Matthew Newton | Boring Marketing, Acquisitions & The Special Feeling
Matthew Newton is the founder of Leatherback Travel an 8-figure global ‘house of brands’ in the multi-day tour operator space.
He is the former leader of Tourism Tiger, an advocate for modern company culture, and the mind behind hyper-niche travel companies like Patch Adventures, Magnificent Rail, and Fencox Travel.
I’ve found a kindred spirit in Matthew!
His experiences through running a digital agency in travel, approaching company culture differently and an insatiable appetite for new ideas really struck a chord with me.
And this conversation got under the skin of all these things and the incredible knowledge and experience Matthew has racked up leading up to and through running Leatherback Travel.
Some highlights that we touched on in this conversation:
- Operating Principles. What they are, how to use them, examples, and the different they make to a business.
- Being a large group of small companies and why building lots of hyper-niche brands has worked so well.
- Creating a company culture where people take ownership and responsibility that drives almost perfect guest satisfaction.
- Why boring marketing is the biggest risk to you and how to be interesting.
- How to develop the ‘Special Feeling’ for your team and your guests that will guide everything else in the company to success.
Matthew talks fast and never stops dropping magical nuggets of information that you can take yourself and use in your own business.
Get your notepad out and prepare to get scribbling!
Podcast Timestamps
00:00 Introduction to Matthew Newton and Leatherback
01:58 Matthew’s Journey to Entrepreneurship
04:01 The Birth of Leatherback and Its Brands
05:58 The Structure of Leatherback’s Business Model
08:59 Identifying Niche Markets and Brand Development
12:02 Acquisitions and Business Growth Strategies
14:54 The Importance of Team Culture and Structure
16:57 Operational Strategies and Continuous Improvement
24:06 Cross-Brand Collaboration and Future Directions
28:37 Cross-Pollination in Operations
31:06 The Importance of Operating Principles
33:19 Gardening and Continuous Improvement
36:14 Empowering Teams with Meatballs
39:41 Onboarding and Memorization of Principles
43:11 Special Feeling in Recruitment
47:17 Leadership and Time Investment
50:58 Balancing Fun and Profitability
54:58 Salemi Ceramics: A Community Revitalization Project
01:00:07 Marketing Strategies and Authenticity
01:01:41 Writing with Authenticity
01:04:37 Targeted Marketing Strategies
01:07:36 Data-Driven Marketing Decisions
01:08:27 The Role of AI in Travel
01:12:51 Personal Qualities for Business Success
01:17:55 Continuous Improvement and Learning
01:20:18 Future Growth and Brand Expansion
01:22:51 Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs
