Flavio Tagliabue is the enthusiast Secretary and Co-founder of Associazione Startup Turismo, as well as advisor and partner of several startups. You can tell it by talking to him: he knows what’s what when it comes to the startup ecosystem and its rules!
Associazione Startup Turismo was founded in 2013 as the leading “voice” of tourism startups in Italy, with more than 130 associates working to innovate the travel and digital culture landscape through the startup lens. “We are the link between traditional entrepreneurs, public sector and the innovation world: only like this we can work to make the tourism sector competitive, in step with the times and the needs of the tourist”, says Flavio.
Let’s meet him personally with this inspiring interview!
The tourism sector is a vast and continuously expanding market that offers abundant opportunities for innovative startups. Moreover, the distinct challenges and prospects within the tourism industry need specialized attention and expertise.
Although there are already various associations representing the startup ecosystem in Italy, a novel vertical association focusing on tourism presents a distinctive viewpoint regarding the particular requirements of tourism startups and provides tailored assistance and resources for these enterprises.
There are still numerous opportunities for innovative and technological startups within the Italian tourism market. In particular, there are several areas where the Italian tourism industry could benefit significantly from the startup ecosystem. These include:
I find it surprising that many traditional companies within this particular sector, such as tour operators, mobility companies, DMCs, and DMOs, do not recognize the importance of collaborating closely with technology developers and startups that are developing new services. By partnering with startups, they can immediately access research and development activities and stay ahead of the curve by anticipating the latest solutions. This would allow them to remain competitive in the market rather than constantly playing catch-up. Italy has always been renowned for its inventors and poets, and it is disappointing to see that we seem to have lost this feature in some respects.
To foster cooperation on a European scale, we have partnered with the
EU DigiTOUR project, which provides national and international experts and mentors in VR/AR, AI, IoT, and Big Data. The EUdigiTOUR Project aims to assist the EU tourism SMEs in realizing the potential of digital technology by strengthening collaboration in the tourism ecosystem and developing innovative and smart tourism solutions.
During our event schedule at TTG and BIT in Milan, we presented the EU DigiTOUR project, which received an excellent response. The Call for Tourism Startups closed on February 15 ahd it was a blast, we received totally
68 applications, with Italy having the most sign-ups! And the best is yet to come. Now the external experts are evaluating the applications, I can’t disclose more.
So, stay tuned!
Thank you Flavio, and good luck on your commitment!
THE EU DigiTOUR Project 2021-2024
info@eudigitour.eu
Co-funded by the COSME Programme
of the European Union
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