Graham Simmonds
Wilderness Zambezi Camp Operations and Trade Relations Manager
Graham has been a part of the Wilderness Family for 13 years. In 2022 he begins his next dynamic chapter returning to operations, while continuing with sales and regional development. He is grateful to work alongside remarkable people, and positively impact local communities and the iconic wild areas where we operate.
Graham was born in Zimbabwe, Harare but grew up in Mauritius, where he completed his primary and secondary education. He then moved to South Africa where he graduated from the University of Cape Town, majoring in Labour, Organisational Psychology and Human Resource Management. This was followed by a Postgraduate Diploma in Tourism Management.
His Wilderness adventures began in 2009, an opportunity which enabled him to explore the remote wilderness and paved the way for a thrilling career. Between 2009 and 2014 he worked at Wilderness Vumbura Plains and Duba Plains before settling at Wilderness Mombo in the Food and Beverage department. One of Graham’s biggest achievements was his appointment as General Manager at Mombo, Wilderness’ world-renowned flagship camp situated in Botswana’s extraordinary Okavango Delta.
A bookworm by nature, in the bush Graham found himself in a world of long hours and fixing lots of little, and big, things. However, his self-discipline and love for nature made it easy for him to quickly learn how to become a jack of all trades, giving his guests life-changing experiences while ensuring seamless operational support in the background.
Soon his natural surroundings began to feel more like home to Graham and the early mornings, late nights, and sometimes even 24-hour shifts, were all worth it, because Graham was able to experience long and uninterrupted moments in Botswana’s wonder-filled Okavango Delta. Graham treasures this experience dearly, saying, “Fun, hard work and meeting amazing people in both front- and back-of-house scenarios made these some of the best days of my life”.
In 2014, he took the opportunity to return home to Zimbabwe and explore the mighty Zambezi region. Based in Victoria Falls, he successfully managed and grew the Wilderness Zambezi Travel Shop for eight years, welcoming guests to our iconic continent.
In 2022, Graham was thrilled to progress to his current role. His responsibilities include overseeing service standards and Wilderness culture across all levels of operations, championing staff development and developing industry stakeholder relations.
Graham is excited for his new opportunity and reflects on his years at Wilderness. “I have hosted presidents, royalty and repeats alongside guests who have saved up for this one trip to Africa. No matter the journey, I am so proud of the lifetime memories we create, and that each day I have the opportunity to personally contribute to our core purpose of protecting and expanding our Wilderness”.