With Federalberghi Abruzzo in support of investments in the tourism sector
Intesa Sanpaolo and Federalberghi Abruzzo have signed an agreement to support investments by the region's tourism businesses aimed at:
- upgrading and increasing standards of quality of facilities
- energy efficiency and reduction of environmental impact consistent with ESG principles
- digitalisation
to foster their competitiveness.
Moreover, with its Crescibusiness initiative – expressly dedicated to small and micro enterprises – Intesa Sanpaolo provides them with support through:
- liquidity assistance and secured financing
- no commissions on in-store POS micropayments up to €15 for one year
- no POS terminal and commercial credit card fees for one year
- discounts on insurance coverage and leases of business equipment, furnishings and accessories to contain operating costs
These measures are in addition to other solutions reserved for companies in the tourism and hotel sector such as the Suite Loan, to improve their qualitative positioning, and the S-Loan Turismo, intended for ESG investments for the energy upgrading of hotel facilities: two instruments characterised by reward mechanisms, in terms of a reduction in the rate applied, when certain shared objectives are reached.
In Abruzzo, the tourism sector plays an important role, especially in terms of employment, accounting for 7.1% of the region's total employment.
After rebounding in 2021, Italy's GDP continued to show good momentum during 2022, with growth rates above the European average, and tourism was one of the main drivers of the recovery.
In Abruzzo, the tourism sector plays an important role especially in terms of employment, accounting for 7.1% of the region's total employment, a percentage above the Italian average (6.7%). According to surveys by Unioncamere-Movimprese, there were more than ten thousand active companies in the region's tourism sector in 2022.
Almost 90% of flows are made up of Italians – a characteristic that allowed for greater resilience during the pandemic crisis. For the 2022 season that has just ended, provisional data on tourist arrivals in Abruzzo for the period January-August 2022 show an increase of about 16% in terms of presences and 17% in terms of arrivals.
Against a slowing international backdrop, a number of factors continue to support a growth forecast for hotel turnover. The numbers for bookings in the first half of 2023 are favourable and Abruzzo in particular can leverage the diversity of its territory, including to decrease seasonality and increase international visitors.
Many hotel companies are increasing their investments, especially in terms of the quality and sustainability of the offer – topics to which consumers and travellers are devoting increasing attention. In addition to the energy issue, labour recruitment is a priority.
To preserve competitiveness, there is also an increasing focus on the training of personnel and digitalisation. In particular, those who invested in digital did better in 2021 both in terms of turnover and profitability, due in part to increasingly connected tourists.
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Last updated 28 March 2023 at 08:43:30
