About us

Safari Outfitters was founded by Roman Hupalowski in 1952. We were the first hunting consultant company in the world, but were soon joined by two others, who together dominated the hunting world for many years. These early pioneers opened sport hunting in many African and Asian nations, and we are still reaping the benefits of their early work.

Roman sold SAFARI to Lloyd Zeman and Gretchen Stark in the early 80's. Lloyd started the Foundation for North American Wild Sheep and was a respected biologist, journalist and sheep-hunting expert. He opened sport hunting in Siberia for Snow Sheep and bear, the Kamchatka Peninsula for Kamchatka Bighorn and brown bear and Tajikistan for Marco Polo hunting. Unfortunately, Lloyd was killed in 1991 in a horse accident near Yellowstone Park. Gretchen then took over the leadership of the company and continues in this capacity today.

Today, the new frontiers are in Asia, which SAFARI dominates. We financially assist with conservation programs and help motivate the governments to properly manage their conservation programs. Gretchen is very involved in conservation efforts throughout Asia and was recognized for her work by Safari Club International receiving the International Conservation Award of the Year in 1997. We also outfit many of the camps and coordinate cooks, interpreters and other staff members.

Our satellite office in Moscow, Russia is critical to the success of our hunting programs in Russia and the former USSR nations. When we say, "go with the leaders", you can see we've earned our top position in the world today.

Gretchen Stark A Profile . . .	Asian Division Manager and head honcho. Regularly travels to Asia and other regions of the world to meet with her business partners and to explore new hunting opportunities. She negotiates directly with foreign governments, assists in establishing conservation programs and attempts to convey the importance of hunting in sync with good conservation. Our involvement with Asian Conservation issues has been an important part of SAFARI'S repertoire for more than a decade.
Clark Jeffs Consultant Profile	A bit older and much wiser . . . Clark has been a member of Team Safari since ’89.  To give you an idea of how long he has been with us – he had hair and it was dark when he started! Born and raised in the Rocky Mountain region, he has hunted since age 10.  He has hunted and traveled to many regions of the world.  So far, he has been throughout the western U.S., Alaska, Canada, Mexico, New Zealand, China, Mongolia, Russia, Turkey, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Kazakhstan and most recently Zambia.  He manages all N. American and S. Pacific hunting operations and is very involved in our Asian division as well.  Those who have worked with Clark know he is fun-loving, easy going and knowledgeable.
Sergei Kondratov Vice President of Operations in Russia	Sergei has been with SAFARI 20 years and is the core of our Russian/C.I.S. operation in this complex part of the world. Sergei graduated from Moscow University in 1986 specializing in languages and business. He negotiates directly with the hunting reserves, hires staff, supplies the camps with equipment and supplemental food from Moscow and runs the entire operation in Russia and the CIS nations. He makes sure all the appropriate permits are in place and that every hunter is met upon arrival at any destination in this vast land and is accompanied for the duration of their stay.
Alexander "Sasha" Kiseljov	Dr. Sasha Kiseljov earned his medical degree at Moscow University. He has been with SAFARI 16 years and is an absolute pleasure to be with. He receives high praise from the many hunters that have been with him in the field. He accompanies the majority of our hunters to Kamchatka, Siberia, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan.
Don Crane	Since joining the SAFARI team, Don has focused his attention to hunting in Africa, fishing and worldwide wingshooting. He retired from the Colorado Division of Wildlife after a thirty-two year career as a District Wildlife Manager. Besides being an avid hunter and fisherman, Don has authored a guidebook for rafting/fishing Alaska’s rivers.

A Word of Caution

We've been in this business for 55 years and have seen a lot of changes. There were three major consulting companies that controlled the hunting for many years. However, in the last 15 years, there are "agents" everywhere making all sorts of claims. As a consumer, you must choose who to trust your leisure dollars with. Be sure that you carefully check references and look at recent trophy photos.

In North America and Africa, our prices are the same as the outfitters, but you are dealing with a company that works for you, not the outfitter. So, if you have a valid gripe, we will represent you and your best interests. Why book direct when you receive our umbrella of protection and years of experience at the same rate? In Asia, we take top trophies consistently primarily because we have secured the best areas, have trained the personnel and actually staff most of our camps. Additionally, we escort each and every client from arrival to departure.