The London Traveltech Lab will now open in the new year, TTG can exclusively reveal - right next door to City Hall, Mayor Boris Johnson’s office, and London & Partners (London’s official enterprise and promotional organisation, funded by the Mayor of London).
So it must be an important initiative? Correct. Technological innovation is transforming every area of travel and tourism, from how we review destinations to how we book flights and accommodation.
Travel is an industry that uses technology to innovate more than most sectors. Examples are the dominant and burgeoning travel behemoths Google, Expedia, Airbnb, and Uber. Plus the social media giants Facebook and Twitter that help form opinions and drive traffic. But note the constant with all of these companies: all founded and headquartered in the US.
It is the success of such start-ups that creates wealth and employment. That’s why this new UK dedicated incubator is such an important initiative.
“Industry leaders who allow technological change to overtake them will fail, alongside their once successful companies”
Entrepreneurs who create new disruptive concepts need support, nurturing, infrastructure, mentoring, and access to finance. Traditionally this is what Silicon Valley has always done best.
In the US, almost all job growth comes from start-ups, particularly the ones which grow from a few employees to several thousand. Technology winners often produce more winners. What’s essential is proximity to human talent.
The densest concentration of start-ups anywhere in the world is right next to the Massachusetts Institution of Technology campus, where founders of more than 450 companies crowd into nine floors of a building shared by venture capital firms that collectively manage $8.7 billion of investment funding. Amazon has just moved its mobile development team to the area, and Google is expanding at the same location.
So what lessons can London learn to help become the next travel technology hot spot? In the quest for innovation, regions seek to develop “clusters” - a concentration of excellence of interconnected companies that both compete and collaborate.
Government (as here with the Mayor of London) plays a role, mostly by “setting the table” - spending on infrastructure to create an entrepreneurial ecosystem, which in turn attracts venture capital.
Private industry has a vital part to play also, and in return will benefit enormously. Active participation by existing travel companies will provide collaboration towards their own strategic objectives.
Assisting London to become the global hub of excellence for travel technology innovation will encourage additional employment and wealth opportunities for the UK by the creation of new global travel companies.
The travel industry leaders who will succeed in this new era will be those with the confidence to seek out emerging innovators and disruptors, and embrace them.
Industry leaders who allow technological change to overtake them will fail, alongside their once successful companies.
John Mclean, MBA was founder and chief executive of the Late Escapes Group and Going Places Direct, with annual turnover of over £30 million and annual profits of over £3 million. Late Escapes was acquired by Airtours and inherited by Thomas Cook when it merged with My Travel in 2007. Mclean was also an associate board director with global comms group D’Arcy Masius Benton & Bowles, and currently sits on the Advisory Board at TTG Media.
Time to pitch
Back in April, London & Partners unveiled its vision for a “Traveltech Lab”, hailed as the UK’s first travel technology incubator scheme. The Traveltech Lab is a joint venture between London & Partners, the capital’s official promotional agency and The Trampery, a leading provider of shared workspaces renowned for inspiring innovation and creativity. Applications to select members will re-open in November when full details of the selection process will be confirmed.
About 30 desks in total will be provided to the successful start-ups. Tom Day, head of new business at London & Partners, told TTG that the exact selection process format has yet to be confirmed.
He adds: “With the development of Tech City, London has emerged as the digital hub for Europe and with that comes access to a pool of potential investors, talent and vital networks. We are excited to bring this incubator space
to market and look forward to supporting the capital’s most innovative travel technology start-ups.”
To find out more about the initiative, email: tday@londonandpartners.com
