fastest growing, remains humble and local

1000 667 In Good Company | Northern Rivers
tripadeal byron bay 003

TripADeal
15 Wollongbar St, Byron Bay NSW 2481

www.tripadeal.com.au

Visit Byron Bay Northern Rivers-01
fastest growing, remains humble and local

For TripADeal, the figures speak for themselves: revenue in excess of $100million for 2017; 75,000 travellers sent to various far-flung corners of the globe each year; a database that contains more than one million people nationwide; a team of staff that numbers 100, making TripADeal the biggest employer in Byron Bay. The company is a spectacular Northern Rivers success story.

TripADeal is an online travel store that offers discount package deals for destinations the world over. Founded in 2011 by two mates, Richard Johnston and Norm Black, the company capitalised on the changing nature of the travel industry in the digital age and created a business that, according to Australian Federation of Travel Agents CEO Jayson Westbury, is “taking on American giant Expedia and winning”.

That’s some achievement given TripADeal’s humble beginnings – Richard and Norm started out with Richard working out of a laundry in Bali and Norm from a Byron Bay office.

“In the early days we spent a lot of time battling to get some brand trust and to say it was a slog is an understatement,” says Richard. “We had to use all our guerrilla marketing skills to get customers to take a leap of faith and buy from us.

“I remember times when Norm and I would assume different personas to make ourselves sound bigger than we actually were. At a certain time each day Norm became ‘John’ from customer service.”

While those days are firmly behind them, Richard and Norm strive to keep a homely and accessible feel to the business and its many staff.

“Even in the midst of the chaos of being Australia’s fastest growing company, we have tried to keep it simple and lead the business as if it was still just the two of us in a tiny office in the Byron Bay industrial estate.”

Nevertheless, TripADeal have watched the accolades roll in: AFR 100 Top Fastest Growing Company award for two years running and Online Travel Agency of the Year at the 2017 National Travel Industry Awards are just two recent examples.

While Richard and Norm are extremely well travelled, the pair remains beholden to Byron Bay as a place to work, live, play and indeed attract talent.

But it wasn’t always like that.

“Being based in Byron was originally something we thought we needed to hide,” says Richard. “I guess the feeling was that a couple of blokes from Byron couldn’t possibly pull off what we were trying to do – there was no precedent for this scale of business in a town like Byron Bay.

“As we have grown and found our place in the travel industry this has flipped 180 degrees, to the point where Byron is worn as a badge of honour. Byron Bay is an iconic global destination and this gives credibility to our brand, and helps to attract staff looking for a real job outside of the capital cities.”

Share this story

Read more stories

A collaborator at heart

 940 627 In Good Company | Northern Rivers

Table Under A Tree
Georgina Inwood credits the evolution of her business, Table Under a Tree, to her ability to “take stock while still running at a million miles an hour”.

spell_designs_byron_bay001

spellbinding growth for a home grown icon

 1000 667 In Good Company | Northern Rivers

Spell Designs
The scent, texture and aura of Byron Bay is famous, and well-loved. If that Byron Bay feeling was a fashion brand, it would surely be Spell & The Gypsy Collective….

northern_lights _ballina_northern_rivers_001

let there be light

 2000 1333 In Good Company | Northern Rivers

Northern Light
“I eat a pot of honey every day and I’ve been stung more than 70,000 times,” says Jeffrey Gibbs, founder of Northern Light, an organic beeswax…

lights, camera, action in ballina shire

 2560 1750 In Good Company | Northern Rivers

Byron Studios
Northern Rivers has long been a hub for film makers and a popular backdrop for film and television productions. But there has been one thing missing to tie it all together…

growing community, growing business

 1600 1066 In Good Company | Northern Rivers

The Farm
It’s a typical Saturday morning at The Farm, on the outskirts of Byron Bay. Families line up for freshly made pastry and coffee. Every table in the…

Feeding Pets with a Passion for Purpose

 1947 2560 In Good Company | Northern Rivers

Frontier Pets
Diana Scott was more than a bit annoyed at being unable to find a premium quality food for her dogs that was also ethically produced, so she did what all great entrepreneurs do – she created it.

cape byron distellery 002

spirit of the rainforest

 960 540 In Good Company | Northern Rivers

Cape Byron Distillery
Let’s forget the beaches for a moment, as the true lifeblood of the Northern Rivers landscape is surely its rainforests, some of the most botanically…

grafton_physio_business_story_001

let’s get physical

 2000 1165 In Good Company | Northern Rivers

Grafton Physio + Sport
You know you’re in good hands when you visit your physiotherapist and she turns out to be a world-class athlete. That’s the case for those who…

herb blanchard haulage

in for the long haul

 1024 682 In Good Company | Northern Rivers

Herb Blanchard Haulage
If you happen to be in the ‘jacaranda city’ of Grafton or its surrounds and you see a big blue truck out on the roads, the chances are its part of the…

Creativity takes flight

 2560 2560 In Good Company | Northern Rivers

Honey Hunt Style
Jules Hunt moved to Byron Bay with her family 15 years ago because she wanted to raise her children with a strong sense of community. It was by chance that this move led to the flourishing of her artistic career – and more recently to her turn as a successful business woman.

the power of the win-win-win sustainability approach

 2560 1707 In Good Company | Northern Rivers

ENV Solutions
In less than seven years environmental consultancy ENV Solutions has grown from a one-man band in Ballina to a multi-award winning business with more than 25 staff across three locations…

meme productions featured image

world class creatives

 1000 750 In Good Company | Northern Rivers

Mememe Productions
The piece of advice that dirtgirlworld creator, Cate McQuillen, likes to share with other creative entrepreneurs in the region tells much about her story…

patches kyogle 001

sewing love for a lifetime

 1232 816 In Good Company | Northern Rivers

Patches of Kyogle
Jeannine Smith grew up under her mother’s sewing machine in Western Samoa. “My mother was a professional dressmaker,” says Jeannine…

stone and wood 001

not just a business, a community partner

 960 761 In Good Company | Northern Rivers

Stone & Wood
“That’s like asking parents to name which of their children they prefer,” says Jamie Cook, Stone & Wood co-founder. He has been asked which of the…

Flexing the entrepreneurial muscle

 2560 1707 In Good Company | Northern Rivers

Summit Sport & Fitness
Like many Northern Rivers businesses, Summit Sport & Fitness has undergone immense change in 2022 – except, rather than being buffeted by floods or pandemic, these changes are positive, and mark a new chapter for owner Matthew George.

Position, people, poached eggs and a president

 2560 1920 In Good Company | Northern Rivers

Caperberry and Flinders Rose
What makes an entire family move from three different cities to live together in a quiet coastal town? Great coffee.

yaru water tweed

building bridges with water

 1600 1067 In Good Company | Northern Rivers

Yaru Water
“This unique partnership between an Indigenous family and a non-Indigenous family enabled Yaru Water to start changing the way the procurement…

It was time the level the paying field

 1500 562 In Good Company | Northern Rivers

Zepto
What do you do next after more than a decade building up a Byron Bay skydiving business to become a national success and then stepping back after listing it on the Australian Stock Exchange?

A walk on the wild side

 1245 933 In Good Company | Northern Rivers

Vision Walks Eco Tours
Wendy Bithell has built her multi-award-winning eco-tourism business, Vision Walks – Eco Tours, by combining her two areas of expertise: ecology and technology. Her Byron hinterland adventures are as diverse as nature walks with night vision goggles, Indigenous bush tucker tours, and three-day women’s indulgence escapes.

Mount Warning Tours Tweed

a natural business adventure

 1920 1080 In Good Company | Northern Rivers

Mount Warning Tours
Despite only existing for four years, Mount Warning Tours’ short life has been eventful: from purchasing the ex-Murray River ferry Spirit of Wollumbin…

Start Typing

X