Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Adam Miles. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Adam, appreciate you joining us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?
In various forms, I’ve been a storyteller for 25 years. I have always worked for someone else, always reading someone else scripts, always taking their paths or direction. I wanted to tell new stories, travel new paths, but was afraid of taking a chance and failing. Luckily my best friend, my wife, pushed me to move forward. We took the idea piece by piece, so that it never became too overwhelming. We chose the company’s name, 108 Elemental, because it is a combination of a sacred number and a basic force, it felt auspicious. With her support, I began crafting tours that I would like to take and telling stories that no one else was telling, such as Native American myths and Cryptozoology. Above all else though, we didn’t want to compete with the numerous other tour companies, we wanted to co-exist. So far, it is working.
We’ve formed connections with hotels and taverns, travel companies and other guides. We practice kindness, if someone wants a tour that we don’t offer, we will gladly send them to another company. And lastly customer service is paramount. Don’t give people a product, give them an experience, give them a memory.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
It’s been a strange road. I started stand-up comedy right out of high school and performed up and down the east coast, wherever there was a stage. In college, I studied Theatre and after graduating moved to Chicago to further study comedy at The Second City. In 2003, I moved back to Charleston, and threw myself into acting. Around that time, I met my wife and we started our family. In 2017, at a friend’s suggestion, I tried my hand at walking tours and storytelling. After working for one of the larger companies for many years, my wife and I started our company, 108 Elemental Tours. We strive to give our customers an experience they won’t find anywhere else in Charleston. Our Spirits & Spirits Pub Crawl is perhaps the most laid-back tour on the planet, 2.5 hours of libations and ghost stories in the city’s most haunted taverns. The City of the Dead ghost tour, on the other hand, may be the most entertaining as it features different ghost stories every single night. And then you have my favorite tour, the only one of its kind in town, the Myths & Monsters tour. If you want a tour that will make you question what is real and what is perception, that’s the one for you. What you can expect on all of our tours is this, we will give you every ounce of energy we have to make your experience memorable.
Where do you think you get most of your clients from?
TripAdvisor, Viator, GetYourGuide, and social media have been extremely helpful in getting started and getting our name out there. It’s a lot of work and you can’t take your eye off the ball, but it’s ultimately worth it. There is also something to be said for making lasting connections with local travel companies and hotel concierges as well, everyone benefits.
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
There are many lessons I’ve had to unlearn (and continue to unlearn), but the most important is feeling that you have to go at it alone, community and networking is key. Also, your ego is not your friend, listen to others. Advice and criticism are some of life’s best unwanted gifts, without them there is no growth.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://108elemental.com/
- Instagram: 108_elemental_tours
- Facebook: 108ElementalTours
- Twitter: @108ElementalPro
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@108elemental7
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/108-elemental-tours-charleston
Image Credits
Banner Adams (Banner Photography) – www.bannerphotography.com