Saba Divers has new ownership

Saba Divers has new ownership, writes The Daily Herald. The diving company was for sale for approximately two years when Miroslav Hude ek and Vit Rosberg from the Czech Republic decided to take over.

Saba Divers was previously owned and operated for 15 years by Scout’s Place owners Barbara and Wolfgang Tooten. The Tootens and Saba Divers agreed on working together in cooperation between Saba Divers and Scout’s Place. The new Saba Divers management also seeks to develop cooperation with other hotels on Saba and St. Maarten.

The new owners will operate under the name Saba Blue BV; however, the name Saba Divers will be maintained as the general brand name. Since the building next to Scout’s Place’s front office was available this will be used as Saba Divers’ new office. Their base of operations at the harbour is in the final phase of completion. “We have plans to build facilities for divers where they can sit down together after dives and share experiences from the underwater world. Our slogan is: Dive in and Discover,” Hude ek said.

Hude ek worked for many years in the consultancy business. He was assisting managers and company owners to improve their business performance and profitability. He also participated in projects for the municipality, focussing on supporting students from vocational schools to develop their skills in establishing their own businesses.
Rosberg worked as a senior manager at a number of significant international companies. He gained experience in banking, finance, telecommunications and energy, focusing on the strategic development of sales and customer care.

Together with the Tootens, Saba Divers will attend the annual Boat Show in Dusseldorf, Germany, January 17-25, 2015. Because the new owners are from the Czech Republic they have a great interest in moving their marketing activities to Eastern Europe as well. “I believe we can bring a fresh wind of new ideas and new customers from Central and East-ern Europe,” said Hude ek. There are plans to market their newly acquired business to wealthier groups of people and businesses, who offer trips to their employees. “Marketing to countries like Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland offers many new opportunities to get more tourists to the island, and in the end everyone profits from this,” said Wolfgang Tooten. Aside from the marketing aspect there will be investments made in new scuba equipment for sale and rental purposes; currently negotiations are ongoing with dive-equipment suppliers. There are plans to purchase a second dive boat as well, and just a few weeks ago the compressor was completely refurbished including a new nitrox membrane.

The Tootens decided to sell Saba Divers, since running both the hotel and restaurant, including all side-activities, together with the dive shop proved to be too much work for just two people. Scout’s Place will nevertheless remain the diver-oriented hotel on Saba.