When Jeff Woelker launched his Underground Donut Tour company, “donut tours” weren’t even a recognized category. Today, Viator has an official donut tour category, thanks in part to Woelker’s pioneering approach.
What started as a simple idea—sharing his love of donuts—has grown into a multi-city operation across the U.S., Canada, the UK, and Ireland. Along the way, Jeff has learned key lessons about scaling tours, hiring the right team, and tailoring experiences to local markets.
We caught up with Woelker at the latest Arival event in Washington, DC to learn more about what’s in the dough of a successful donut tour. Here are some highlights from that conversation. Skip ahead to watch the full interview here.
Timbits and Insights for Tour Operators
1. Create and Own Your Niche
Amid an increasingly competitive environment, there’s one surefire way to differentiate yourself: create your own category. If your tour idea doesn’t exist yet, don’t wait for the market to catch up. Woelker built a tour concept that didn’t exist, and over time online travel agencies (OTAs) have come to recognize it as its own category. For operators, this highlights the potential in thinking outside the (donut) box and defining a unique experience that sets your business apart.
2. Tailor Experiences to Local Markets
Even with a strong brand concept, local culture matters. In the interview, Woelker shares how differing perspectives when designing a tour for a new location showed him that what works for tourists doesn’t always resonate with locals. For operators looking to expand, this highlights the importance of adapting your tour content, stops, or stories to reflect local tastes while maintaining your core concept.
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3. Hire for Culture and Vision
Scaling across multiple cities requires a team that shares your vision (even if they don’t necessarily share your tastes, or — gasp! — love of donuts). Woelker emphasizes the importance of hiring people who not only have the right skills but are also aligned with your company’s culture and are able to get on board with your vision for expansion. This ensures consistent quality and helps your tours succeed in diverse markets.
Full Interview: Jeff Woelker, Underground Donut Tour
In the full conversation, we also sprinkled in some discussion of distribution mix and OTA strategy, corporate-owned expansion vs. franchising, and a pragmatic approach to innovation and AI.
Woelker also shared The Underground Donut Tour story during a keynote session at an Arival event in 2022. Arival Insider Pro Access members can watch that session on demand here.
See What’s Next at Arival
Join us at the next Arival event to learn from industry leading experts, connect with fellow operators and find out insights from the latest Arival research. We’ll discuss the latest in travel experience design, distribution strategy, and how to differentiate yourself online, whether through online marketing savvy (or, like some, creating an entirely new tour category.)
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Header image: Unsplash / Tu Trinh
