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Melinda Inward’s passion for Africa started as a young girl when she immigrated with her family to South Africa from England. Many school holidays were spent exploring the Kruger National Park. Melinda had an insatiable thirst to visit the wildlife areas as often and for as long as she could, drinking in the beauty, sounds, smells and colours of the African bush.
By the time Melinda completed her schooling her mission was cast in stone and the world awaited! She joined South African Airways in 1980 and spent the next 4 years travelling and exploring. After this wonderful time jet setting about, Melinda left SAA and departed for Europe and America running after her very restless travel bug! In the beginning of 1985, she returned to South Africa and pondered her future in travel. Melinda had the great fortune of starting her “safari career” with Okavango Explorations (now Hartley’s Safaris) as a reservations consultant which focused primarily on the Okavango Delta, Botswana. They operated Xugana Island Lodge, Xaro Camp, The Sitatunga Houseboat, African Skimmer and Tsaro Safari Lodge. This region of southern Africa, with its spectacular beauty touched Melinda’s soul and once again, she was hooked on Africa.
It was the same year that Melinda met Phillip Lategan who was busy with the Afroventures start up and then 4 years later, Sally Moon, both of which she has had great pleasure in working with over the years. In the 10 years that followed, Melinda’s career with Hartley’s Safaris expanded to that of Marketing & |
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Operations Manager, encompassing all aspects of marketing and managing a tour operation and lodge development company. Her travel knowledge blossomed in all the regions of southern and East Africa and the Indian Ocean Islands and she has been extremely fortunate to have visited these glorious destinations. As Melinda had focused primarily on individual and small group travel, she then decided to expand her horizons and in 1995, she ventured into the incentive and groups market and spent the next couple of years working with American Express (Nedbank Inbound Division) as their Inbound Operations Manager. During this period, Melinda worked mainly with the South African travel product for their leisure and corporate clients. The experience was invaluable but safari travel was pulling at her heart strings and so it was in 1997 that she rejoined Hartley’s Safaris as a shareholder and General Manager.
Another wonderful 4 years flew by at Hartley’s but the time soon came for her to take a break and spend valuable time with her children. In 2001, Melinda started a consulting business from home and contracted her services to various companies in the travel, corporate and retail industries. Simultaneously, she took over the management reins and became a shareholder of The Leading Independent Hotels of Southern Africa, a marketing portfolio of privately owned and operated lodges, boutique hotels and guest houses in southern Africa. Melinda covered every detail of this portfolio which was exciting and stimulating to say the least, however, |
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in 2006 she handed back the reins to Brad Cartwright and took a welcome sabbatical for a year.
Ross Kennedy, with whom Melinda had worked closely since 2003 as Victoria Falls Safari Lodge was a member of L.I.H.S.A, offered her the opportunity of marketing the lodge in South Africa. She grabbed this with both hands and kick-started her consultancy business again the same year. Phillip Lategan then approached Melinda at the beginning of 2009 to assist him in the marketing division of Journey Beyond. And so it is here that she has come almost full circle and she is thrilled to be working once again with her colleagues from the 1980’s!!
“The last 28 years in this industry have been colourful, diverse and exciting and I have gained such insight into people and places along the way. My journey has been filled with laughter and tears, my soul has been cleansed by the vast open spaces and beauty of our wilderness and my life has been humbled by the people I have met along the way. And so, I continue my travel journey. Zimbabwe and Botswana remain my biggest passion and I hope that I can share my knowledge and expertise with whoever may travel to our beautiful world”
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