PATA: Entrepreneurship, travel and teamwork merge in a new competition

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The Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA), in partnership with Triip.me and with the support of Gobi Partners, FWD Hong Kong and the Seychelles Tourism Board, is proud to launch the Global Travel Ent

The Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA), in partnership with Triip.me and with the support of Gobi Partners, FWD Hong Kong and the Seychelles Tourism Board, is proud to launch the Global Travel Entrepreneur Challenge 2016 (GTEC 2016) to nurture entrepreneurship and to celebrate the beauty of local experiences while traveling.

The Global Travel Entrepreneur Challenge is a competition for millennials and young professionals that have an interest in building and operating their own successful travel startup. Young entrepreneurs and students between the ages of 18 and 35 are encouraged to join GTEC 2016 from August 29 to November 15.


โ€œAs part of our focus on human capital development and the young tourism professional, GTEC is the perfect platform for PATA to help empower todayโ€™s youth and support young entrepreneurs in the travel industry,โ€ said PATA CEO Dr. Mario Hardy. โ€œThe competition not only provides funds to five winners to help grow their sustainable travel companies but also, importantly, gives all participants practical hands-on experience in creating a travel business.โ€

As part of the competition, participants will form teams of 1-5 members and create travel tours on Triip.meโ€™s global travel platform. They run that business at every stage from marketing and promotions to optimisation and operations. Winners will submit a business report to compete for the final prizes.

The Grand Prize winner wins a trip of a lifetime to the Seychelles, including free round trip flight and two nights accommodation to attend the Seychelles Ocean Festival (December 3-10), where they will receive their award.

Hai Ho, CEO of Triip.me, said, โ€œGTEC 2016 is designed as a pragmatic launching base for young millennials to experience challenges via travelling and entrepreneurship. To me, the two most blissful and exciting ventures in life are travel and starting your own business at a young age. Through GTEC, you can do both and also do so with full support from experienced entrepreneurs. Join GTEC 2016 to turn your dream into reality.โ€

David Wong, CEO of FWD Hong Kong & Macau, said, โ€œWe recognise the importance of nurturing the young generation and motivating them to pursue their goals. As a challenger brand in the insurance market, FWD aspires to empower these future leaders to live to the fullest and broaden their horizons by working and travelling in one go. FWD values innovation and is keen to develop creative thinking of young talent. We feel excited about GTEC 2016 and we canโ€™t wait to mentor the winners.โ€

Alain St.Ange, Minister of Tourism & Culture for the Seychelles, added, โ€œI am thrilled by the perfect opportunity GTEC 2016 provides to support young entrepreneurs interested in the travel and tourism industry. This is exactly the kind of collaboration I had in mind when I had the opportunity to meet with Dr. Hardy at the PATA Summit 2016 in Guam. To witness GTEC coming together so soon in partnership with Triip and the other organisations as well as the organisers of our own Seychelles Ocean Festival is nothing less than a perfect win-win situation for all concerned.โ€

About the author

Avatar of Juergen T Steinmetz

Juergen T Steinmetz

Juergen Thomas Steinmetz has continuously worked in the travel and tourism industry since he was a teenager in Germany (1977).
He founded eTurboNews in 1999 as the first online newsletter for the global travel tourism industry.

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