TouriSME: training session at the Jalari Park Museum
In the framework of the TouriSME project, a meeting with our companies’ partners from the Aeolian Islands took place in the Jalari Park Museum. Our six Italian partners met to gain a deeper understanding of the conditions of SMEs in the tourism sector and their challenges. Both in the context of overcoming the difficulties caused by the pandemic, and in terms of sustainability and reducing environmental impact.
The main actors of the day were : Sarah Tomasello (Mea SRL; Same SRL; SAESA sas; Carimm sas), Marco Alessi (La Sirenetta Park Hotel), Maurizio Vulcano (SiMiPiaceVulcano), Pippu Santamaria (filicudi snc), Nino Orifici (Morfeo 33 HH), Giusy D’auria (White Beach SRL).
In the morning, these partners attended an overall presentation of the TouriSME project, mentored by Nino Pietrini, where they could understand its objectives and challenges. During this presentation, they explained their activities which are all related to the tourism field. For instance, Maurizio Vulcano mentioned that he creates his own local products such as jam and much more, while others own restaurants, hotels, bars, or clubs.
Two workshops were held. The first was to write a few words about the general needs of their businesses. After collecting all the responses, we identified common needs in several areas, such as deseasonalization, promotion, publicity, education, training, and heritage development. This activity has allowed them to directly address the issues they face as tourism business owners.
After a delicious lunch, they were able to participate in the second workshop. They reflected on the previous needs by creating a mind map. In fact, in pairs, they have found various solutions to overcome these problems. For the deseasonalization issue, they thought about an app, a brand, and immersive spaces.
These ideas could help SMEs in the tourism sector to become more competitive, sustainable and digital. In order to increase visibility, especially for those open in the low season.
All these brilliant ideas will be discussed at two events that will bring together our Italian and Spanish partners. The goal of these meetings is to work together as a team to enable the exchange of best practices, share knowledge and experiences with each other, and ultimately inspire each other for growth and new business opportunities.
Overall, this project is made possible by our following partners; Cámara Badajoz (Spain), WAY (Italy), Comune di Lipari (Italy), Municipality of San Javier (Spain), Up Project Gestión de Proyectos S.L. (Spain), Municipality of Olivenza (Spain).
These collaborators allow us to support local administrations and different actors of the tourist ecosystem and to strengthen the capacity of local businesses (hotels, restaurants, cafes, stores, crafts) in rural ecotourism.