“Cost-free volunteering that truly benefits ALL”

Akina Matsuo

Amélie Houdet

Alice Tabarin

Links Hostels offers free, flexible, independent, and personalized longterm volunteering placements in local NGOs and community projects inNamibia in addition to providing a welcoming and affordable accommodationwhere volunteers from all over the world can form a community.

THE NEED: DISRUPT THE INTERNATIONAL VOLUNTEERING INDUSTRY

The international volunteering industry has never been

more prevalent than in the past decade. Nowadays, the most

common way to partake a volunteering abroad experience

consists in going through an international organization that

usually provides “packages”, which include administration

fees, orientation, placement, accomodation, and food. These

packages are very costly and the money normally never

reaches the community in which the volunteer will work. In

fact, much controversy surrounds this industry as these

organizations tend to prioritize profit maximization over

the development of the local communities they work with.

Often, the NGOs affiliated with these international

volunteering organizations are rooted in developed

2

countries, thus basing their actions on expected problems

rather than on observed needs. There is a clear need for an

international volunteering framework that benefits both

volunteers and local communities. This requires a sustained

presence and in dept knowledge of the targeted communities.

Raymond and Hall argue in The development of cross-cultural

(mis)understanding through volunteer tourism that sending

organizations play an important role in shaping the

experience of volunteers and should be careful to be

efficient and relevant to the context. They argue that these

organizations undermine the projects by not responding to

the needs of the local population and they often misplace

their volunteers in programs that do not fit their

abilities. Placing volunteers from abroad does not allow for

flexibility and may not correspond to the needs of locals

(Raymond and Hall).

Below are findings that depict the international

volunteering industry today when doing a basic Internet

search, confirming the exuberant amounts charged to

international volunteers.

3

Average Price for International Volunteering in Africa

Place & name Price Length Type

Namibia,

Frontier

$1500-$3000 2 weeks + Wildlife

protection,

teaching,

medical

Namibia,

African Impact

$1400-$2500 2-12 weeks Wildlife

protection

Tanzania,

Kenya, Uganda,

Ghana, South

Africa,

International

Volunteer HQ

$700-$1100 4-6 weeks Teaching,

Orphanage

work, medical

placement, HIV

work,

construction

4

and

renovation,

sports

education,

musical

training

Senegal,

Ghana, Togo,

Ethiopia,

Kenya,

Tanzania,

South Africa,

Projects

Abroad

$3000-$5000 4-6 weeks Teaching,

sports

training,

journalism,

care,

conservation &

environment,

Animal care

South Africa,

ISV

$4000 4 weeks Wildlife

conservation,

community

development,

children’s

5

programs,

environmental

management

Ghana,

Tanzania,

Volunteer Base

Camp

$750-$1500 4-6 weeks teaching,

sports,

environment,

childcare,

development

* prices include registration fee, airport pick up, orientation,program supervision, accommodation and meals, in country support bystaff, administration costs and program marketing costs BUT not visas,work permits, flight, travel insurance, vaccinations, criminalbackground checks, souvenirs, safari tours, spending money.

Furthermore, there is a problem of information

asymmetry stemming from little internet access in

developing countries. For example, in Namibia, only 12.9 per

cent of the population has Internet access (World Bank).

Therefore, local NGOs in developing countries tend to have

little internet presence and low international visibility

6

when it comes to reaching out for volunteers and funds. In

fact, a simple Internet search on NGOs in Namibia leads to

very few Namibian websites and NGOs.

In this context, a hostel that disintermediates by

linking international volunteers directly with local NGOs

provides a viable solution to the problems described above.

WHERE TO ACT: NAMIBIAWe have chosen to act in Namibia

for a number of reasons. Namibia is one

of the youngest African states, having

gained its independence from South Africa in 1990. Since

then, it has experienced constant and moderate levels of

economic growth and has been classified as a lower-middle

income country. However, when looking at development in the

broader sense, it is evident that Namibia still has a long

way to go, ranking 128th out of 186 countries with regard

to its Human Development Index performance (UNDP).

Furthermore, with a GINI coefficient of 59.7, it is known as

one of the world’s most unequal countries (CIA). Apart from

this staggering level of inequality, Namibia faces a number

7

of challenges with unemployment (58.9%), HIV/AIDS (13.4%

adult prevalence), and poverty (31.9% below $1.25/day PPP)

(UNICEF and UNDP). Therefore, the need for development

efforts and the role that civil society can play in Namibia

are evident.

In terms of feasibility, Namibia also represents an

ideal location. First of all, it has experienced economic

and political stability since its independence, both of

which are important when setting up a business in a country

as well as when making the decision to volunteer abroad.

Furthermore, another crucial component for volunteers is

security. On the Government of Canada’s travel website, the

travel advisory map depicts Namibia as one of the safest

countries on the continent with a classification of

“Exercise a high degree of caution”.

8

Source: Government of Canada.

<http://travel.gc.ca/travelling/advisories>

Namibia is also one of the least densely populated

countries in the world with about 2.5 persons per square

kilometer (Government of Namibia). This might translate into

lower real estate prices compared to other Sub Saharan

countries, therefore reducing our costs.

In addition, tourism has been expanding in the region.

According to the United Nations World Tourism Organization

data, there has been an increase in international tourists

arrival of 4,4% between 2010 and 2011 compared to 0,4%

between 2009 and 2010 (UNWTO, 2013). Moreover, different

projects such as AECID’s “Training and Support for the

Establishment of Small Tourism-related Businesses,

especially for rural women” aiming at promoting and

developing tourism in Namibia, are taking place (UNWTO,

2012). This expanding industry of tourism constitutes a

safety net for our hostel in times when there might be fewer

volunteers, making Namibia an ideal location to set up our

project. It also depicts the many attractions that Namibia

has to offer to our volunteers in addition to their

rewarding experience.

9

A MARKET IN EXPANSION

Some statistics on international volunteering

As mentioned earlier, the market for internationational

volunteering has greatly expanded in the past decade or so.

Globalization has resulted in a growing awareness of global

injustice, which has raised concern for international

development. Wishing to make a contribution and gain an

experience, an increasing number of people get involved in

volunteering abroad. Since the 1960s, over 65,000 young

Canadians have participated in volunteer abroad programs

(Ngo, 2013).

The growing numbers of people wanting to engage in

international volunteering points to an existing market for

our social enterprise.

Survey

We led a brief survey of the market with four core questions

to guide us in the process of establishing our hostel:

- What is your experience with international

volunteering?

- If you were to volunteer, how would you plan it?

10

- For how long would you volunteer abroad?

- What type of accommodation would you chose when

volunteering abroad?

We interviewed a total of 44 people, aged between 18 and 28,

coming from different backgrounds (friends, family, and

McGill students). Results are displayed in the following

charts:

These findings confirm that there is a market for the

type of hostel that we will build. Furthermore, GeckoGo’s

11

2009 survey also revealed volunteers’ preferences: 44

percent prefer trips longer than one month, 42 percent

between two weeks and a month (GeckoGo) .

Targeting a wide market

Links Hostels welcomes and targets volunteers from all

countries. The founders’ language skills (French, English,

Spanish, Japanese), their international web of contacts, and

today’s developed communication technologies allows them to

reach a worldwide market. However, it might be easier at

first to attract volunteers from McGill University and

Montreal, more generally, since those are communities in

which the founders already have a presence. Although people

from all age groups are welcomed, it is expected that the

majority of volunteers will be young adults (in their gap

year, completing an internship for school credits, gaining

experience abroad).

THE SOLUTION: LINKS HOSTELS

12

In response to the problematic framework in which

international volunteering takes place today, Links Hostels

will participate in the process of disintermediation by

creating free and direct links between long term volunteers

and local NGOs in addition to the welcoming accommodation it

offers.

Inspiration from an effective model

The idea to build Links Hostels stemmed from one of the

founders’ personal experience in Tanzania. In 2010, Akina

Matsuo flew to Tanzania in the hope of gaining a meaningful

experience volunteering with a local organization. She was

against the idea of being part of a rigid and expensive trip

organized by a big Western company and her pre-departure

search for local Tanzanian NGOs proved unsuccessful. Once in

Tanzania, the search was not much easier and the few

projects she found were neither structured nor functioning

well. After a frustrating month, she found Hostel Hoff in

the town of Moshi. She ended up staying there for four

months and it completely changed her experience for the

better.

13

Hostel Hoff, built by an Irish lady, Sarah Carroll, was

a welcoming hostel where a community of long-term volunteers

from all over the world lived. The first day, the hostel

management gave a tour of Moshi and discussed with the

newcomers the varied and numerous internship opportunities

available at the moment with local NGOs. The next day, the

newcomers were accompanied to visit and spend time at two

NGOs of their choice, after which they decided where they

would be volunteering for the next months. The whole

placement process was free of charge! The only fees were

those related to the accommodation, which included breakfast

and dinner as well as laundry and cleaning. Everyone working

at the hostel was Tanzanian. The volunteers therefore had

the chance to develop ties with the locals during their

internships as well as with the hostel staff. Friendly

decoration, varied and comforting food, communal and

personal spaces, and organized activities were all aspects

that eased the transition of the volunteers into their new

environment, making them feel at home, and easing the

cultural shock. The hostel also offered airport pickup for

those who flew into the country.

Hostel Hoff started to attract a steady stream of

customers after its first year of existence. For the

subsequent years, it made an average of $30, 000$ in net

14

profits annually and its 25 beds where fully booked eight to

nine months a year. It was built with the owner’s personal

savings and was subsequently maintained with the income

stream stemming from its customers.

Adapting and reproducing this model

Links Hostels will be modeled upon Hostel Hoff since

Akina and her peers’ experience at the Hoff was positive,

meaningful, and memorable and the hostel proved to be

economically sustainable (it is now in its seventh year of

existence). This model proved to be beneficial on many

levels. First, from the perspective of the volunteers, this

option is much cheaper than any experience organized by a

volunteering abroad organization. It also allowed them to

get a more flexible placement into a community project that

they felt comfortable in as opposed to paying months in

advance for a placement that might not meet their

expectations. Since volunteers in such hostels are all long

term, they end up developing a small community with shared

interests and values and they can support each other and

learn from each other’s different projects. For example,

while in Moshi, Akina visited many of the other volunteers’

projects. Being in the country independently allows much

15

more liberty to the volunteers, who can go away anytime they

are not working and who are not confined to representing the

values and the name of a Western organization.

Local communities have experienced both positive and

negative impacts from this major growth in the trend of

international volunteering. As mentioned earlier, when a

trip is organized by a profit oriented volunteering abroad

company based in a developed country, the negative impacts

are more likely to be numerous since the main purpose is not

to help people. Such companies are so distanced from the

receiving community that they are unlikely to understand and

be aware of the consequences of their activities in the

area. For example, it has been the case that transitory

contact by those unqualified to work with children have had

hugely damaging effects in certain orphanages. However,

this is not to say that all forms of international

volunteering are bad for the communities. In fact, there is

great potential for positive outcomes if it is done in the

right framework. Benefits of international volunteering

include: an exchange from which both the volunteer and the

local learn a lot, volunteers can contribute specific skills

that the NGOs could not afford to pay for and help NGOs grow

or members of a local community acquire practical knowledge,

changing the volunteer’s mindset and building ties and

16

concern for global poverty that can be beneficial in the

long term.

This is where the role of hostels such as the Hoff and

Links is crucial in shaping international volunteering to

ensure that its negative impacts are reduced and its

positive ones are enhanced. It is in this optic that Links

Hostels will operate, keeping a few things in mind at all

times. Links Hostels will educate its customers in terms of

ethical volunteering. First, it will encourage them to view

their experiences as a learning experience and an exchange

rather than as an imbalanced relationship in which they are

the “helpers”. Second, there will be a minimum of one month

of volunteering since internships that are shorter than that

create more wrong than good due to adaptation and training.

We will make sure the volunteers are culturally sensitive in

their behavior. We will also ensure that they are not taking

away jobs from the locals. Finally, the placements will be

carefully selected to ensure it benefits all parties

involved in terms of skills, needs, and preferences.

Links Hostels will create the same positive impacts for

a local community in Namibia as Hostel Hoff does in Moshi.

Those include the creation of employment opportunities for

the locals with good working conditions: Hostel Hoff employs

11 Tanzanians. It will also generate its own flow of

17

visitors to a region: long term volunteering is a strong

enough motive to attract people to a region that they would

otherwise not have visited. Hostel Hoff alone brings 300

foreigners a year to the town of Moshi. Both the money spent

in the area by the volunteers and the salaries received by

the hostel’s employees generate income into the area. The

interaction between the volunteers and the local community

through the hostel as well as through the internships will

create a cultural exchange from which both volunteers and

locals can learn a great deal. Furthermore, volunteers will

go back to their countries of origin with changed mindsets

and new knowledge that they will share with their own

community, which might subsequently generate tourism and aid

into the area. Some volunteers might even decide to stay

involved on a long-term long-distance basis with the

internship they were a part of. Others might decide to

dedicate their lives to international development, in

whatever area this might be.

In addition, Links Hostels will innovate upon the

Hoff’s model in the goal of further benefiting the community

it will be built in. In fact, it will have a center for

skill building whereby it will not only train its staff to

perform the tasks required for the hostel, but it will also

train them in additional skills such as computer, English,

18

and administration so that they can eventually get another

job and move up the social ladder. Hence, there will be a

turnover that will allow new staff to come in and get the

training once the older staff will be hired elsewhere. The

volunteers at the hostel will be able to help in this

training program, depending on their specific skill set. One

of Namibia’s biggest challenges at the moment is

unemployment and it is in large part due to a lack of human

skills and a failure in the education system to train its

students adequately. Although Links Hostels’ training

program will start on a small scale, the goal is to grow

bigger with time and help the country with this challenge.

Eventually, the trainees could teach the skills they have

learnt to other members of their communities even if they

are not hostel employees. Furthermore, since Links Hostels

is a social business and its first goal is social rather

than profit oriented, as soon as it will start making net

profits, it will give a percentage of these profits, between

15 and 25 per cent, to some of the NGOs and projects that it

sends volunteers to. The benefit of such aid is that it is

sustainable compared to aid efforts that give one sum of

money once and then never come back to the area. The

projects that will have partnerships with Links will

regularly be visited and assessed by Links representatives

19

so that a strong relationship is built and the funds are

used in a productive, efficient, and beneficial manner.

Links Hostels will be careful in its selection of NGOs

and projects to develop partnerships with. Various selection

criteria will be applied when selecting such partnerships.

First, it is important that the community project is viable

and sustainable on its own. The people in charge of these

projects should be able to answer clearly and with ease to

questions pertaining to the goals, needs, and income

generation model of their community project or NGO. It

should be a project that is already started and that the

community believes in and is invested in. Help coming from

Links Hostels should be an asset, not a necessity to the

survival of the project. Therefore, once the partnership is

in place it is also imperial to make sure a dependency does

not develop. Links Hostels will help these projects grow

faster, but will in no way be the backbone of these

initiatives. Furthermore, we will try to diversify the type

of projects we send volunteers to in order to spread the

benefits to target various needs in the community as well as

to offer an array of choice for all types of volunteers.

As for the specific attributes of Links Hostels, it

will begin small, with a capacity of 20 customers and will

hopefully expand up to 30. There will be two private rooms

20

with double beds and the rest will be dorms with bunk beds.

In the beginning there will be five staff members, all

Namibian: a cook, a cleaning person, two security guards,

and a manager. As we expand, more staff will be added such

as another cook, cleaning person, security guard, and

gardener. The pricing structure will follow Hostel Hoffs’

regressive pricing: it will cost one dollar less a day for

every additional month. Private rooms will cost two dollars

extra a day per person. The minimum stay will be of one

month, however, exceptions will be made during quiet times.

All possible efforts will be made in order for the

volunteers to feel happy and comfortable. Both private and

communal spaces will be created, indoors and outdoors.

COMPETITION

Our competition analysis relies on three types of

competitors: international organizations offering

volunteering experiences in Namibia and Sub-Saharan Africa,

hostels in Namibia that offer similar services (linking

volunteers to local NGOs), and hostels in Namibia that offer

standard accommodation services. The results gathered are

summed up in the table below. We only found one hostel in

21

Namibia offering similar services as ours, Elonga hostel. We

did not consider it to be a significant source of

competition as it one single hostel in the entire country

and we do not plan on setting up our own hostel in the same

town. Moreover, their main customer base is from Germany,

which is not our specific target market. Finally, Elonga

hostel does not provide meals to its customers and the daily

rate for the first month is extremely high.

We found a multitude of volunteering programs offered

by international agencies very often at prices that we

easily outcompete (see chart above: “Average price for

international volunteering in Africa”). Furthermore, most of

the experiences in Namibia offered by these companies are

related to wildlife conservation rather than human

development, on which Links Hostels will focus. For these

reasons among others, Links Hostels will be able to compete

against these international volunteering agencies.

The competition embodied by standard hostels might be

the most threatening given the very low rates they offer.

However, we offer an additional and valuable service, as

well as life in community of long-term volunteers, meals and

laundry, which justifies a slightly higher rate.

Furthermore, these hostels do not necessarily represent

22

direct competition since backpackers and long-term

volunteers are two separate markets.

Hostels in Namibia

Name Place Price/night Included in

the price

Type of

competitor

Elonga Windhoek

(capital and

largest city)

33 CAD $

(first month)

12CAD$

(additional

months)

Accommodation

in dorm

Volunteer

hostel

The

Cardboard

box

Windhoek 12 CAD $ Accommodation

in dorm

Regular

Hostel

Skeleton

Beach

Backpackers

Swakopmund

(coast)

13 CAD $ Accommodation

in dorm

Regular

Hostel

Loubser’s

B&B

Selfcatering

Walvis Bay

(coast)

20 CAD $ Accommodation

in dorm

Regular

Hostel

Chameleon

backpackers

Windhoek 13 CAD $ Accommodation

in tents,

3meals/day

Volunteering

organization

FINANCES

23

Links Hostels is based on an economically sustainable

model, and the income generated through customers will cover

monthly expenses including improvements. However, the team

has been looking for funding in order to cover its startup

costs.

Some funding option

1) Crowd Funding consists in setting up a profile page for a

new business project and relying on family, friends or

anyone who wants to support the initiative, to send

donations through the website. The startup costs for Links

Hostels could therefore be supplied through this form of

funding. Donations range anywhere from 10 cents to thousands

of dollars and some people donate on a recurring basis. Some

examples of such websites include:

-33needs (connects micro-investors with social entrepreneurs

who have big ideas in categories such as sustainable food,

health, education, and the environment. Investors can earn a

percentage of revenue in exchange for their support)

-Causevox (offers nonprofit organizations a fully

customizable fundraising page that makes collecting money

from supporters easy. Supporters can also create their own

24

personalized fundraising pages. Social media integration

makes it easy to embed YouTube videos, Flickr slideshows,

and more)

-Firstgiving (the site allows non-profit supporters to

create their own fundraising page to raise money for the

cause of their choice.)

We will exploit this option following our field

assessment in Namibia where we will have produced a video on

the ground to compel people to donate to our project. It is

also only after the field assessment that we will have a

clear notion of the funds needed to build Links Hostels.

2) As to other sources of funding, we have looked into the

possible contests we can apply to in order to get the

project started. Our research yielded a few interesting and

potential sources of funding for which Links Hostels could

fulfill the criteria:

a) Canadian Social Entrepreneurship Foundation (CSEF)Since 2003, CSEF has been providing its members with accessto funding through online competitions as well as access toan online investor community for support. The CSEF aims toeducate, engage and support social entrepreneurs such asLinks Hostels. The SE IDEA challenge is of interest becauseit provides funding, mentorship and startup materials toentrants, in order for them to get to the next steps oftheir business plan.

25

Criteria are: -The focus of submissions should be on any of the following areas: clean-tech, biotechnology, social justice, poverty, literacy, and the environment. -Plan to be financially sustainable or profitable; whether it is a commercial business or a tax-exempt organization, itmust be self-sufficient on its earned revenue. -Be scalable. This criterion will be unique for each business plan. Scalability will take into account the potential for growth of the business (and how well both the financial and social goals can be scaled). -Have a quantifiable social and/or environmental bottom lineincorporated into its mission and practices. -The proposed venture can be a new identity or a wholly owned subsidiary of an existing entity (either a for profit or non profit entity). -A business plan can re-enter the competition year after year. -Team size is not restricted.

b) The Skoll Foundation The Skoll Awards for social entrepreneurship has beenhappening each year since 1999 and rewards socialentrepreneurs that have demonstrated leadership and come upwith a business plan that positively impacts the world. Theaward provides funding and access to an extensive network ofsocial entrepreneurs. The aim is to drive social change andsolve the most pressing problems the world encounters today.Criteria are: -Impact potential: Organization’s innovation is positioned to directly affect policy, behaviour and/or infrastructure/system(s) on a large scale and can show evidence of significant impact already achieved.

26

- Inflection: Organization has a proven approach that has already been implemented with success and is now ready to apply the approach on a much larger scale. - Innovation: Organization has an approach that fundamentally disrupts the status quo to solve social and/orenvironmental problems. - Focus Area: Organization works on a focus area that is identified by the Skoll Foundation as one of world’s most pressing problems. - Skoll leverage: Organization will benefit from engaging with Skoll Foundation beyond a purely funding relationship, such as collaboration with our network of entrepreneurs or access to media opportunities. - Social entrepreneur: Organization is led by a visionary social entrepreneur- Sustainability: Organization has a clear, compelling plan for expanding impact and achieving long-term financial and operational sustainability.

c) Pathy Family Foundation (PFF)PFF is a leadership program dedicated to providing funding opportunities to McGill students. Its aim is sustainable, positive, community-based change and student-led innovation.Candidates can earn up to $20,000 for 8months projects and $30,000 for 12 months projects. Criteria are: Special consideration is given to innovative and entrepreneurial projects. -The project must respond to a demonstrated and prioritized community need. -The application should clearly demonstrate that the projectis feasible in scope and goals, and the budget and timeline are realistic. -The project proposal must be supported/endorsed by local organization(s) (for-profit or non-profit) or community leaders.

27

-Applications should focus on the potential sustainability of the project beyond the life of the Fellowship, whether byextension of the project or by perceived sustainable change in the community. -The project should be based on a new or improved idea for the community and/or the partner organization.

3) Links Hostels’ founders have an understanding with the

owner of a popular bar in downtown Montreal, l’Abreuvoir.

They will be allowed to use the spacious venue to host a

fundraising event for the creation of Links Hostels. All

revenues collected from the tickets, which will cost five

dollars, will go to Links Hostels, while all the revenues

from the drinks purchased by the guests will go to

l’Abreuvoir. The founders’ friends with artistic skills

(music band, Dj, dancers) will also perform for free and

there will be a presentation of the project to build Links

Hostels. At least 100 guests will be expected and the event

should take place during the fall of 2014, upon return from

the field assessment trip to Namibia. If this event is

successful, more fundraising events of this sort could be

organized, including: speed dating, social entrepreneurship

networking cocktail, documentary night, etc.

Tentative budget (rough estimate)

28

Location: Namibia (town to be determined upon field

assessment)

Capacity: 20 people

All prices are displayed in Canadian dollars. The exchange

rate is approximately $1CAD= 9.74 Namibian $

a) Startup costs

It is very difficult to estimate the startup costs

before being on the field. Moreover, it will be extremely

important to have a Namibian partner to help us with these

purchases in terms of bargaining skills and knowledge of the

places to buy these things from. The most accurate

information we were able to access was from Scott Howe who

founded a hostel in Kenya. The prices listed below are the

estimates that resulted from the combination of information

collected through interviews and web research. It is

expected that the high level of inequality as well as the

low population density that are specific to Namibia will

allow us to find good deals on certain items and cheaper

rent in certain areas.

29

$12000 - Rent and deposits

$10000 - Permits and registration

$ 4000 - Buying a van

$15000 – beds (3 double beds and 8 bunk beds), TV's,

drawers, sofas, decoration (mirror, lamps, curtains, paint,

frames), kitchen setup (toaster, microwave, oven, fridges,

cutlery, glasses, cups, plates, bowls) etc

$ 1000-Advertisement (printing posters and flyers, paying

to be in Google search)

$ 10000-Plane tickets, visas, travel expenses of the

founders

Total: $ 52, 000 CAD

This is the amount we will need in order to open the

hostel. This means that if each of the three founders

succeeds in accumulating about $17, 000 through personal

savings, donations, and other funding methods described

above, we will have enough resources to make the project a

reality. However, ideally our goal is to start with enough

money to get us through the first year, after which we are

hoping to have a steady customer stream. This would increase

our start up costs by 12 months of rent, salaries,

30

electricity, and water. However, although this would be an

ideal situation, past experiences of hostel owners in

developing countries confirm that a hostel can successfully

be established solely with personal savings and with minimal

costs.

b) Chart of income/expenses on a monthly basis

Expenses

Rent: $2000/month

Average salary: $500/month. $500 x 5 staff members=

$2500/month (the manager will receive a higher compensation

than the other staff members)

Others (Wifi, electricity, gas, water, garbage): $350/month

Food (for 20 guests): $2000

Upgrades: $200/month

Collateral: $400/month

TOTAL: $7,450 CAD/month

Income

20beds x $19,50/night*

TOTAL: $390/night= $11, 700/month

Net profits: $ 11, 700 - $ 7, 450 CAD= $ 4, 250 CAD/month

31

*This is an average rate since people in private rooms will

be charged slightly more than people in dorms. Furthermore,

the price structure will be regressive (the longer the stay,

the cheaper the price per night for the volunteer) in order

to encourage longer stays. During the low season, the team

is open to hosting non-volunteers (backpackers, travellers,

tourists) in order to keep the business sustainable. The net

profits will be lower during the months when some beds will

not be occupied.

The team is aware of the many hidden costs it will

encounter when concretizing the project. This income

statement is approximate and entirely dependent on the

findings resulting from the field assessment.

Long term Profit Use

As discussed earlier, although Links Hostels is not a

nonprofit organization, it is a social business in the sense

that its main driver is social in nature and not profit

maximization. As soon as Links Hostels will start generating

profits, it will give a percentage, between 15 and 25 per

cent, to the NGOs and community projects that it will have

partnerships with. The rest of the profits will be used

32

toward improvements and expansion in terms of number of beds

(comfortable tents might also be added in the backyard),

staff members, decoration, and atmosphere. Furthermore, the

very long-term goal is to eventually become a chain of such

hostels will branches all over the developing world. It is

in this optic that the hostel was named Links Hostels in the

plural form. The hostels will function on the “B.O.O.T”

model: Build, Own, Operate, Transfer. While the management

of the separate branches will be transferred to a person

from the community, the ownership will remain in the hands

of Links Hostels. For the period following the opening of a

new branch, there will be a strong presence of a Links

Hostels representative and a great deal of efforts will be

destined to the training of a local manager so that the

hostel is left in good hands. A representative of Links

Hostels will subsequently be in charge of visiting each

branch as well as each NGO partner once to twice a year to

make sure their services remain in line with the company’s

values and vision.

ESTABLISHING PARTNERSHIPS

33

Ensuring the sustainability of our social enterprise is

crucial to its success. Therefore, we need a stable base of

clients providing a steady source of revenues. We elaborated

a twofold strategy relying on partnerships and

advertisement.

First, we approached a few institutions in the hope of

building partnerships in Montreal. We presented these

institutions a one pager explaining the main components of

our project1.

- Arts Office of Advising and Student Information

Services, study abroad department. Looking for a

partnership to consolidate our client base. Asking

them to advertise our hostel towards student going on

an exchange in Sub-Saharan Africa. Answer was negative,

no possibility to help us but we were redirect to the

Institute for the Study of International Development.

- The Faculty of Arts Internship Office (location -

McGill): possibility to be approved as an official

internship (granting academic credit or not). Being

officially recognized as one of McGill’s internships

opportunities depends mainly on security conditions and

skills acquired by students during their volunteering

1 Appendix 1: One pager

34

experience. Seems highly feasible given our social

enterprise.

- The Institute for the Study of International

Development (location – McGill): possibility to be

advertised through regular appearances on their

listserv.

- Travel Cuts agency (location – McGill): possibility to

display flyers and posters of our hostel, possibility

to highlight offers on trips to Namibia sold regularly

by the agency.

- Audrey Leduc (location-Montreal): graduate student in

advertisement and director of marketing for B1 Bar.

Will help us promoting the hostel especially in

designing advertisement free of charge (flyers,

website, posters, etc). She designed the Links Hostels

logo.

- North-South Studies program (location-Dawson College):

possibility to do an in-class presentation to promote

the hostel to last year students every December. The

North-South Studies program is focused on the study of

developing countries, therefore, Links Hostels

represents an interesting opportunity for the students

who choose to take a gap year. Akina was a North-South

35

Studies student who spent her gap year in volunteering

in Tanzania.

Second, we elaborated different advertisement and marketing

strategies:

- Creation of a coherent and explicit logo:

The Links Hostels logo was chosen carefully. Its bright

colors are youthful and soft, the elephants, which are found

in Africa and Asia, make a reference to the South or the

developing world, their linking trunks represent the links

that the hostel create between the volunteers and the local

community, and create a feeling of compassion. While the

elements are targeted, they are not specific to any one

country since Links Hostels is planning on becoming a chain

with branches all over the developing world.

- Internet-based advertisement:

o Facebook page with specific details of the service

we offer, frequent updates of news coming from the

hostel, volunteering posting stories of their

experiences, pictures, etc.

o Twitter account displaying regular news from the

field

36

o Website with specific details of our vision,

values, goals, services we offer, contact

information, possibility to make a reservation

online, etc

o Advertising of our hostel on

http://theethicalvolunteer.com/, thanks to Sarah

Carroll

o Registering for free on various accommodation

websites such as www.hostelworld.com or

www.tripadvisor.com

o Still hypothetical: paying to appear among the

first links offered by google search

- Real world advertisement:

o Design and diffusion of flyers and posters,

designed by Audrey Leduc, to be displayed in

different places of Montreal including CEGEP and

universities

o Presentations in different educational

institutions

o Participating in volunteer fairs in Montreal

(McGill, Concordia,etc)

o Creating partnerships with universities around

Namibia that receive temporary foreign students

37

o Attempts to be mentioned in travel guide books

such as Lonely Planet, Le Routard, Frommer’s as

well as in travel websites such as tripadvisor.

Our multidimensional advertisement approach will

undoubtedly allow us to secure a broad client base and

contribute to the success of Links Hostels. However, if

partnerships and advertisement are part of the game, we

remain conscious that the strongest form of advertising is

“word of mouth”, which is secured by offering quality

services.

PROGRESS TO DATE

In addition to the partnerships created through face-

to-face solicitation, both primary research, in the form of

interviews (Skype, phonecall, email), and secondary research

in the form of articles, websites and reports were performed

in the process of planning the establishment of Links

Hostels2.

Emails:

- To the Law Society of Namibia asking for further

information regarding legislation on starting a

2 Appendix 2: emails and Skype conversations

38

business as a foreigner and on buying a land or a

building as a foreigner. Still no answer after a month.

- To the Society of Advocates of Namibia, idem. Still no

answer after a month.

- To the Secretary of the High Commission of the Republic

of Namibia, idem. Answer was that as Canadian and

French citizens we were allowed to set up the business

we look forward to establish.

- Canadian representatives on the ground were also e-

mailed but no answer has been received (yet,

hopefully). The team felt that securing connections

with agents on the ground was crucial in getting some

information pertaining to the laws, costs, and

situation in Namibia prior to the field assessment.

These contacts will also be an important source of

support once on the ground. Hence, we will pursue

efforts in trying to build a bridge with the Canadian

embassy in Namibia through emails and phone calls.

- The Umoja hostel in Tanzania. There was a reply to the

first e-mails, but the specific questions regarding

details about the hostel sent in the subsequent e-mails

were never answered.

39

- Carley, Ujamaa hostel and volunteer program in

Tanzania. Email interview with one of the founder who

gave us insightful information on her experience. She

highlighted the importance of having a local partner to

deal with legal issues, the major time commitment that

such a project involves, as well as some details of her

hostel: capacity of 22, she was able to cover the costs

with only five customers, most of the time there were

12 to 15 occupants.

- Gerda, Elonga internship hostel in Namibia is a hostel

based on the same model as Links Hostels. It is owned

by a German lady and is situated in the capital of the

country, Windhoek. An email was sent asking for

information concerning costs, customers, local

community, advices, her experience, etc. She quickly

replied that she would be glad to help, but that it

will have to wait until she is back in town. We are

still waiting for a reply.

- Marie-Cyrille Lavalle, humanitarian project leader at

the International School of Paris. She led projects in

Namibia for many years, but instead of giving us

information on the country, she gave us the contacts of

40

two NGOs in Namibia that she worked with. We are now

waiting for replies from these two NGOs who could give

us a better understanding of the civil society as well

as other aspects of Namibia.

- Scott Howe (contact given by a classmate), hostel in

Diani Beach, Kenya (not originally for volunteers but

ended up hosting many of them). He shared his

experience and some tips with the team. Some of his

advices were: make sure the political situation is okay

in the country you want to implement your project in,

make sure the security team of the hostel is present at

all times, and reinforced if needed because robbery is

common, and it is extremely important that the guests

feel safe, make sure the proper permits are applied

for, bribes could also work (although it is in Kenya),

it usually takes at least 2 months up to a year to open

a hostel, if you can handle the whole operation, do it!

It’s fun even though stressful sometimes

- Hostel Hoff, Tanzania. When we wrote to Hostel Hoff

through their website asking for information on opening

a hostel based on their model, their response was

41

negative. They refused to help us since they did not

want more competition.

Skype interviews:

- Sarah Carroll, founder of Hostel Hoff.

Luckily, although Hostel Hoff’s management did not

want to help us, we were able to directly contact the

hostel’s founder and former owner. She granted us an

hour-long Skype interview, which provided us with

priceless information. She shared her experience with

Hostel Hoff and then she discussed some

recommendations, which included how to choose the NGOs

that we would get involved with. She emphasized the

importance of training our staff, of being an asset and

not a necessity to the local projects, and the power of

word-of-mouth.

42

- Grant Lingel, founder of That Hostel, Brazil.

He granted us a Skype interview in which he advised us

to have enough money to pay for all of the expenses of

the first year as well as to choose an area that is not

very touristic in order to have a specific type of

customers and to reduce competition. He also told us

about the importance of appearing in Google searches

and his own experience with his hostel, which is no

longer operating.

Being able to interview four hostel founders (Sarah,

Scott, Grant, and Carley) was instrumental in guiding the

process of planning the establishment of Links Hostels, from

possible obstacles, to costs, and advices. All four founders

have rented the building for their hostel, have covered the

startup costs with their personal savings, and have

succeeded in generating profits through their enterprise.

Furthermore, they all worked in close partnership with a

local. These palpable success stories prove that Links

Hostels can also be successful and sustainable.

43

NEXT STEPS

While the process of establishing Links Hostels is

already well underway, it is of utmost importance to

recognize that all the aspects mentioned above are relying

upon confirmation and development through an in dept field

assessment that will take place in summer 2014 when at least

one of the founders will go to Namibia for six months or

longer. The field assessment component will be central to

the establishment of Links Hostels. During that period, the

founders will travel the whole country and spend at least

two weeks in each place. They will be looking for a town

where there is a good number of NGOs and community projects

operating, where there is a good atmosphere and where they

and their guests will be able to feel comfortable and

welcomed, where tourism has not yet reached a heavy flow,

but there are activities and sights nearby, and where there

is a need and potential for development. Furthermore, when

choosing the destination for Links Hostels, the founders

will always keep in mind the problem of inequality that is

omnipresent in Namibia and therefore, they will not choose

the capital or any of the other highly developed regions

that are already recipient of most tourism and foreign

investment.

44

Once a town will be deemed as a good option, a thorough

research will be made: the founders will network to make

important contacts which are key, they will also research

the laws and costs pertaining to renting real estate and to

building and operating a company, they will look for sources

of support, they will get acquainted with the history and

situation of that specific region, and they will build

partnerships with NGOs and community projects. These

partnerships will be carefully selected in accordance with

the criteria mentioned earlier. In regards with the creation

of partnerships, the field assessment will be conducted in

an anonymous manner. In fact, the founders will visit the

different NGOs and community projects and will ask them

about their aims, needs, history, and structure anonymously

to ensure that the information collected is not modified in

an attempt to secure a partnership. A study will also be

conducted among the members of the community in an attempt

to discover the projects that are regarded as beneficial by

and for the locals.

During this field assessment, the information collected

will be carefully recorded in order to be used upon return

to create a more specific and realistic plan both in terms

of finances and steps to follow. A video will be created in

Namibia and will be used to generate funding on Crowdfunding

45

websites as well as during fundraising events and meetings

with potential investors and partners. Once this detailed

plan will be in place and a specific region will be selected

for the hostel, Links will also be able to enter an intense

advertising campaign to secure its first customers.

Between now and the summer 2014, the founders will

pursue their efforts into building partnerships with

institutions in the Western world that can insure them a

steady stream of customers as well as spreading the word to

let individuals know about Links Hostels. They will also

continue their research on Namibia to arrive in the country

with an extended knowledge base. Furthermore, considerable

efforts will also be placed in securing funding in the forms

described above as well as in the form of personal savings.

CONCLUDING REMARKS

Social entrepreneurs can be defined as “society’s

change agents: creators of innovations that disrupt the

status quo and transform our world for the better” (Skoll

46

Foundation). This is exactly the challenge that Links

Hostels’ team is on the road of tackling. The

international development industry and the international

volunteering industry more specifically have grown

incredibly fast in the past decades and major amounts of

money are involved in their activities. This has in some

cases diverted these industries from their primarily

social development goals to profit seeking. Links Hostels

is a sustainable project based on previously successful

models. Its primary goal is to benefit the community in

which it will be based and to create opportunities for

positive exchanges between the north and the south. It is

a model of disintermediation that disrupts the

international volunteering industry and challenges the

status quo, thereby changing the current framework to

benefit both the volunteers and the local community.

THE TEAM

AKINA MATSUO, 24 years old

Owner and manager

47

International Development Studies Honors and African Studies

Minor, McGill University

(514) 663-5382

akina.matsuo@mail.mcgill.ca

“One world, One people”

ALICE TABARIN, 20 years old

Associate manager, accountant

International Development Studies and Political Science, McGill University

(514) 651-4807

alice.tabarin@mail.mcgill.ca

“Figure out what you dream of and make it come true”

AMÉLIE HOUDET, 20 years old

Associate manager, Director of public relations

and marketing

International Development Studies and Sociology,

McGill University

(514) 557-1898

amelie.houdet@mail.mcgill.ca

“The world is a good place and I want to make it better”

48

Works Cited

Central Intelligence Agency. “The World Factbook: Namibia.”

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos

/wa.html (accessed October 10th, 2013)

Dawson, and Hall. "Journal of sustainable journalism." Taylor &

Francis Online. N.p., n.d. Web.

49

http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1 (accessed December 5th,

2013)

Government of Canada. “Country Travel Advice and Advisories.”

http://travel.gc.ca/travelling/advisories (accessed October

11th, 2013)

Government of Namibia. “Census Projected Population.”

http://www.gov.na/population (accessed November 15th, 2013)

Nestora, Alexia , Pokin Yeung, and Helen Calderon. "Travel insights by

Geckogo." Volunteer travel report.

http://www.geckogo.com/volunteer/report2009/ (accessed December

8, 2013).

Ngo, Mai. "CANADIAN YOUTH VOLUNTEERING ABROAD: RETHINKING ISSUES OF

POWER AND PRIVILEGE." Library of UToronto. N.p., n.d. Web.

https://tspace.library.utoronto.ca/bitstream (accessed December

5th, 2013)

Skoll Foundation. “Social Entrepreneurs Challenge.”

http://www.skollfoundation.org (accessed December 5th, 2013)

UNDP. “International Human Development Indicators.” 2013 report.

http://hdrstats.undp.org/en/indicators/103106.html (accessed

November 15th, 2013)

50

UNICEF. “Namibia: Statistics.”

http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/namibia_statistics.html

(accessed December 2nd, 2013)

UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). “Tourism Highlights, 2013

Edition.” http://mkt.unwto.org/en/publication/unwto-tourism-

highlights-2013-edition, p.10 (accessed October 28th, 2013)

UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). “2012 Annual Report.”

http://www2.unwto.org/en/publication/unwto-annual-report-2012,

p.64 (accessed October 28th, 2013)

World Bank. “Data: Internet Users (per 100 people).”

http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/IT.NET.USER.P2 (accessed

October 10th, 2013)

51

Appendix 1

One pager

52

Appendix 2Efforts in real life:

Emails and Skype conversations

53

Emails1- Canadian embassy in Namibia (Canada@mweb.com.na) -no answerTo whom it may concern, I am a young Canadian entrepreneur and McGill University graduate in International Development Studies Honors, who is planning to open a hostel in Namibia that would cater for long-term volunteers from all over the world.I want to build links with local community based programs which I could then refer the volunteers to and therefore help both the volunteers and the local NGOs. The hostel will, among other benefits, create local employment, createa flow of volunteers which will spend in the community, provide volunteers as well as a percentage of its profits to local NGOs. As the Canadian representative in Namibia, I am asking for your help in providing me with information and support that I cannot reach from here, in Montreal. I am planning on traveling to Namibia in May for an extended period oftime, but prior to that it would be of great help to collaborate with you. I need information on:- the laws for buying and renting property in Namibia as a Canadian. - the prices of buying and renting property (for a hostel that would cater to about 20 people)- the laws for starting and operating such a social enterprise in Namibia as a Canadian. - the possible sources of funding or other support for such a social enterpriseI thank you in advance for your help. Kind regards, Akina Matsuo514 663 5382

2- Gerda, founder of Elonga Internship hostel, Namibia (gerda.schuler@gmail.com)

Dear Gerda, I came across your hostel's website while doing some research for a university project where we must pretend we are starting a social entrepreneurship business. My two teammates and I have decided to simulate opening a hostel for volunteers in Namibia. I am sure you must be extremely busy, but it would be of immense help to us if you could her us with some information based on your experience with Elonga, which is exactly in line with what we are planning to do.

54

Would it be possible for you to Skype anytime this week? Or is it better to function with emails?The information we are looking for would include: -costs and laws when opening such a hostel in Namibia-obstacles and tips-possible funding methods-customer baseThank you very much. Kind regards, Akina Matsuo

Reply:

Hi Akina,

thanks for your email.

Unfortunately, I currently have too little time to help you.I'll be out of town for the next days, but after my return, I'll be intouch with you.

Kind regards

Gerda

Thanks for patiencebest

3-The Cardboard Box hostel in Namibia (info@cardboardbox.com.na)

To whom it may concern, I came across your hostel's website while doing some research for a university project where we must pretend we are starting a social entrepreneurship business. My two teammates and I have decided to simulate opening a hostel for volunteers in Namibia. I am sure you must be extremely busy, but it would be of immense help to us if you could give us with some information based on your experience with the Cardboard Box.Would it be possible for you to Skype anytime this week? Or is it better to function with emails?The information we are looking for would include: -costs and laws when opening such a hostel in Namibia

55

-obstacles and tips-possible funding methods-customer baseThank you very much. Kind regards, Akina Matsuo Reply:

Hi there Akina. Thanks for your interest in the cardboard box, however I am leaving this week on my annual vacation and will only be back later in December. Maybe try Chameleon or backpackers unite. Good luck.CheersChad Wratten The Cardboard box backpackers15 Johann Albrecht stP O Box 97313Maerua MallWindhoek9000  4-Scott Howe, hostel founder, Mombassa, Kenya (scott-howe@hotmail.com)

Hi,

My name is Amelie I am currently taking a seminar on social entrepreneurship at McGill university in Montreal and I believe gijs has mentioned me. We are building a project that consists in potentially opening a hostel in Namibia in order to welcome international volunteers  and connect them to local NGOs that have notaccess to internet. I heard you have conducted a similar project in Kenya and was wondering if you could help us with a few things. We would like to know where you got your investment and how much you needed, how big the hostel was and any hidden costs. As well, what problems did you run into? Did you also have some positive aspects youcan share? We are interested in the laws in Namibia but they probably differ by country in terms of owning or renting a building so I'm not sure you could help us with that. How long did it take you to organizeeverything before going there? How long did you stay there for? Would you say your experience was mostly positive or negative?  Anyways, anything you can tell us would be of great help! Let me know if you can, if not no worries. If you could also put me in touch with people

56

with a similar business idea or who are there currently, that would begreat. Thank you so much for the favour I hope to be able to return it.CordiallyAmelie Houdet

Reply: Hi,  Yeah, I opened a hostel in Diani Beach Kenya.  We did get a lot of guests who were volunteers or ngo workers, but we didn't actively try and connect our guests with volunteer organisations.  That being said I am quite familiar with a few other hostels who do work more closely with volunteers so I do know a bit about it. In the town that we opened in, property prices were very high and rentwas low.  We decided to sign a 5-10 year lease on a property rather than buying it ourselves.  This allowed us to operate on a very tight budget.  This was our initial rough breakdown of costs for start up. $15000 - Rent and deposits$13000 - Permits and registration$4000 - Buy a van$11000 - beds TV's kitchen setup etc That makes roughly 43000 in costs to get the hostel to the point whereit could open.   Our monthly fixed costs were: $2000 rent$1500 staff$500 upgrades and replacements We ran a bar and restaurant along with the hostel.   It changed from time to time but we generally had 10-12 full time staff.  This included cleaners, security, chefs, and bartenders/reception. Finding guests to come to the hostel was always easy if the political situation was ok, however Kenya was and still is a dangerous place so from time to time travel advisories would be issues by embassies meaning the number of tourists would drop substantially.  For example,a cleric was assassinated in Mombasa on a night when we had

57

approximately 30 guests, we remained almost completely empty for the next 3 months until the advisories were dropped.  Another problem we ran into was security, we were robbed at gunpoint several times, each of which cost me thousands of dollars.  We had very good security, including attack dogs and security guards, but they are no match for a gun.  So it is important to do a lot of research into the property to ensure you can keep your guests safe. Another problem was getting the proper permits to open.  Applying directly to the government will usually result in a rejected application, so you need to make connections within the business community to arrange for the permits through a bribe.   From the time that we arrived in Kenya to the time we opened was approximately 2 months.  That was very quick, most places would have taken 6 months at least to open.  We more just got lucky.   If your looking for somebody who is doing a great job of running a place there now, look for Distant Relatives Eco Lodge on facebook and ask for Romain, hes a friend of mine and he'd be happy to help. As for the overall experience, I am very glad I did it.  I got life experience that few westerners ever get.  It made me a lot stronger and more confident person and I had a lot of fun and made good friendsin the process.  That being said, it was without a doubt the most stressful period of my life.  Most of the time it is easy and pretty laid back, but every once in a while something crazy will happen and you'll be the one who has to deal with it.  If you can handle that I say go for it.  Sorry that was a bit poorly written and short, im just on my way to class right now, but feel free to contact me anytime with more questions or if theres any way I can help

5- North South studies program, Dawson College (fjones@dawsoncollege.qc.ca)

Dear Fred Jones, I hope you are doing good. I have not seen you in more than a year now. I think the last time was when we bumped into each other in Place-Saint-Henri when I used to live there. I don't know if you are still involved and teaching in North South,

58

but I am guessing you are :)I am now in my graduating semester at McGill in International Development Studies and African Studies. I am taking a seminar called Social Entrepreneurship and we are asked to come up with a social enterprise that we would like to start. I am planning to open a hostel for long term volunteers in Namibia: Links HostelThe hostel would create partnerships on the ground with community based projects and would then create a link between these projects, who don't have international visibility due to lack of Internet accessand marketing tools, and the people who want a volunteering experiencein Africa. Following North South I took a year off before I started university and I flew to Tanzania with Katherine Morielli with the goal of volunteering there. It was really difficult for us to find a project and we came across a hostel like the one I want to open. This saved our experience and allowed us to find a project to volunteer with as well as a community of volunteers to live with. The reason why I am writing you all of this is because I feel like North South students could benefit from such an experience upon graduation and could be an important customer base for Links Hostel. I was wondering if once it is open in maybe about two years, it would be possible for North South to promote this option to its students andto let me come and do a presentation, every year, to last year students. I hope I did not bother you with this. We can also meet in person if it is more suitable for you. Thank you so much. Kindest regards, Akina Matsuo514 663 5382

Reply:

Hi Akina,

Sounds like an interesting project. Keep us informed. A little bit like the Casa Canadiense in Nicaragua. Not exactly the same because the Casa is an NGO on its own. But similar.Fred

6-Hoff Hostel in Moshi, Tanzania (info@hostelhoff.com)

59

To whom it may concern,I am a last year undergrad student in International Development Studies in Montreal, Canada.I stayed at Hostel Hoff for 4 months in 2010 and I thought the whole concept and functioning of the Hoff were absolutely amazing.I would love to see more of these types of hostels around the world. For my Social Entrepreneurship we are asked to come up with a project that we would like to lead as future entrepreneurs.I would love to start a hostel like the Hoff. It would be of great help if I could be put in contact with the couple who built it. Do youthink it would be possible to put us in contact so that I can ask themsome questions and maybe collaborate with them?It would be greatly appreciated.Thank you very much.Kind regards,Akina Matsuo

Reply:

Dear Akina,

Thank you for your email.  It's always lovely to hear from past volunteers who are still passionate about their experiences. 

Unfortunately the lady who established the hostel has moved on and we are not able to give out her contact details.  She is extremely busy building her new business so I'm afraid I don't think she would be able to help with your project.

We receive emails frequently with people asking questions about setting up a hostel.  They then go ahead and set up in competition with us and I'm sure you can appreciate this damages our business.  There are now at least two hostels in Moshi itself created by previousHostel Hoff volunteers and others in different locations.  As a resultwe have decided that we are no longer able to help with requests like this.  Sorry!

I do wish you luck with your project and your studies. 

Best wishes,

60

Rhiannon

www.hostelhoff.com

7-Ujamaa hostel, Tanzania (ujamaa.hostel@gmail.com)

Dear Carley and Gasper, I came across your hostel's website while doing some research for auniversity project where we must pretend we are starting a socialentrepreneurship business. My two teammates and I have decided tosimulate opening a hostel for volunteers in Namibia. I am sure youmust be extremely busy, but it would be of immense help to us if youcould her us with some information based on your experience with yourhostel, which is exactly in line with what we are planning to do. Would it be possible for you to Skype anytime this week? Or is it better to function with emails? The information we are looking for would include: -costs and laws when opening such a hostel in Namibia -obstacles and tips -possible funding methods -customer base Thank you very much. Kind regards

Reply1:

Hi Amelie, I would be willing to help you out with some details but as Tanzaniaand Namibia are very different countries the information in regards tocosts and laws would not be relevant. Email is usually better for contact as the networks don't always workwell. Good luck with your project. Cheers, Carley

Reply2: Hi Amelie,I had been a volunteer in Tanzania for about 6 months when I decidedto set up the hostel. I created it with my Tanzanian husband as he hadalso been working in the volunteer industry for many years and wechose a city where there weren't low cost volunteering/hostel optionsat the time (now there are many!)

61

We established the business from scratch, but rented the property thehostel was housed in. I lived and worked in Tanzania for 6 years andyes it is very successful. I left the hostel because my relationshipwith my husband ended, but he continues to run the hostel now.I invested my personal savings in the business which I have been ableto pay back over the years and we also lived off the business so itwas very comfortable. There are always more costs than you expect butwe were able to balance these with the profits we made. It took a lotof hard work and dedication to do this and I have seen many others tryand fail to do what we have done. Having a local Tanzanian running it with me certainly helped a lot inregards to dealing with the laws and unexpected issues that arisesimply from running a business in Africa. Laws aren't quite the sameover here and corruption is rife so there are many unexpected issuesin relation to this. We were able to be more sustainable because we were also a standardhostel as well as a volunteering program in a town that has a lot oftourists. Having a hostel you have a lot of set costs (rent, wages for staffetc) whether you have guests or not so it needs to be large enough tocover these costs. We usually needed at least 5 people a night tocover these so when we were full with 22 we made very good profit.Through the year we usually had 12-15 people and more in the busyseason.My personal focus was good quality volunteering to help both theprojects and the volunteers have a great experience and I am veryproud of what we achieved over the years. Overall I loved running thehostel, meeting people and helping with the projects. I made someamazing friends and had crazy/awesome experiences. I now run my ownorphanage and continue to support projects in the local area. For us it was a huge success! However running your own business isvery taxing personally, you never really take time off (I wasanswering emails in hospital about 6hrs after I gave birth!) and it isdifficult for anyone else to take over. So it's definitely a bigcommitment - but if you enjoy it, it's really worthwhile Good luck with your project. I hope this has helped.If you are interested please have a look at my children's home:www.ujamaachildren.comCheers, Carley

8-Umoja hostel, Tanzania (umoja@live.co.uk)

62

To whoever it may concern, I came across your hostel's website whiledoing some research for a university project where we must pretend weare starting a social entrepreneurship business. My two teammates andI have decided to simulate opening a hostel for volunteers in Namibia.I am sure you must be extremely busy, but it would be of immense helpto us if you could her us with some information based on yourexperience with Umoja, which is exactly in line with what we areplanning to do. Would it be possible for you to Skype anytime thisweek? Or is it better to function with emails? The information we arelooking for would include: -costs and laws when opening such a hostelin Namibia -obstacles and tips -possible funding methods -customerbase Thank you very much. Kind regardsAmélie Houdet

Reply:

Hi, thank you for your interest on opening the hostel, i’m inTanzania, why not preferring to open in tanzania. may I know where areyou from, and email me all the question you want to ask and lets planfor skype. Good luck ok I will reply to all your questions, and worry not I can reply.

9-Marie-Cyrille Lavalle, Humanitarian project leader, International School of Paris (mlavalle@isparis.edu)Hi I'm contacting you again regarding the project that my friends and Iare doing at school, I am sending you the link of our presentation soyou can take a look at what we have done so far. Basically we had tobuild a humanitarian project for our social entrepreneurship seminarat McGill and we decided that building a hostel in Namibia was what wewanted to go for. Our classmate Ericka told us about this project thatshe did when she was in Paris and the travel that she took with you toNamibia. And she gave us your contact telling us that you could helpus to get in contact with the local NGOs that are in the country. Mymajor is international development and also sociology so I'mfascinated by these issues. we unfortunately did not find out exactlywhat you did when you went to Namibia so we would just like as muchinformation as possible regarding the project of the local NGOs thatyou were connected with and that what you ended up doing, the climate,the political situation, the need, all of these details anything that

63

could help us out. For example do you think that Namibia is a countrythat would be benefiting from this project? What is the need for helpthere? Also how important is the tourist industry? Anyways anythingyou can tell us will be of great help and I do not expect someresponse of any kind it's just any information that could be helpful,we thank you very much and hope to hear back from you. Cordially,Amelie houdetLink to our project: http://prezi.com/fjfcpvjikx54/?utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=copy&rc=ex0share

Reply:Dear Amelie, Sorry for the delay but life in Paris could be sostressful! You can contact(on my name Cyrille LAVALLE from ISP) thefollowing persons : - Assaph Kandjeo : He is pastor and work with aGerman association : Step for children. - Ms and M. BULLEN who takecare of the” Catherine BULLEN foundation” These 2 references are veryserious and really need some help. They did an amazing job to helpchildren in Namibia! ISP students helped during 5 years these 2associations. Their emails are in copy, Let me know cyrille

*Emails sent and received by Alice are not included in this appendix, although their content is described in the report above, because of a communication error: she forgot to send them before leaving for Panamaand is now unreachable.

Skype calls

1-Sarah Carroll, founder of Hostel Hoff, Tanzania

2-Grant Lingel, founder of That Hostel, Brazil

64