Can you believe it’s almost summer? There is no doubt it’s been a (another) whirlwind of a year so far, and as industries begin to unlock, there’s lots of reflect on and to look forward to. We invite you to bring your favourite tipple and join Women in Tourism for a School’s Out Social on Wednesday 23 June, at 4.45pm: our last WIT Wednesday before the schools break up. Read more
Join us for a Women in Tourism virtual event on Wednesday 5th May at 4.30pm. On the back of Scottish and British lockdown measures easing sufficiently to allow our tourism and hospitality venues to reopen at the end of April we have gathered some excellent speakers who are willing to share their experiences.
Challenges we all thought would be past in the summer of 2020 are still with this sector as we come out of another lengthy period of closure and attempt to plan for a profitable and engaging season with ever shifting guidance and best practice standards. Many venues which opened in 2020 managed with; an impressive reduction in expenses by postponing capital expenditure, adjusted to COVID measures in relatively temporary ways under the expectation they would be short lived, and often altered the visitor experience by removing normal elements that were not able to be offered safely.
A whole year later, will our potential guests and visitors still be enthusiastic about this reduced offer? Have the measures introduced been so successful that they are being made permanent? Is a new level of innovation and product development required now that we are retargeting our local areas again, given the lack of international travel?
Caroline Robertson from VisitScotland will share the official reopening strategy of Visit Scotland in the Highlands and highlight the tools developed by VisitScotland that may assist our businesses in reopening.
Lisa Robshaw, Head of Marketing and Sales at The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS) will share information on the reopening of both Edinburgh Zoo and the Highland Wildlife Park. In particular Lisa can share experience of being open in 2021, as the zoo was permitted to welcome guests from March, and the different challenges faced by a city central location and a regional site in the Cairngorms.
Moira Unwin¸ of The Sonas Collection, a group of three stylish boutique hotels on the Isle of Skye, will share the preparation and developments made by their sites to welcome visitor back in a COVID safe manner, while maintaining the outstanding quality of visitor experience they are known for, particularly looking at the difference between opening in 2020 versus the plan for this season.
WIT Board Member, Julie Grieve, will also share some more information about how WIT can assist our members individually or as a business through our Mentoring Programme. There will be time after the speakers for some questions and general discussion.
CLICK HERE to register your attendance. A zoom link will be sent to all registrants nearer the event. We look forward to seeing you on screen!
Women in Tourism were delighted to welcome over 50 guests to Tourism, Tasting and Time Out, on the evening of Wednesday 24 April 2019, staged against a backdrop of stunning castle views from the Heights restaurant at Apex Grassmarket Hotel. Read more
The countdown is officially on with less than 2 weeks to go until our WIT Tourism Conference in Glasgow on the 19th Nov. We’ve got a jam-packed filled event with industry speakers, interesting workshops and panel experts. It’s set to be an insightful day for those working across the Tourism sector.
The conference which has been inspired by the Year of Young People and has attracted an amazing line-up of industry professional. We’re delighted to welcome Fiona Hyslop, MSP Cabinet Secretary for Tourism, Culture and External Relations. Also joining the panel are Angela Vickers, CEO of Apex Hotels, Sheila Gilmore, Executive Director of VisitArran, Dale MacPhee, GM of Edinburgh’s Waldorf Astoria Edinburgh – The Caledonian and Marc Crothall, Chief Executive of the Scottish Tourism Alliance.
The planned workshops will focus on developing leadership skills, mentoring and social media engagement with each group joined by a young person who will be instrumental in curating the content and delivery of each.
Our latest conference contributor is Chloe Milligan who will be sharing her insight and knowledge of Social Media, and how this platform has supported the growth of her business.
Chloe Milligan established MUD Urban Flowers in early 2017. Unlike a traditional florist, MUD operates solely online and this innovative, contemporary take on the trade soon became a great success. MUD Urban Flowers has now expanded into Edinburgh and has plans to continue growing UK wide via franchises from early 2019.
The conference kicks off at 12 noon and runs until 6pm. Lunch is provided. Tickets can be bought here
We’re also celebrating the WIT TOP 100 at an evening event following the conference at the Corinthian Club, Glasgow. Join us for drinks and networking. Tickets here
Make use of our promo code WITCONF for £5 discount if you are attending both WIT events. (Discount is applied to the evening event, use code at checkout).
Did you know that in addition to formal industry events, Women in Tourism hosts regular informal meet-ups? Our #YOYP Board Member, Julia MacGregor offers a round-up of our latest #WITWednesday. Read more
We recently caught up with Julie Grieve to find out more about her move into the tech world – it’s been an exciting year for this woman in tourism!