Today we’d like to introduce you to Daniel Berger-Jones.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
Chris Schultz and I were a pair of headstrong, strapping, tri-corner behatted Freedom Trail Foundation guides, and we kept getting asked what other tours folks should take while in Boston. We realized there was an open market in Cambridge, and opened up in the 2012 tour season trying to replicate the Freedom Trail Foundation model of Public Tours ten times a day every day.
That nearly killed us, so we scaled back to just a few public tours, but we branched out from Harvard to MIT, and then to “Old Cambridge” around Harvard Square, and then eventually to all over the Boston area, where we do events, customized tours, and character appearances (corporate conventions LOVE having their guests greeted by Paul Revere).
We have, for the moment, discontinued our Public Tours in hopes that we can use our guide better to service small groups of curious history buffs, families, corporate groups and events, and educational groups. The change seems to have made our admin, staff, guides, and customers all much more relaxed and the experience much more fun.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
We definitely overestimated the amount of nerds like us who would be interested in historic Cambridge, rather than Boston. Boston has amazing marketing, PR, and reputation, but a lot of what Boston takes credit for happened in Cambridge, since nearly every educated New Englander went to Harvard in the old days.
That said, what folks often want out there, and understandably, is one of the tours with the Harvard students. We were presenting the history of the area in costumes, and folks were not yet used to seeing costumed figures in Harvard Square, or at least not ones who weren’t a little bit scary or possibly off their rockers. So we did not have a niche already carved for us, and have had to do it ourselves. One adjustment we’ve made in the private tours model is that folks may now choose whether or not they want a costume, and from what era. That has helped convert a lot of the business that was scared away by the costumes, but has allowed us to retain school groups.
Another big problem has just been quality control. Our third year, we had hired 27 guides to do the tours we were running all the time. Often that was because 10 would be busy at a time, and ten would be out there, and it was just a mess. Furthermore, we couldn’t keep a close eye on how accurate the history was, or how entertaining the tour was, and I started to worry I’d go prematurely grey from it. We now have a much smaller staff of under 10, with a few subs here and there.
Also, working with actors can be exasperating, as they’re often called away to rehearsals and shows. But it’s also the best way to teach (by acting like everything is the most interesting thing in the world!), and I have a theatre background myself, so it’s important to me to hire like-minded folk.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Cambridge Historical Tours story. Tell us more about the business.
Our company does history with a wink. It’s not so serious that you can’t break us out of character if we’re in costume. But we do cherish our past, and believe it deserves a fair and accurate retelling of the truly remarkable tales from the last 380 years of this area’s history.
We know tons and tons about Harvard history, MIT history, Old Cambridge history, and the inside of the Harvard Museum of Natural History, but we also love the new stuff happening in Kendall, the old stuff in Boston, the beautiful, scenic history of Lexington and Concord, or Beacon Hill, and more than anything, enjoy sharing it. Our guides all have a deep passion for knowledge, humor, and spreading both around. Our enthusiasm in infectious, and our guests leave MORE curious than when they came in, because they want to read this stuff for themselves.
We’re most proud of ourselves when a group leaves shocked at how easily they can relate to the people of the old days. I like to think of us as a breaker of chronological barriers and as fosterers of empathy who help explain how events lead to certain human behaviors in history.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
Having your health, a roof over your head, dinner on the table every night, and no wars happening around you sounds like the best luck to me, and I have that, so I’d say I have great luck. I feel like I position myself to be the benefactor of good luck, though I get my share of hard knocks along the way. But one of the reasons I started a business was to feel like I had control over my life and business, and didn’t have to wait for others, or for luck, to give me what I felt I could earn and deserve.
Pricing:
- $100 per hour for custom tours of anywhere in greater Boston (groups of 5-15, 90 minute minimum)
- $115 special rate for standard 75 minute tours (groups of 1-4)
- $10 per person for standard 90 minute tours (groups of 15+ guests)
- Character Rentals begin at $200 for an hour. Email for a quote
Contact Info:
- Website: www.cambridgehistoricaltours.org
- Phone: 617-520-4030
- Email: info@cambridgehistoricaltours.org
- Facebook: /cambridgehistoricaltours
- Twitter: @oldcambridge
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