A luxury travel startup taking its first steps

Illustration of a hotel trolley with two suitcases

Providing bespoke luxury holidays in Scotland, Away from the Ordinary is a fledgling travel company set up by founder Aeneas O’Hara. The idea came from his experiences crossing the globe sampling the finer things in life. It represented a way to leave the corporate world and do something that he had a true passion for.

The network was in place, the drive was there but he needed help getting off the ground. As with any new venture there was lots to do and some focus was needed to work out where best to invest the seed funds.

So our first task was to run Aeneas through our Product Sprint process and find out as much as we could to kick things off.

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Starting with an MVP

Away from the Ordinary is all about selling luxury trips to people who can afford boutique experiences. Aeneas’s initial hunch was to create an all singing, all dancing product and start selling using that.

We disagreed

We preach working lean, and this was no exception. The key for this startup – as it is with any – was to begin small, use the flexibility of being able to change as you learn and grow from there.

So we set him the task of finding someone to book a holiday for, and that was his MVP.

Connecting with and learning from your customer is the most important thing you can do. Get to know them, find out their problems and you’ll be in the perfect position to solve them.

Away From The Ordinary Homepage

Looking ahead

With that one happy customer on board, and plenty learned, we looked at what the business should focus on next in the short and medium term. New customers were being found through existing networks, not via search engines or marketing campaigns, which cut down the scope of work considerably.

It turns out he didn’t need all that much. A suitable brand was essential, coupled with a simple platform acting as an extended business card for new customers.

Dan

Steering and support

We helped to take Away from the Ordinary from an idea to a functioning business quickly and within budget. Along the way we helped make calls as to where to keep it simple (as many areas as possible!) as well as where it was necessary to invest some more time and money.

As well as help with content, design and development we supported Aeneas in his new role as a product founder. It’s a position where you juggle lots of hats so mentorship and strategic advice are essential when trying to bring a new project to life.

Away From The Ordinary desktop gallery image

Lighthouse heard my ideas and then worked with me to make them better. They pointed me in a different and better direction on multiple occasions. Everything exceeded my expectations.

Aeneas O'Hara
Away From The Ordinary

Check out Away from the Ordinary 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🧳

60 Hours design
1 Month turnaround
12 Single malts sipped 🥃
5

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