How a Former Lawyer Built Her Dream Travel Business

Nikki King is a keen hiker who believes that exploring the great outdoors shouldn’t mean sacrificing modern comforts. Here, she shares five ways the American Express® Qantas Business Rewards Card has supported the growth of her brand, Walk into Luxury – and helped the award-winning boutique travel company earn more than 1.5 million Qantas Points.

Whether she’s admiring giant glaciers while crossing sky-high suspension bridges in Patagonia or snorkelling among enormous whale sharks on Western Australia’s Ningaloo Reef, Nikki King likes to be cocooned in comfort after feeling the exhilaration of the wild. 

“I love adventure but I also appreciate returning from a walk to a hot shower, beautiful view and glass of wine by the fire,” says Perth-based King, who discovered that many travellers share her appetite for exploring the great outdoors without “roughing it” – and turned the idea into a thriving business. 

After planning a multi-day walking trip with her husband in WA’s coastal Margaret River wine region in 2013, King launched Walk into Luxury and took her first clients into the bush in 2014. Within two years, her four-day guided Cape to Cape Walk was named one of Tourism Australia’s Great Walks of Australia.

“Our aim is to connect travellers with the world’s best wilderness areas and create walks they can experience in luxury comfort,” she says. “We’ve extended our range of journeys across Australia, New Zealand, Patagonia [in South America] and, most recently, Japan. Walk into Luxury has grown about 700 per cent over the past four years, scaling our team from just two permanent staff to 25, supported by local guides and partners.”

King signed up for an American Express Qantas Business Rewards Card in 2017 and, with no pre-set spending limit¹, the Card’s access to dynamic funding has grown along with her tour company. 

This flexibility allowed the business to explore new destinations, luxury lodges and walks in order to respond to the flourishing interest in luxury travel and nature-based experiences. “More and more guests are seeking a curated seamless journey supported by local experts. Personalisation and local destination knowledge are key – especially trail knowledge.”

“Having up to 51 days to pay for purchases² on our Card also helps us free up cash flow,” she adds. “We earn up to 1.25 Qantas Points per $1 spent³ on everyday business spend and by using the Card for as many expenses as possible, we’ve earned more than 1.5 million Qantas Points.”

Using the American Express Qantas Business Rewards Card to pay for travel supercharges the points earned by the tour company. “We receive triple Qantas Points⁴ from flying on eligible Qantas flights booked using our Card. And by booking through our Qantas Business Rewards Account, both the business and individual team members earn points when we fly, which means everyone’s happy.

“As our team has grown, we’ve been able to earn Qantas Points even faster and we use them to book reward seats when planning trips to new destinations.”

Kings attributes the business’s growth to uncompromising quality and exceeding customer expectations. And when you’re growing quickly, a strong sense of purpose is key to decision making. “Entrepreneurs generally have a bias to action and a lot of ideas they’re keen to try,” she says. “It’s important to offset this with a clear purpose, to focus your ideas and have a process for measuring success. If you misstep or something doesn’t go to plan, don’t be afraid to pull the pin and redirect resources quickly. Learn from it and move forward.”

Building out the brand’s trip offerings with her team of “journey designers” was the first step in King’s strategy. Now her client base is growing fast – and far beyond her home state.

“Australia and the US are big markets for us and we’re seeing growth in South-east Asia and Europe. This year, we’ve hired our first international team members to support the growth in new customer markets and our new destinations. In the past 12 months, I’ve visited Patagonia, New Zealand and Japan. Next, I’m off to Bhutan to hike in the Himalaya – that might be a hint at a future Walk into Luxury destination!”

Unlock the possibilities

Nikki King shares the key steps she’s taken to grow her business (hint: it pays to have a plan).

“Upgrade trips to arrive ready for action”

As managing director of Walk into Luxury, King takes between six and 10 business trips each year and her team of journey planners do an additional 15 to 20 trips. “It’s important to update our firsthand product knowledge and nurture relationships with our partners,” she says. “International travel supports our destination pipeline, though we limit it to one or two new places a year to ensure they’re world class.” Walk into Luxury earns 2 Qantas Points per $1 spent on Qantas products and services³ with the American Express Qantas Business Rewards Card. “I used points I earned with my Card to upgrade to Business for a 12-hour flight to Santiago last year. I worked most of the way, planning and writing content about our first Chile trip. On arrival, I felt fresh and hit the ground running.”

“Have a North Star”

King attributes Walk into Luxury’s success to keeping a tight focus on agreed goals. “There are so many opportunities and potential ways to scale a business that it can sometimes be hard to know which to pursue,” she explains. “We set very specific objectives, which we review quarterly, and link every team target for the quarter to one of the overarching business goals. When an opportunity pops up, it needs to link to one of those priorities or it goes on a list to come back to later.”

“More Cards equal more points and flexibility”

Using the American Express Qantas Business Rewards Card to pay for as many business expenses as possible means our Qantas Points add up quickly, especially with additional Employee Cardholders⁵, which King can add to her account with ease. “Our office staff, team members who travel a lot and some of our guides have their own Cards so they can earn points for the business while making essential payments.” Her staff use the Card to book travel for sales team meetings as well as regular familiarisation trips that enable them to experience the walking journeys firsthand.

“Do your sums”

Having trained as a lawyer, King brings a critical eye to paying bills in order to maximise the company’s Qantas Points balance. With the American Express Qantas Business Rewards Card, the business earns 0.5 Qantas Points per $1 spent on government charges, utilities and insurance.³ “Do a cost-benefit analysis on using your Card to pay for things such as quarterly BAS payments, even if you have the cash flow to cover these,” she advises. “By using the Card, you could earn enough Qantas Points for several flight rewards each year, which may warrant any processing fees incurred by using the Card to pay those bills.”

“Share the perks with your team”

While King has Qantas Lounge access as a Gold Frequent Flyer, she divides the business’s travel benefits among her team. “We get two complimentary domestic Qantas Club Lounge invitations every year with our American Express Qantas Business Rewards Card.⁶ Sharing perks such as lounge access for business trips helps motivate the team. Their happiness is important, because it flows through to the service our clients receive.”

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