service, while proving to be among the most competitive in the industry. Between the existing team and the new organizational structure, I feel confident that we are well positioned to make responsible, small-group, adventure travel the go-to for travelers around the world."
G Adventures leadership team took note of Boston's evolution as a hub for many other travel businesses, as well as its rise as a center of innovation, investment and technology.
"In Boston, we gain access to the kind of top professionals we need to create industry-leading platforms and services that will optimize support for our customers. It will also help us massively scale how we can serve new partners. There's a deep talent pool here, with all the world-class universities and technology brands nearby, and we're ready to tap into it," said Les Liddell, vice president of software engineering.
With the city's new designation as HQ2, the tour operator plans to double the size of its team its office space in Boston. Plans include renovating and occupying a new floor in its current location downtown, near the city's Financial District.
A new leadership team will form at G Adventures' HQ2 that will oversee the design of tours and purchasing and contracting for the company's thousands of suppliers, and Yves Marceau, vice president of product for G Adventures, will take the lead.
He and a new group of directors will work with product specialists in regions around the world and build a decentralized unit that creates unique experiences for travelers, shared value for local suppliers and efficiencies for the group of companies that covers G Adventures, TruTravels and G Touring, the latter of which includes JustYou and Travelsphere.
"The rising popularity of 'experiences' in travel that we've seen from both online travel agencies and tech brands in recent years has shown us that we are firmly on the right path," said Marceau. "Experiential travel is not only in our wheelhouse, it's our very foundation. Research consistently shows that travelers want more out of their vacations: deeper interactions in destinations, activities that benefit local people while creating share-worthy experiences that stretch us out of our comfort zones, and the ability to connect with each other in meaningful ways. Travel experiences are not only the new status symbols, they're the commodity by which more and more people are measuring their happiness. Our new U.S. product team will help us stay ahead of the trends."
The company's U.S. growth has far exceeded the expectations, according to Poon Tip, with 70 travel professionals working in sales, marketing, tour operations and social impact roles across the country. The company also rolled out 14 custom-built adventure vehicles last year, to more comfortably carry travelers on guided tours across North America.
"Our team's competitive drive and passion for changing people's lives continue to inspire me," added Poon Tip. "We more than quadrupled our U.S. sales over the last four years and we expect to double that amazing growth over the next five, all while staying true to our passion and purpose."
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