Growing up on a military base in Ohio meant Eric Ranks had to move often. After all, military life significantly differs from ordinary civilian life. While some people don’t enjoy moving frequently, Eric learned to embrace it because each move meant a new turn, which accompanied a new adventure. His family would move to a new place, and he would get to meet people from different backgrounds, allowing him to experience new perspectives and viewpoints. It’s also something he has incorporated into his entrepreneurial career.
As a successful entrepreneur, Eric established Aqua Vero in 2000 before exiting in 2001. The company offered cutting-edge, structured water and nutritional meal replacement cookies. Its products were sold across the United States and Puerto Rico. When he started offering these products, there was nothing else like them on the market yet. The company had extremely rapid growth and success, which garnered the attention of the FDA. After many months of working with the FDA, he, along with his team, decided to sell the company to individuals who had greater experience in getting food products approved through the FDA.
Shortly after exiting Aqua Vero, he embarked on his next endeavor by starting Nu Vero Corp, a management company with multiple subsidiaries. One of the companies operating under the Nu Vero Corp umbrella is GATA Travel. Founded in 2003, it was one of the first travel sites where members could book travel, view travel options, post travelogues, videologues, photo albums, and personal evaluations on lodging, transportation, cruises, casinos, tours, dining experiences, and more. This website was powered by GATA and “Nu Vero” Internet Travel Affiliates and Accredited Travel Agents members worldwide. Today, GATA Travel caters to those seeking a reliable platform for booking their travels, backed by one of the world’s most established host travel agencies.
Talking about his goal for this company, the serial entrepreneur shared, “My aim was to help clean up the travel industry by having independent agents evaluate and rate their travel experiences, submitting them into an online system equivalent to the Better Business Bureau of Travel. We also created a private labeled GATA Travel Mastercard debit card.”
He continued, “Due to the rapid changes in the travel industry, we decided to partner with another company, Inteletravel. They were a larger organization that rapidly evolved with the changes from people using Travel Agents to booking online. The GATA Travel site is under construction, so we reroute any potential customers to the GATA Travel to http://booktravel.gatatravel.com/.”
While GATA Travel has become a success story in the travel industry, Eric faced obstacles when starting the company. According to him, GATA Travel has had its fair share of initial hurdles. “One of the most significant challenges arose during our fundraising efforts to launch an innovative travel initiative. Unfortunately, the economy experienced a major downturn then, making fundraising for a startup exceedingly difficult,” he shared.
“Moreover, the travel industry was witnessing rapid technological advancements. Due to a lack of investments, we couldn’t keep pace with these developments, placing us at a disadvantage relative to other industry players. To overcome this challenge and remain competitive, we formed a strategic partnership with InteleTravel,” Eric Ranks added.
InteleTravel is the original at-home travel and host agency and was established in 1991. It’s one of the most respected leaders in the travel industry, winning awards and accolades year after year. InteleTravel specializes in luxury vacations and cruises, family vacations and destinations, 24-hour customer support, and the lowest price and profit guarantees.
In addition to being a successful entrepreneur, Eric Ranks is also a renowned author. He contributed to the book ‘The Art of Connection: 365 Days of Transformation Quotes by Entrepreneurs, Business Owners, and Influencers’, which has since achieved international acclaim, becoming a best-seller, earning a place in the Library of Congress, and being integrated into the curriculum of several schools. He also co-authored ‘Boundless Success with Eric Ranks.’
You can learn more about him and his business ventures and purchase a copy of his book ‘Boundless Success with Eric Ranks’ by checking out his website, www.ericranks.com.
