• Greek Tourism Minister Olga Kefalogianni, TUI Care Foundation Chairman Thomas Ellerbeck, and founder of Wise Greece Melina Taprantzi, launch new TUI Care Foundation programme in Athens
• Initiative drives sustainable growth and innovation in Greece’s key sectors such as tourism, hospitality and food, by addressing needs of young entrepreneurs and small businesses
• Training programme for 1,000 aspiring entrepreneurs; selected candidates will participate in boot camp and receive stipends to launch entrepreneurial ideas
• Local artisans and producers will benefit from capacity building to increase their business opportunities
• Project is launched as part of the TUI Care Foundation’s Entrepreneurship October, a month dedicated to highlighting support for sustainable businesses in tourism destinations

Berlin, 24^th October 2024. Whilst the tourism sector in Greece continues to thrive, many young entrepreneurs and small businesses still encounter significant challenges in building and growing their ventures. These challenges include limited market access and a lack of educational resources that can support aspiring entrepreneurs. The new TUI Futureshapers Greece initiative aims to provide the necessary training, mentorship, and business links to support individuals and small businesses in developing innovative entrepreneurial opportunities that tackle social and environmental challenges.

TUI Futureshapers Greece, launched by the TUI Care Foundation in partnership with Wise Greece, will offer a comprehensive educational course designed to train 1,000 participants from across Greece. The extensive virtual course equips aspiring entrepreneurs with the practical knowledge needed to launch or expand their business ideas in the sectors of tourism, food, culture, arts & crafts and cosmetics. Participants will benefit from hands-on guidance and mentorship from expert trainers and successful entrepreneurs, who will share best practices and offer personalised mentoring.

To support the most promising business ideas, the programme will invite the best ideas to present during a boot camp in Athens. The boot camp will include workshops, inspiring talks and opportunities to pitch. The best projects will be awarded stipends, enabling them to focus on developing their ideas without financial constraints.

Thomas Ellerbeck, Chairman of the TUI Care Foundation: “Tourism is an important cornerstone of Greece’s economy. We want to make sure that everyone can benefit from the successful development of tourism in the country. We strongly believe that local participation is core to the sustainable and responsible growth of tourism. With TUI Futureshapers Greece, we’re harnessing the transformative power of the industry to foster entrepreneurial innovation and sustainable growth - for the benefit of Greece and all of its people. Our initiative addresses the challenges faced by small businesses and empowers young people to transform social and environmental challenges into entrepreneurial opportunities.”

Melina Taprantzi, Wise Greece: “We are pleased that, with the support of the TUI Care Foundation, we will be able to launch the TUI Futureshapers programme in Greece. This initiative will support key sectors of our country, as well as entrepreneurs who either want to start a business or have already established a small business and are looking to innovate sustainably. Wise Greece remains committed to staying close to local communities and maximising its social impact whilst addressing the real needs of the people.”

In addition to the training component, TUI Futureshapers Greece will support a cohort of at least 60 small and medium-sized enterprises, local artisans, entrepreneurs, and producers in popular tourism regions such as Zakynthos, Peloponnese, Corfu, Epirus, the Cyclades and Rhodes. Through capacity building training and business opportunities, the initiative aims to enhance participants’ skills in sales, product refinement, marketing, and digital campaigns. The most innovative SMEs will have the chance to collaborate with Wise Greece to showcase their products at “Local Gems exhibitions,” promoting their products to locals, tourists and visitors. 

To maximise its positive impact, the initiative will collaborate with leading Greek universities and the Greek National Tourism Organisation to ensure a broad outreach and support. In particular, the collaboration aims to attract students and young professionals interested in launching start-ups in the food and tourism sectors.

TUI Futureshapers Greece is a part of the global TUI Futureshapers Programme, which empowers people to turn social challenges into entrepreneurial opportunities in destinations such as Cape Verde, Zanzibar, Senegal, Portugal, Namibia and Tunisia.

TUI Care Foundation's ‘Entrepreneurship October‘ is a month of activities dedicated to supporting sustainable businesses in tourism destinations. Through a series of project launches, it highlights the importance of empowering small businesses in tourism destinations with a holistic approach of financial assistance, mentoring and access to the tourism market.