Nelson tourism business celebrates 20 years

Reaching 20 years in operation is a considerable achievement, particularly if you’re in tourism. Abel Tasman Sea Shuttles has reached that milestone and, despite Covid-19, is looking to the future with enthusiasm and vigour.

Owners Keith and Heather Knapp say that they want to do everything they can to protect their team’s jobs and continue to contribute to the Nelson Tasman community – as a seasonal and permanent employer and as keen supporters of conservation in the Abel Tasman National Park.

The business has also provided opportunities for Keith and Heather’s family. Seven family members currently work in the business and with their grandson Jackson recently getting his skipper’s licence they now have three generations of the family working as skippers for Abel Tasman Sea Shuttles.

With that kind of family involvement comes great satisfaction, says Keith, but it also means the stakes are high when business-changing events happen, such as a global pandemic.

“In some ways it’s taken us back to our roots, focusing on attracting New Zealanders to take a trip into the Park on our boats. Community has always been a big focus for us and we are relying on the relationships and loyalty we’ve created over the years as the bedrock of our business.”

Recently Abel Tasman Sea Shuttles was successful in applying for funding from the government’s Strategic Tourism Assets Protection Programme and Keith says it has been humbling to receive that support.

“We are very grateful for this support and we feel very accountable to our fellow New Zealanders,” says Keith. “We’ll be using this funding to keep and grow jobs, support conservation activities in the Park, and to make sure we’re here for visitors from around New Zealand and overseas, when they’re able to return.”

Home-grown creativity

Keith is no stranger to innovation and responding creatively to challenges laid in front of him. As an engineer by trade he has built, alongside other family members, all 14 of Abel Tasman Sea Shuttles’ vessels over the past 20 years and developed ingenious landing ramps for his vessels. Another clever invention of Keith’s are special rubber-footed overalls to prevent passengers from getting wet feet when they disembark on beaches in the Park.

Heather has also been a hands-on, hardworking contributor to the business, with responsibility for sales and marketing and plenty of long days spent in the Abel Tasman Sea Shuttles ticket kiosks in Kaiteriteri over the years, including working in a converted water tank and a gazebo which threatened to fly down the beach in high winds.

“I really enjoyed meeting our customers and also hand delivering our brochures on our regular sales trips to accommodation providers around the South Island,” says Heather. “It was a great way to get feedback and to build strong connections with people. That’s so important for a business like ours and we see that goodwill flowing back to us when times are tough.”

Keith and Heather take their commitment to community seriously. They recently reached the milestone of $500,000 of ‘in kind’ support given to community causes in the form or free or subsidised trips on their vessels or other forms of practical assistance.

“That’s our way of thanking our community,” says Keith. “It brings us a lot of pleasure to see school groups in the Park learning about this beautiful environment and to contribute to the work of volunteers with organisations such as Project Janszoon and the Birdsong Trust who are helping to return native bird life to the Park, trapping pests, or eradicating wilding pines.

“We’ve also run regular trips as fundraisers for organisations such as Rotary which have raised more than $100,000 over the years. Every cent from those fundraising trips goes straight to the charity. I find that work extremely rewarding.”

“We want to see people making memories in the Park,” says Heather, “learning about how to protect it, and supporting the Park as a place that all the generations that follow us can enjoy.”

Rebuilding through the pandemic

With 14 employees year-round and up to 45 during the summer season, the business is now a far cry from what Keith describes as the “good retirement option” he and Heather were anticipating when they established the business with Tim Jenkins in 2000 after Keith was originally contracted to build the company’s first vessel.

“Operating in the Abel Tasman National Park is a privilege,” says Keith. “We never take that for granted. There’s no doubt that the impact of COVID-19 has been very significant but we know that with community support we can survive and rebuild.”

Abel Tasman Sea Shuttles is celebrating its 20th anniversary with some special offers over the school holidays and summer months. Visit www.abeltasmanseashuttles.co.nz