I have not hunted with them, but you might want to give this podcast a listen. I really enjoyed it. He gives his explanation on pricing/value and how he thinks game should be managed in it.
I've been watching this off and on when I have spare time. I am an hour into the 1.5 hour video so far. It is a very interesting video so far. He makes some very interesting points about a lot of things especially PH and business culture. I am past the part where he discusses the financial side.
Don't read this next part as argumentative or heated. It's just my opinion on the conversation.
I get his feelings on it. But I feel like he is heavily misjudging many realities when he says he thinks that SA needs to "get inline with elk hunting prices in the US". And he says that they are way undervaluing their animals based on the out west hunting prices on animals like elk.
For one, our out west hunting has been broken for a while and it seems to just be getting worse in a lot of ways. There is still opportunity there, but it has become more like finding a needle in a haystack. That itself is why so many people are now turning to places like Africa and other countries to do their hunts. Many people feel like the NA hunts have become not worth the value for the costs.
Very very few people are going to pay the same money to hunt a Kudu as they pay to hunt an elk. Almost no one is going to pay that year after year. Very very few people are going to pay the same money to hunt a bushbuck that they pay to hunt a whitetail. Almost no one is going to pay that year after year.
I also think he ignores a lot of factors that already keep a lot of people from going to Africa, which will just be exacerbated if you drastically raise prices. Let's call them "barriers to entry", that don't exist in US hunts for US or NA clients. Many people don't want to do the super long flights, so travel itself is a barrier to entry. Many people are scared of a foreign country and have to overcome that. Then, when considering a hunt in Africa or most other countries people have so many extra costs that aren't there in NA hunts, or are much less. Flight and hotel in JNB is about $3,000 per person for a cattle class seat. Dip and Pack can easily be $1,500. Shipping Say $2,000. Import fees $1,000+. So if a guy and his wife (or buddy) goes, You are starting out with about $10,000+ in costs to travel and get your animals back. Those same things for a NA hunter going to hunt in NA are typically covered by $200-$500 in gas.
A big reason people choose Africa over the western US right now is because they feel like NA hunts have gotten out of control in pricing. So, if the goal is to "get inline" with that. People are just not going to go. Obviously some still will, but unlike NA, South Africa has way more animals and not much for tag limitations. So it's not a super limited supply that will sustain as an industry with just a handful of super wealthy clients per year. Which is essentially what keeps things like sheep hunts and things like that in NA afloat.
In my opinion, at least for SA, it doesn't make a lot of sense to try and raise prices inline with NA hunts. But the prices have been going up somewhat rapidly in the last 5 years or so. So, I suppose we will see how it plays out in the market in real time.
I personally think that we are in a bubble when it comes to the hunting market. Hunting trips are a luxury item and I think when the bubble bursts the high prices won't be sustainable, especially for "lower end" plentiful animals.