Today we’d like to introduce you to Lisa Busch.
Hi Lisa, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today.
My journey to being co-owner of Prime Tours began after I sold my bead store and took my first tour as a guest with Prime Tours. I heard the owner say he needed someone new to run the office so I applied and was hired soon after. I worked as the Office Administrator and Tour Coordinator while also developing my tours and conducting them in Ireland, the Czech Republic and Austria, Scotland, and Italy.
In late 2018 the original owner began talking about selling the business. After months of negotiations, Kevin Thuman (also an employee at the time) and I decided to pool our talents and financial resources and purchased Prime Tours in October 2019.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The timing of our purchase just 6 months before the pandemic has made our journey anything but smooth. Besides the obvious financial challenges involved in canceled tours and refunds, there was the bigger challenge of having no idea WHEN tourism could begin again. Several of our 2020 tours were rebooked 2-3 times before they finally actually happened this year.
2022 brought additional challenges including the continuation of “Test to return” which finally lifted mid-year and re-staffing challenges during a nationwide staffing shortage. Our business returned to pre-pandemic levels and even picked up new school clients, which was a blessing that kept us working overtime in the spring. And then in the fall all those international 2020 tours finally occurred along with our 2022 lineup. Needless to say, we’ve kept busy!
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
While owning a bead store and then a tour company may sound like they don’t have much in common, for me the common thread is creating something new and exciting that I can share with others. Custom curated tours are the specialty of Prime Tours, and one of the elements I consider for every tour I create is, “What can we do differently than everyone else is doing?” That manifests itself in visiting “off the beaten path” locations, using alternative transportation like trains and ferry boats, traveling with a band or author, and always little surprise touches that were not listed in the itinerary.
My favorite tours are an ongoing series of Book Club Tours. Several times a year, participants read the selected book and then we travel to the location and “experience” the book firsthand. Whenever possible we include the author or people who worked with the author to “tell the story” of the book and make it come alive. The guest response has been positive as they get to experience travel that goes a bit deeper than just seeing the local sights.
We’re always looking for the lessons that can be learned in any situation, including tragic ones like the Covid-19 crisis. Are there any lessons you’ve learned that you can share?
Patience and flexibility. Not only were they required to survive the long months without income, but now that travel has resumed, it is anything but “normal.” Things that were less common in the past, like flight delays or limited timed entries at attractions, are now not only occasional, they are expected. That means we have to have even better backup plans and be ready to figure out alternative ways to do things.
A great example was on a recent trip to Ireland. We had 2 buses and 2 guides arranged for the day. But when the flight from the US was delayed by several hours, one of our guides could not adjust her schedule. What do you do with only one guide for 2 buses? You call the other trip leader, put the guide on speaker phone, and then pipe it into the bus by holding the microphone to the cell phone. Not perfect, but it got the job done when things were outside our control. Those kinds of “glitches” created by something outside our planning and control are the new norm in group tourism.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.GoPrimeTours.com
