JUNGLE BOSS - A JOURNEY OF REMARKABLE GROWTH

An Unexpected Encounter with Adventure Tourism

Born and raised in Quang Tri, in 2008, Le Luu Dung - now the Founder & CEO of Jungle Boss - decided to come to Phong Nha as if by fate.

Holding two bachelor's degrees in Tourism Management and English Language, he worked for a nature conservation project of a German non-governmental organization. His job was to protect the forest, rescue wild animals, and find job opportunities for local people to minimize their negative impact on the forest environment.

In contrast to his work, the local people in Phong Nha were born from the forest and depended on the forest for their livelihood. One side protected the forest, the other exploited the forest to earn a living. Seeing this contradiction between people living in the same land of Phong Nha, Le Luu Dung always wondered how to fulfill the mission of protecting the forest without affecting the lives of the people who depended on the forest in Phong Nha.

At this time, Phong Nha - Ke Bang was gradually receiving more attention for being recognized as a World Natural Heritage Site and for its unique discoveries about the natural ecosystem. This place began to welcome many tourists and explorers to admire and learn about the seemingly unreal pristine beauty of the majestic cave systems, notably Son Doong Cave - the largest cave in the world. Recognizing the potential of this land with its suitable terrain for developing many unique experiences, along with his passion for adventure exploration, Dung decided to learn and start an adventure tourism business. He spent days and nights searching and learning how to make both nature and people in Phong Nha develop sustainably. When he had enough knowledge and confidence, in 2015, Dung decided to establish Jungle Boss.

Jungle Boss Homestay - The Origin of Development

Initially, Jungle Boss developed in the form of a homestay with only 3 wooden houses. Meanwhile, the place where Dung welcomed guests and worked day and night was just a makeshift leaf tent.

After about half a year, seeing that the operation of Jungle Boss homestay had gradually stabilized, Dung decided to combine and open more cave exploration tours during the day. The first product that marked Jungle Boss's foray into the field of adventure tourism was the Abandon Valley tour. During peak periods, there were days when he welcomed nearly 50 guests/day. In that whirlwind of work, the CEO of Jungle Boss was both the homestay manager, the tour guide leading guests into the forest for exploration, the marketer, and the tour seller.

Realizing that to go a long way, Jungle Boss needed a more professional and well-organized staff, along with the concern about creating sustainable livelihoods for people who depended on the forest, Dung planned to recruit local labor.

This decision of his has somewhat changed the lives of the people here. From people on the "other side of the line", hunting and illegally exploiting timber, the people of Phong Nha gradually became pioneers in conservation and sustainable development, supporting tourism development while ensuring a stable life.

Along with the efforts of the Jungle Boss staff, the company is increasingly making a special mark in the adventure tourism industry with many unique tour products. From the Elephant Cave and Ma Da Valley Jungle Trek 1D, to the Ma Da Valley Jungle Camping or Hang Pygmy Exploration, and the Tiger Cave Series Adventure. The adventurous journeys have different levels of difficulty, but all bring visitors unforgettable and unique cave exploration experiences.

The Breakthrough of Kong Collapse Top Adventure

Recognizing the increasing demand for challenging experiences, Jungle Boss launched a "breakthrough" in the field of adventure tourism called "Kong Collapse Top Adventure" in 2021. Up to now, this is considered the most difficult adventure tour in Vietnam.

The process of finding and perfecting the Kong Collapse rappelling product was a challenging but also impressive journey. Fumbling in the dark cave, swimming amidst the rapids, or even getting lost. To understand more about those experiences and emotions, we invite you to read the article Journey of bringing one of the largest cave to the world.

After more than two years of collaborating with the American Caving Association to survey and submit a plan for an operating license, in 2021, "Kong Collapse Top Adventure" was officially "launched" and received much praise.

Kong Collapse is currently recognized as the deepest sinkhole in Southeast Asia. This adventure tour, besides providing visitors with experiences such as trekking in the forest, wading through streams, and camping, the main highlight is the 100m rappelling activity down into the sinkhole.

Successful Fundraising at Shark Tank Season 5 with Adventure Tourism

Appearing with an impressive rappelling performance in Shark Tank Season 5, along with his intense inspiration and desire to develop adventure tourism in Vietnam while conserving nature and caves, Le Luu Dung successfully became the first person to successfully raise capital in Shark Tank Season 5.

Carrying the will and passion for adventure tourism along with the desire for sustainable development, Le Luu Dung brought Jungle Boss to the Shark Tank Season 5 program. After dramatic negotiations and overcoming tough questions from the Sharks, the CEO of Jungle Boss made Shark Hung exclaim "I have a gift for you" and did not hesitate to pull out the "Golden Ticket."

In the end, Le Luu Dung successfully impressed Shark Hung, who was willing to invest 400 million VND immediately to get priority in closing the deal: 12 billion VND for 25% of the shares. Jungle Boss was also honored to be the first enterprise to successfully raise capital impressively in Shark Tank Season 5. This also helped the company's brand gain wider coverage.

Product Development and Expansion

Thanks to the efforts of the entire staff and the love of customers, Jungle Boss has been and continues to strive for development. Typically, the continuous launch of new tour products in recent years.

Notably, the Hung Thoong Exploration tour, since its launch in early 2023, has attracted the interest of many tourists. Everyone is delighted with the majestic nature inside the cave, along with unique adventurous experiences and joyful moments with the locals.

Not stopping there, Jungle Boss is also actively expanding its market to many other places. Specifically, Do Quyen Waterfall Top Adventure Conquering in Bach Ma National Park - Hue or the upcoming Phi Lieng Exploration in Lam Dong, with the first trip officially departing on October 1, 2024. Each product is a new color, a milestone of maturity and effort of Jungle Boss on the journey of bringing adventure tourism closer to visitors.

Besides renewing products, the company also focuses on building a professional and hospitable staff, with the goal of bringing customers unique service and adventure experiences.

After nearly 9 years of establishment and development, going through many ups and downs and incidents, at times seeming to have to stop when the COVID-19 pandemic appeared, Jungle Boss is now proud to be one of the leading prestigious units in the field of adventure tourism in Quang Binh in particular and Vietnam in general. Jungle Boss is still striving to improve every day, to both develop but still ensure complete sustainability, protecting the cave ecosystem resources for future generations.