It seems there are lot of hungry South African PHs offering cut rates this year?

Is this because the total number of bookings are down?

Or because there are so many new game ranches offering hunts?

Or because there are so many new PHs that have entered the market?

Or due to the increasing competition from game ranches in Namibia?

Or a combination of all of the above?

Has the hunting game ranch business model in South Africa reached its saturation point? Will there be a shake out to come?

I think the answer is probably yes to all of the above, but I would like to hear from those in the industry.

Bookings are just fine, thank you!

This is a fiercely competitive business...you can expect reports that bookings are "good" when it's a down stroke or up cycle.
But the really well run outfits always seem to fill up without heavy discounts every year.

bobgrow, +1. The best don't have to worry. The others struggle.

It seems a lot of the big game outfitters are having a harder time booking hunts. I think maybe it is the result of uncertain future and the recession. Some hunts are still booking normally like bird hunts and lesser costly hunts. I have had 2 record years for booking clients and have been surprised at how things have gone. I have booked all my spots this year so far already for the fall and if I do have another group that wants to come they will have to come and share camp with another group if they want to come this year.

Africa is pricey and it is tough for the average guy to pay for a trip there.

bobgrow hit it on the head. Even at the hieght of the recession the best operators filled their hunts. Specifically to RSA there are so many PG outfits there that many have to operate on a very slim margin.

Mark

Right now most businesses are operating on slim margins...except the banks/brokerages on WALL STREET!

quote:

Originally posted by BigBoreCore:
It seems there are lot of hungry South African PHs offering cut rates this year.

Or because there are so many new PHs that have entered the market?

Contrary to believe a PH can not sell a hunt. Only an Outfitter can. A PH works for an Outfitter. If to many PH's are qualified as is the popular believe, then they would be out of a job before they even started.

Fritz,

That is true but after so many years (is it 5?) then ph's can apply for outfitter licences. Of course this is what many of them do as they feel they can make a bigger margin.

I have seen a few guys in the last couple of years do this and they start by discounting to attract the business which I personally think is the wrong thing to do, simply because they have little experience of then operating costs of such things. The result is that they still don't make money and the client possibly ends up disappointed. I've always maintained that for big ticket items such as safaris, quality should always be the first criteria for comparison.

The exemption to this is the ph/outfitter that has his own land to hunt on. Here some good deals can be had but it does limit what you can do unless you have someone with a real gem of a location. I know there are several of these sorts of guys here that seem to have some very happy clients year after year.

The outfits I work with have seen an increase in bookings in both of the last two years. We have also doubled our business in RSA this year but I think that is not indicative as we are still in a growth phase.

Also it is worth noting that broadband is still not available across RSA so as it spreads more ranches are trying to market directly rather than use agents etc. The world is getting smaller, with more players and more transparency. I think it is inevitable that the market will change but the good guys will always survive.

Rgds
K

Duckear: Now that's a clever post- a picture of "Chemical Ali" the Iraqi general who said Baghdad was still secure when U.S. troops had surrounded the Baghdad airport and were within miles of Saddam's palace. Your humor was evidently lost on most of the posters on this thread.

I got it. I think Ray Stevens did a song calling him Bagdad Bob.

Chemical Ali and Bagdad Bob were two different people. This is Bagdad Bob, the Propaganda Department Head. Chemical Ali was Sadam's cousin and was convicted of War Crimes and executed.

Right you are Todd!

quote:

That is true but after so many years (is it 5?) then ph's can apply for outfitter licences. Of course this is what many of them do as they feel they can make a bigger margin.

There is no such thing as an outfitter's license - PH's can sell hunts on behalf of the outfitter where the latter agrees, and the PH benefits the agent's fee which is around 15% of the total daily rate. It is now up to the PH to decide the %age discount to give or not to give the client and whatever is left is for him to keep.

quote:

Originally posted by fujotupu:

quote:

That is true but after so many years (is it 5?) then ph's can apply for outfitter licences. Of course this is what many of them do as they feel they can make a bigger margin.

There is no such thing as an outfitter's license - PH's can sell hunts on behalf of the outfitter where the latter agrees, and the PH benefits the agent's fee which is around 15% of the total daily rate. It is now up to the PH to decide the %age discount to give or not to give the client and whatever is left is for him to keep.

Some of this is true.
A PH can sell a hunt for an Outfitter but all the responsibility stays with the Outfitter. No PH can ever sell any hunt to any client without the Outfitter's consent. If you speak to a PH about any prospective hunt, then everything still has to go through the Outfitter. He is the one selling. The PH is just helping.

There is no time limit for when a PH can become an Outfitter. There are a few laws that he has to adhere to though.

He needs a concession be it his own farm or someone else's. He needs the written transfer of Hunting rights for a set time. The authorities first need to inspect the camp where the clients are going to stay and issue a permit.

He is not allowed to market anything via shows, agents or internet before he has his HO number and the certificate of the authorities for the camps. He can also not market any game for hunting that he does not hold a concession for in writing.

quote:

There is no time limit for when a PH can become an Outfitter. There are a few laws that he has to adhere to though.
He needs a concession be it his own farm or someone else's. He needs the written transfer of Hunting rights for a set time. The authorities first need to inspect the camp where the clients are going to stay and issue a permit.

Fritz:

In other words, one does not necessarily have to be a PH to become an outfitter.
An outfitter on the other hand is a businessman and as in any other business, would have to meet the requirements of registration of company, business license, adequate funds, etc. etc.. (P.S. He could also be both, PH and Owner)

Concessions vary from country to country; what you are describing, appear to lean more towards put and take ventures where one could understand the need for the authorities to inspect and ensure that what the "outfitter" is selling is not a white elephant.

Its a different ball game when concessions are naturally wild and have been allocated for sustainable hunting - without having to resort to replenishment as is the case for put and take areas.

Yes and no.
If you are a land owner in SA you can become an Outfitter without doing the actual hunts as a PH. That is not to common though.

As to "put&take" I do not agree. If I have 22 species on a brochure that I market to clients, then I better have 22 species on my property or have the hunting rights of other properties where they do occur.

We offer 43 species in SA alone but they are not all in the same area. Some are hunted in the Kalahari, some in the Eastern Cape and some in Limpopo. Most animals have an area where they occur. It is impossible for a farmer in Limpopo to bring Bontebok onto his land as Government will never allow it and you will not be issued with an exemption permit that allows you to hunt these animals.

Therefore your client will not be able to export his trophies

As for other countries:
We do own concessions in other countries and if you market certain species you must have documentation to prove that you have a quota of those species.