French hotels adopt Aussie app to target flashpackers
Technology
AUSSIE app developers are helping the European hotel industry attract the flashpacking millennial traveller.
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Developed in South Australia and recently brought to Paris through the French Tech Ticket Program, Tenderfoot is an e-concierge app that provides personalised travel advice to adventuring youth.
Co-founder and CEO Lucas Lovell said the app caters to the rise of the flashpacker throughout Europe – who are tourists with more disposable income that the traditional backpacker.
“Right now you have people between 20-35, the digital generation, that prefer to purchase, reserve, communicate and discover online,” he said.
“Most hotel apps are being built with the hotel in mind but we are hoping to change that by creating a more interactive experience for the guest.
“We are seeing a real growth in the middle ground between backpacking industries and boutique hotels, where certain chains are trying to provide the hostel style atmosphere with boutique amenities and services.”
The Tenderfoot program includes a web platform for hotels and hostels to build and manage their own sites.
Here they can post information about the local area and are able to interact with their guests in real time through a free mobile app.
An Airbnb report on the rise of the millennial traveller estimates the sector will account for three quarters of all travellers by 2025.
About 80 per cent of travellers aged 18-35 said they were looking for unique experiences and searched for local travel advice as opposed to brochures, according to the report.
Lovell said hotel chains such as the IBIS group, which included more affordable branches to attract younger travellers, would benefit from the app.
“It acts as a platform-sharing service that means people don’t need to download a separate app for every place they stay at.“It’s a cost-effective service where accommodation providers only pay if they get value and engagement from guests.”
After being accepted to the French Tech Ticket Program, Tenderfoot also received a €57,000 grant from the French Government and a one-year deal to join the Paris and Co Welcome City Lab accelerator program.
“If we can get the app working here in Paris, one of the most visited cities in the world, we know it will work elsewhere,” Lovell said.
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