I went to the New York Stock Exchange last night to celebrate the public listing of Viking, now trading under the ticker VIK, a global leader in experiential travel with a fleet of nearly 100 ships. The company was valued at approximately $11 billion on a fully distributed basis in the IPO and its share value rose during the day. Company founder and chairman Tor Hagen and his right hand, Karine Hagen, daughter and Executive Vice President, Product, were absolutely right to celebrate their 27-year journey from humble beginnings to becoming the third most valuable cruise line in the world. Edelman has been the PR partner for Viking for nearly the entire voyage; kudos to our team for being called out by management for being an important source of bookings and now for the excellent coverage of the IPO.
The numbers are staggering. Tor started with four ships sailing on the rivers in Europe. Now he operates on seven continents with 92 ships, offering guests the opportunity to explore the world’s oceans, lakes and rivers from the comfort of their “floating hotel”, as they describe the ships. The customer base is aged 55 years plus, with high disposable income, post-children at home and time for leisure. The business concept is one brand, the best staff in the industry, a focused product (one ship design) and experiences that offer extensive enrichment.
But the real competitive edge is the drive of the Hagen family. Tor and Karine live their business. Karine’s toast to her dad last night touched me deeply. “He wins because he is kind, he is honest and is the hardest worker.” She then joined three other Viking executives in reading Rudyard Kipling’s epic poem, “If” with important lines as follows:
“If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you but make allowance for their doubting too…
“If you can dream and not make dreams your master, you can think and not make thoughts your aim…
“If you can make one heap of all your winnings and risk it on one turn of pitch and toss…
And lose and start again at your beginnings and never breathe a word about your loss.”
I remember sitting with Tor and Karine on a Zoom call at the start of Covid-19. He was the first to put his ships into dry dock. He was determined to be the first back in service safely. We talked about the trust implications of daily testing for Covid, would that be enough to restart the business. We also discussed fuel source for the ships, that LNG was not a real option, and that the hydrogen option would be a better choice. Viking has now jetted forward out of Covid and remade the industry. As Tor correctly said last night, now begins the true test, operating as a public company. I have every confidence that the Viking team will make us all proud.
Richard Edelman is CEO.
