Influx

AFAR has been one of the most interesting magazine launches of recent years, so I spent some time with Greg Sullivan, the founder, to learn more about their story.

Can you tell me your background?

Lawyer for three years.  Investment banking for a couple of years.  Started an arcade game manufacturer (made the world’s top selling basketball game).  Helped start and run what turned out to be a big used car dealership chain/finance company.  “Retired” at age 46.  Went back to school to study and teach philosophy/ethics.  Traveled.

What was the inspiration behind AFAR?

Travel is transformative.  It was for me; it is for lots of people.  Yet, travel media has typically dealt with travel as a mere escape/vacation or a sightseeing (outside looking in/passive) experience.  The media also has focused primarily on the transactional and rather than the emotional aspects of travel.

Joe Diaz, my business partner, and I thought more and more people view themselves as global citizens who want to explore the world and grow personally through their travels.  We didn’t think there was a brand serving this mindset/movement.  We thought it would be both an incredibly satisfying thing to do (inspiring and helping people to do this) and also a great business opportunity.

Why launch a magazine in 2011?

Actually, we launched our first issue in September 2009, a worse time than this year!  But we believed that a magazine was a great way to launch the brand.  Through compelling narratives and beautiful images, we could inspire and connect with those who believed in this sort of travel but for which there had previously been no label.  We called it ‘experiential’ travel, but our goal was to become the identity for this way of looking at travel and the world – and I think we have had a fair amount of success with this.  People use AFAR as a both a noun and adjective.  “That is very AFAR,” or “This is an AFAR-ish place.”

What positive reactions have you received to date?

We have had a great reaction.  On our launch, the New York Post rated us four stars; the first launch they have ever given four stars.  And they rated our competitors 2 ½ or lower.  Martha Stewart had my co-founder Joe on her show and declared AFAR one of her top “Finds” of the year.  The American Society of Travel Writers named AFAR the Best Travel Magazine in America, the first time in 27 years they gave it to a magazine after only one year of publication.

How do you see AFAR as a brand- where is it heading and how important is it to think like a brand?

We completely think of ourselves as a brand.  We never intended to be a magazine.  We call ourselves a media company, but we really feel we are about a way of looking at the world, and finding ways to connect with and serve people who relate to that vision.
Since the launch of the magazine, we have launched AFAR.com, where we connect travelers and locals so they can make one-to-one connections, inspire and help each other have deeper, richer more personal travel experiences.  We will be launching a mobile app this year, so that our community can create and access content on the go.

As you noted, we are launching AFAR Experiences this fall, where we create amazing three day events that take travelers deep into the culture of a place and connect them with fascinating locals who they would never meet traveling on their own.  People will come away not only with great memories, but some personal connections and great understanding of many aspects of life and culture in that place.

And we also have our foundation, Learning AFAR, where we help send high school students, most of whom come from low-income families, on ten-day overseas trips that take them inside the culture and open their minds to all kinds of possibilities.  In 2010, we helped send 24 students to Costa Rica.  This summer, we helped send over 70 students to Costa Rica, Peru and Cambodia.  We believe that travel is the best form of education, and it is so reaffirming when we talk to these students after they come back from their trips.

Looking out to publishing and media- who and what are your sources of inspiration?

Most of my inspiration comes from travel.  Meeting other people, seeing how other people live, experiencing new things… these drive most of what we do at AFAR.  But, of course, we love what so many other brands are doing, like TED, Ideo and Louis Vuitton.