On May 3, Victoria Falls DMC was launched as the rebranded Green Route DMC, which was founded by Glen Byrom 28 years ago.

Victoria Falls DMC will target the Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Events (MICE) tourism sector, delivering international corporate incentives and conferences to business travellers to Zimbabwe.

Several members of the original Green Route staff have joined the new team, including Hayley Idensohn, as Operations Manager, and Kumbi Chiweshe as Managing Director, former Green Router and five-star hotelier.

“He [Kumbi] is well set to become the inspiring new face of the demanding MICE market into Zimbabwe, Zambia and Botswana, and I am delighted to be playing the role of mentor and marketing to what I feel certain is the only specialist DMC in Zimbabwe,” said Byrom, who will be taking on the role of Chief Experiential Officer. He said the Victoria Falls DMC would have a sharp focus on what clients needed, to produce the most creative and authentic programmes that took full note of trends such as wellness, adventure and experiential.

Idensohn said: “The imminent construction of several new hotels and conferencing facilities, particularly in Victoria Falls, is very exciting for us for our MICE business. There are also plans for upgrading several of the existing MICE hotels in Victoria Falls and Hwange. Zimbabwe is poised for exponential growth in MICE, which has been somewhat dormant for several years, and our team is very excited about not only creating but delivering these world-class programmes.”

“A DMC means being local specialists and that’s what we all are. In the 1990s, my company Green Route delivered more than 700 incentive and conference groups and more than 20 000 people to Victoria Falls, which was about 40% of the town’s total economy. Now we’re back as The Victoria Falls DMC,” said Byrom.