Feb. 1, 2009 — Trevor Sichel has the gift of gab. It's a good thing, because he spends his days chatting up visitors who are looking for just the right excursion at Sichel's Activities Information Center.
"I'm good at finding the right activity to satisfy a need," Sichel says. "The customer is all that really matters to me."
He books day and term sails, fishing charters, kayak trips, powerboat rentals and trips to the British Virgin Islands. He also makes reservations for a small stable of vacation villas.
Sichel is quick to point out that he's an independent operator with no ties to any charter boat or other activity provider. This enables him to find the best deal that fits the customers' needs he says.
"I have no bias," he says.
Sichel set up shop at a kiosk on the lower level of Mongoose Junction Shopping Center. When he's there depends on traffic and the season, but he's reachable by phone from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day.
He solicits customer feedback through a questionnaire that provides those who respond with a free breakfast or lunch. The "Feedback Freebie" is available for most activities, but not specials. Additionally, whether the visitor gets a certificate for breakfast or lunch depends on how much they spend. Breakfast is currently at the Inn at Tamarind Court restaurant, with lunch certificates at the Ocean Grill restaurant. The restaurants are subject to change.
Sichel, 55, sailed into St. John eight years ago aboard his 31-foot sloop, Fat Alice. He took a long and circuitous route from his native Capetown, South Africa, and included a four-month stay on St. John in late 1993 and early '94. While on St. John, he washed dishes at Café Roma, a Cruz Bay restaurant.
"I ended up in St. Maarten and met a girl from the States," he says. "We had a Caribbean romance, but it didn't last long."
It lasted long enough for the two to move to Virginia Beach, Va. He lived there six years before the cold winters sent him south to St. Petersburg, Fla., and eventually to St. John.
He ran an activities booking company for someone else before opening shop for himself at Mongoose Junction.
Sichel is a natural salesman who spent many years early in his working life running a 100-person sales force for a leading producer of gold in South Africa.
When he's not at his post at the Activities Information Center, Sichel spends his time working on his two studio cottages, located on Gifft Hill.
"I just finished making kitchen cabinets," he says.
One, Peaceful Cottage, is for rent through the Activities Information Center website.
Sichel is the father of two. Matthew, 32, lives in England, and Travis, 26,in Australia. With no family on St. John, Sichel enjoys life with his dog, a Jack Russell terrier named Jackie, and his 20-pound cat, Trini. Sichel got the cat in Trinidad, hence the name.
He's also an amateur astrologer.
"My hobby is doing astrology charts," he says.
For more information, call the Activities Information Center at 715-4944 or visit bestofusvi.com.
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