Buna Treks and Tours run trekking and cultural tours across PNG and is owned and led by Florence Bunari.
With expert advice through BLP advisor SNS Tech in PNG, Buna Treks and Tours was able to build a website to expand their international client base—at a more affordable cost, with help from a BLP advisor subsidy and the support of the Centre for Excellence in Financial Inclusion (CEFI).
“Having the BLP subsidy really made it affordable for Buna Treks and Tours to build the website and reach that global audience that we had been trying to reach.” Only BLP approved advisors are able to secure BLP subsidies.
Florence learned about the BLP subsidy for advisory services, through her membership of the PNG Indigenous Women Entrepreneurs Connect (IWEC). IWEC put her in touch with the CEFI in Port Moresby who are in partnership with BLP.
“How to reach the global market was my biggest challenge. Having a website was the way forward for me to reach that source market. They assisted me to complete a BLP business health diagnostics test and helped me to identify my areas of business need, prioritising what I could work on to reach my goal.”
“The person (at SNS Tech) I worked with helped me understand the cost. They were patient and helpful, taking the time to explain what each task was and what it was intended for. I could see the pride and dedication she had to work on the website. Running tours while working on the website was tough, but they were patient and though it took time, we finally got the website up and running.”
Starting five years ago and developed from a family business, Buna Treks and Tours is now a limited liability company and employs three permanent administrative staff along with 35+ guides and porters employed on a casual basis. One of its treks is the Kokoda Trail – the path well known for it was the train upon which Australian and Japanese armies engaged in bitter warfare during the early days of World War II.
“If aspiring medium, small, micro enterprises (MSMEs) are serious about building their business, then they’ve got to put in the effort to find every way possible to make money to build. The BLP Subsidy is a wonderful opportunity to assist business owners. It’s a two-way thing so you’ve got to put in your effort and money to get the result you aim to.
More about BLP approved advisors:
To be a BLP approved, advisors must go through a rigorous competency testing process. Since 2017, BLP has supported the inception of the first quality approved Network of business advisory service providers in the Pacific Island. The Network has supported thousands of small and medium-sized enterprises with quality and affordable business advisory services. This growing Network has 160 Pacific based business advisory firms, with more than 200 individual advisors covering 17 areas of business advice.
BLP facilitates access to business advisory services and financial support. To start your journey with BLP, you can self-assess your needs by using the free online tools available to help small- and medium-sized businesses diagnose areas in their businesses that an advisor could improve.
The first step can be the online Business Health Check. You can also check your business’s resilience to respond to crises or climate change challenges on the Business Continuity Planner and the Climate Action Sensor. If you prefer to meet a local BLP representative in person to discuss your business, get in touch with our local partners to arrange a face-to-face Diagnostic.