An Open Letter to Zerve Clients, from ZOZI's CEO

An Open Letter to Zerve Clients, from ZOZI's CEO
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The unexpected shutdown of tour booking system Zerve that has unfolded over the last few days has created a challenging, and unnecessary situation for many activity operators. ZOZI has attempted to contact the CEO of Zerve several times to offer our support with keeping the technology operational for a significantly extended period of time through the summer season. This would allow for Zerve clients to make a proper evaluation of alternatives, as well as provide Zerve employees with a smoother transition. Unfortunately, we have been unable to get a response privately. Therefore, we've decided to address the situation openly and make a public offer in the hopes we can do our part to ease the transition of Zerve clients to whatever new partner they feel is in their best interest.

Dear Zerve Clients,

Many of you have dedicated much of your lives to what you do, and we believe that you have one of the most important jobs in the world--bringing experiences to people. A decade ago, I realized I craved more purpose in my life, and perhaps much like yourself, made a decision to put everything on the line to pursue my passion, which is helping people get out there and experience all the world has to offer.

Today, ZOZI is thriving by every measure, and we are well on our way to playing what we hope is a meaningful role in the experience economy. We've grown our business to become the largest and most stable company in the market with many thousands of activity operators trusting us as clients. As a result, we have attracted more than $45M in financial backing from reputable investors.

My team recognizes though that we are not the innovators in this market, actually...that is you.

We are simply a technology and service provider. While we believe we demonstrate a lot of unique value for our clients, the truth is that we, and other companies like us, rely upon you far more than you rely upon us. Each and every day, we're grateful for our partnership with so many thousands of activity operators around the world because this enables us to pursue our passions as well--without you, we simply don't exist.

Each day, you wake up and meet your customers' needs and deliver them the best possible experience you can. It's your dedication, passion, and collective innovation that has created this incredible economy of experiences around the world, from the ground up, and that has enabled countless other entrepreneurs, like myself, to create businesses that support you so that we, too, may play our part in delivering happiness to people.

For all of your dedication, we believe you deserve much better than the events of recent days. It's the opinion of many that your needs and interests were not appropriately considered in the recent, and sudden, shutdown of Zerve. While all the details of what exactly transpired may never be known, I believe the most important thing is that you are treated fairly and not pressured into making a key business decision under duress. We believe that you should be given more options, and time, to make the best decision for your business and not have to do so on, what is for many of you, one of the busiest weekends of the year.

As the CEO of ZOZI, I have a responsibility to my shareholders and have spent much time deeply contemplating what I can do to help while keeping this responsibility in mind. I came to the realization that as important as anything for our shareholders is ensuring that the millions of business owners that make up the experience economy around the world are able to continue trusting in partners like ZOZI. My team has been in the trenches over the last few days speaking with many of you directly and receiving feedback on your experience. I've even had the pleasure of connecting with a few of you directly. What I've learned and observed concerns me deeply.

I've seen pressure and scare tactics being used against you, some of which are outright misrepresentations, and, in my opinion, I've seen self-interest triumph over what is best for activity business owners and the industry as a whole. I can't bear to stand idly by and witness the very fabric of this industry, and the integrity that so many of us have worked years to uphold, be eroded because of the actions of a disingenuous few. I'm trying to do my part to help maintain your trust not just with ZOZI, but with all the other great technology providers in the market as well--and there indeed are many.

Therefore, and in the hopes of helping to rebuild trust in our community, I am hereby publicly tendering an offer to maintain the necessary operations at Zerve for a period of at least 60 days, and up to 90 days, at our expense, and further offer to acquire key assets of Zerve that would best enable client operations, and success, to continue. If accepted, we also further commit to exploring ways to support the transition of Zerve employees after this period of time, as they are integral to help with this effort on behalf of their clients.

During this time, you, the Zerve client, would be given the freedom to do a proper evaluation of all of the options in the market and make what is truly the best decision for your business. You will be under no obligation whatsoever to select ZOZI, nor would we pressure you to do so, though of course, we hope that would be your ultimate decision after taking an appropriate amount of time to weigh your options. We're honored and delighted that so many of you have already selected ZOZI as your new partner over the past few days, and we encourage those new ZOZI clients to share their candid input with the broader Zerve community on this decision--the good and the bad.

In this proposed deal, at the end of this 60-day period, or sooner if you elect to migrate to another solution, you will be given all of your data regardless of the technology provider you select. We have reviewed the Zerve terms of service available publicly on their website, and it appears you should own your data, and any attempt or threat to withhold that data by anyone is a violation of your rights as a customer. This is not legal advice, but is our interpretation after reading Zerve's terms of service.

Should Zerve do what we believe is the right thing and allow us to help ease the transition on your terms, ZOZI will further publish a list of the technology providers in the market who, in our opinion, are the most reputable, experienced, and trustworthy partners. We will do our best to win your trust and therefore your partnership, but we firmly believe that this decision is yours to make and not Zerve's. I have close and personal relationships with most of the CEOs we compete with and therefore have a good pulse on various options for you.

Further, we invite all Zerve employees, who presumably were also left in the lurch, to reach out to ZOZI directly and we at minimum promise to interview you for any of the open positions for which you're qualified.

I encourage you to use this forum as a place to share thoughts and findings from your evaluation of alternatives thus far and help your fellow Zerve clients find the pathway that is best for them.

I also encourage you to reach out to your Zerve representatives, management, and Board of Directors, to share your feedback on this proposal.

To Zerve team members, in the most sincere way possible, I want to thank you for all your incredible contribution over the years to this industry. What struck me the most was how so many of you have been at Zerve for so long. This speaks to the passion and commitment you have for your clients. Thus, to the extent you feel this proposal is in your client's best interest, we encourage you to share your feedback as well.

In the case that Zerve elects to ignore or decline our offer we still want to do our best to provide you with an option that would allow you to make an informed decision. Therefore, in this case, I invite you to use the ZOZI platform at no cost to you (other than simply our hard costs in processing credit card transactions on your behalf) for a period of 90 days to help keep your business online. During this time, you will also be free to evaluate the market, and should you decide you like another alternative better, we will promptly provide you with all your data, no questions asked, and assist you in a smooth and appropriate migration of your business at a time that is most convenient for you.

To further support you during this challenging time, you may reach me directly via email. I commit to personally replying to each communication I receive: TJ.Sassani@ZOZI.com

In closing, our hope is that Zerve and its board of directors will respect your longstanding commitment to Zerve's business by allowing you ample time to assess what is in the best interest of your business going forward.

With gratitude for your contributions,

TJ Sassani

ZOZI CEO & founder

For Zerve clients interested in learning more about ZOZI:

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