SoCruise - cruise social network promoting cruise deals [UK]

SoCruise is a recently launched social network / UGC site and online booking agent for cruise deals. As a site it is pretty good actually - it has most of the attributes that you would expect a successful site to have (except users or traffic, but lets overlook that for the moment!)

I found out about the site from a press release sent by one of the founders. The release really has me intrigued for all sorts of reasons…. here is an excerpt:

The SoCruise Group of confidential stakeholders includes highly experienced cruise industry personnel that have brought their expertise together. SoCruise will be run completely virtually, this highlights the way that this business venture can be managed just as easily cruising in the Mediterranean as it can from an office block in the UK. Both directors plan to run the business from their private yachts in Ibiza.

Is that real or are they just trying to get me to write about them?

OK - I like the concept of working on a yacht and I support that - but I am not sure how this can help them achieve one of their other goals: “15% of the cruise deals market by Quarter 4 2008″

The other aspect of the press release that intrigues me is the section where they say they would “prefer to remain anonymous but include key industry players”. This is also repeated on their About US page:

So to recap - the two founders want to create a business, run from a yacht (or two yachts), and capture 15% of the competitive cruise deal market (by the end of the year) while at the same time remaining anonymous.

Perhaps they are super heroes so can do this easily:

Yes - that must be the answer. I look forward to “super cruise man” doing a video about how to fold a towel elephant.

Why the anonymous requirement?

I know that sometimes people bootstrap businesses while working full time for an employer. I expect that this is the situation here. However most people who are bootstrapping businesses this way either quit once they have got their new site live (just stay employed during the original development phase) or are running more “lifestyle” type businesses for a little extra cash on the side.

That isn’t the situation here….. indeed one of the founders is currently the online marketing / affiliate manager at the leading ferry (& cruise) company in the North Sea, Northern Europe, region.

If you want to find out who….. follow the socruise.com domain name registration and put the name into Linkedin. No point me exposing who he is…. because I think he will need to remain in employment for a few more months…. besides he is a reader of this blog - and I like my readers!

Note to other sites wanting coverage on this blog

Yes - this post proves the point that if you send a completely unbelievable press release to me I am much more likely to write something. It also helps if you liken yourself to a superhero and mention yachts.

Even funnier, Travel Weekly seem to have taken this press release seriously! Don’t Travel Weekly see the funny side of the super hero images? Come on Travel Weekly - this is the travel industry - not the accounting industry.

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