OUR STORY
YAANA Ventures’ story begins in the early 90s, a pivotal time for Southeast Asia as geopolitical shifts saw the opening of tourism in Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam after decades of war and isolation. Founder Willem Niemeijer started Khiri Travel offering travel services for Thailand and Indochina, with the four countries as one destination.
Over the next decades, the destination management company breaks ground in Myanmar, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives. Still, it continues to carry its founder’s DNA of a passion for exploration and sustainability.
Yet a restless spirit soon beckons Willem to expand his vision further, including the building of eco-lodges in some of the region’s most stunning locations.
As the dust settles on the latest expansions in hospitality, YAANA Ventures formed at the start of 2016. The company gives a home to Willem’s ventures. It creates a platform for new tourism, travel tech, and hospitality companies, united under the same vision and values, yet different in ambition and audacity.
OUR STORY
YAANA Ventures’ story begins in the early 90s, a pivotal time for Southeast Asia as geopolitical shifts saw the opening of tourism in Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam after decades of war and isolation. Founder Willem Niemeijer started Khiri Travel offering travel services for Thailand and Indochina, with the four countries as one destination.
Over the next decades, the destination management company breaks ground in Myanmar, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives. Still, it continues to carry its founder’s DNA of a passion for exploration and sustainability.
Yet a restless spirit soon beckons Willem to expand his vision further, including the building of eco-lodges in some of the region’s most stunning locations.
As the dust settles on the latest expansions in hospitality, YAANA Ventures formed at the start of 2016. The company gives a home to Willem’s ventures. It creates a platform for new tourism, travel tech, and hospitality companies, united under the same vision and values, yet different in ambition and audacity.
Willem Niemeijer
Founder and CEO
YAANA Ventures
YAANA means “Journey” in Sanskrit. It bestows the same root as the English for ‘vehicle’ and can also translate as ‘a method of arriving at knowledge.’ Therefore, any of these meanings are alignment with YAANA Ventures Three Pillars of Expertise: Travel, Hospitality, and Travel Tech.
Our logo depicts our mission — accelerating growth and sustainability — as the three A’s undergo a development progression as YAANA advises, supports, and empowers its portfolio companies.
Willem Niemeijer
Founder and CEO
YAANA Ventures
YAANA means “Journey” in Sanskrit. It bestows the same root as the English for ‘vehicle’ and can also translate as ‘a method of arriving at knowledge.’ Therefore, any of these meanings are alignment with YAANA Ventures Three Pillars of Expertise: Travel, Hospitality, and Travel Tech.
Our logo depicts our mission — accelerating growth and sustainability — as the three A’s undergo a development progression as YAANA advises, supports, and empowers its portfolio companies.
Willem Niemeijer
Founder and CEO
YAANA Ventures
YAANA means “Journey” in Sanskrit. It bestows the same root as the English for ‘vehicle’ and can also translate as ‘a method of arriving at knowledge.’ Therefore, any of these meanings are alignment with YAANA Ventures Three Pillars of Expertise: Travel, Hospitality, and Travel Tech.
Designed logo with our Mission in accelerating growth in mind as the three A’s undergo a development progression – as YAANA is advising, supporting, and empowering its portfolio companies through their growth phases.
OURBRAND ESSENCE
MISSION
YAANA Ventures accelerates growth and fosters sustainability across our synergistic businesses in Asia’s travel tech, tourism, and hospitality sectors with efficiency, passion, and persistence. We advise, support, and empower the teams of our business units and measure success through conscientious tracking of People, Planet, and Profit metrics.
VISION
YAANA Ventures seeks to transform the tourism and hospitality sector through business ventures that positively and sustainably enhance the lives of all its stakeholders.
OUR HISTORY
YAANA Ventures’ story begins in 1993 when founder Willem Niemeijer unfolds his vision for a new kind of company where sustainability is the all-encompassing motivation for success. Over the years, ambition and audacity have expanded, and YAANA Ventures offers travel and hospitality entrepreneurs the same passion and the experience and wisdom of those that first forged a new trail.
PURPOSE
To unlock potential by developing geographical and business niches while tackling challenging environmental and social issues facing the world by thought leadership and concerted action.
EMPOWERED
OWNERSHIP
We empower the owners of our brands, and their employees, to seek their own success. With empowerment, we stimulate innovative thinking, a focus on efficiency and a drive for results. We act as guardians to all of our brands, offering expertise and leadership whenever necessary.
A HUMAN TOUCH
YAANA Ventures based in Bangkok, Thailand. Our ventures maintain offices throughout Asia to ensure that we are near the communities we work in. Besides, some of our ventures maintain offices outside of the region to facilitate communication with their clients.
IMPASSIONED
DISCOVERY
We serve the human need for travel as a vehicle of self-discovery and growth. Our genuine commitment to culturally-driven travel enables us to create meaningful experiences that unleash the spirit of discovery.
REAL EXPERIENCES
We prioritize creating life-changing experiences for travelers, and we do so with a portfolio of carefully selected brands committed to both broadening and deepening our clients’ connection with local cultures. We vouch for genuine experiences, which we conceive responsibly to protect everything that makes this region unique and ensure authentic journeys.