Sunshine World - The Story So Far
This story of Sunshine World's foundation was written at the request of the Editor of Discover Poland Magazine, and published in the January 2010 edition of the magazine.
I was 15 when I took the first
steps towards creating Sunshine
World. My stepfather had just
died in a helicopter crash, and my
whole world was turned upside
down and thrown into confusion
amidst the heartbreak and tears
that enveloped my loved ones. I
decided to go to Canada on my
own for three months in an attempt
to clear my head, and to train to become a professionally
qualified snowboard instructor. I
passed my exams and, still aged
15, embarked on an 18 month
period of intensive and rigorous
training, after which I qualified as
a professional ski instructor. At
the same time, I also qualified as
a professional tennis coach.
I continued my training at the
same time as working in places like TGI Friday's and the dry ski
slope at Sandown, as well as at a
Club Med resort in Tunisia and
for Simon Butler Skiing, a fantastic
ski company in the French
Alps. This meant that I could pay
my way as much possible, support
my wonderful mother and help to
look after my younger brother
Christophe and my sister Lucie. By the age of 20, I decided to
start my own company. I had two
basic principles, which I knew
would make my plan failsafe
from the start:
1. If I don't spend any more
money than there is in the
bank, the company cannot go
bankrupt. 2. The best way to learn is by
doing. As long as I adhere to
the first principle, we can learn
without risk and keep developing
and growing.
And so Sunshine World was
born. I started out with £2, 000
that I had saved from previous
jobs. My aim was to find somewhere
in the world that offered all
of the elements of an incredible
winter sports holiday without the
high price-tag that is often associated
with skiing and snowboarding.
The destination also had to
be just a short-haul flight from
the United Kingdom and Ireland.
I set about researching my options,
considering everywhere
from Iceland to Bulgaria, however
Zakopane in Poland kept cropping
up in various reports and reviews, even though it seemed to
be quite poorly presented at that
time. I knew that I just had to see
it for myself.
I spent my first 10 days in
Kraków and Zakopane in complete
awe at the quality of the facilities
that were available there, especially
knowing that everything cost so
much less than at the better-known
ski resorts in Europe. My first port
of call was Zakopane's town hall,
where I asked for permission from
the local authorities to set up my
operations there, and make sure
that I wasn't treading on anyone's
toes. Zofia Karpinska, the Director
of Sports and Tourism, couldn't
have been more accommodating
and enthusiastic about Sunshine
World's plans. I then sought out
the most suitable service providers
in Zakopane, and set up formal
agreements with them in order
to make sure that we could go
ahead with our plans to welcome
12 guests per week during our first
season. It was at this point that
Sunshine World became the first
licensed international tour operator
to deliver professional ski and
snowboarding holidays in Zakopane,
Poland.
Sunshine World has expanded
over the past four years, and we
now have over 50 websites offering
a wide range of holidays in
dozens of destinations including
France, Italy, Austria, Bosnia, Slovakia,
Slovenia, Croatia, Lithuania
- and of course, Poland. We have
now introduced long-haul trips to
New Zealand. We have also developed
our own Professional Ski and
Snowboard Instructor Training
Academy, which provides professional
training for ski and snowboard
instructors that is ATOL
protected. Our training academy is
the cheapest of its kind in Europe
- if not the world.
About the Author
Alan Garcia is a qualified ski and
snowboarding instructor and also
Managing Director of Sunshine
World, a tour operator that specialises
in arranging ski and snowboarding
breaks in Poland. Has
skied all over the world - including
some of the best-known resorts in
Europe and Canada, yet he does
not hesitate in recommending
Poland for a Winter sports break. |
Over one thousand people
have learnt to ski with Sunshine World, and our seasonal instructor
training courses are now
helping instructors to gain their
official qualifications each year.
I like to place a special emphasis
on the fact that groups are
small; we do this intentionally
so that we can guarantee the personal
approach and dedication to
service. Sunshine World has now
turned over more than £650,000
worth of sales, and sales
have
been increasing by at least 25%
to 30% every year. Our
greatest
testimonial is the high number of
guests returning year
after year.
This season we will be welcoming
back some guests
for their fourth
consecutive year with Sunshine
World.
Zakopane remains - in my
opinion - the number one ski destination
when it comes to offering
value for money, however this may
change. My aim has never been
(and never will be) to focus on
promoting
any one country, but instead
to provide the very best
sincere and
honest advice on where to find the
best value from the
ski and snowboard
industry. Sunshine World
also strives towards delivering the
very friendliest and most professional
service to every single guest
who books a holiday with us.
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