Destination Kitchen has always been more than a New Orleans food tour operator. According to founder Julie Cavignac, the small but mighty operation specializes “first and foremost in hospitality.”

Julie created Destination Kitchen to share her passion for New Orleans with travelers in a fresh and constantly-evolving way. Her love for the city and devotion to the community shine through every part of her thoughtfully curated tours.

Managing the Moving Pieces

Executing a Destination Kitchen tour is no easy feat. Each tour requires careful coordination between a handful of local restaurants, bars, and vendors and masterful facilitation by Julie’s team of dynamic guides. 2021’s barrage of disruptions – from COVID to Hurricane Ida – made it more difficult to manage these moving pieces while protecting margins and continuing to stand out from competing food tours. 

Throughout the uncertainty, Julie prioritized safety without compromising on the quality of her tours. As a savvy businesswoman, she also remained focused on growth. Specifically, Julie wanted greater exposure for the products she worked hard to perfect without pouring her time, money, and energy into new, untested marketing channels. She needed a cost-efficient way to grow her bookings and, in turn, support the many local businesses with whom she collaborates.

The Power of Data

Viator Accelerate provided an easy way for Julie to gain more visibility for Destination Kitchen on her own terms. She used Accelerate to promote the individual tours with sign-up minimums to ensure financial viability for all the partnering businesses. Accelerate Insights, the dashboard reporting on products’ key metrics such as page views and bookings, also provided Julie with a way of gauging product popularity with enough time to pivot plans if necessary. 

One month after opting in to Viator Accelerate, Destination Kitchen increased its market share by 91%. With a more comprehensive understanding of consumer behavior and the data to support it, Julie feels like she can better plan for the future and achieve her goals for growth. 

A Win for Destination Kitchens is a Win for the Community

“We’re a company that wants everyone who helps out to do it well and also benefit from the success. We need to take care of [our partners]. Accelerate is a wonderful option to get more exposure and visibility and still maintain the warmth that makes travelers want to experience our tours for themselves.”

With more control over visibility and access to meaningful product performance data, Julie has more time to dedicate to what she does best: making travelers feel like part of the family in the city she loves most.

About the Author: Victoria O'Keefe

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