How Firecircle Supports Destination Canada’s 2030 Tourism Strategy

We talk a lot about how your business is woven into the fabric of Canada’s tourism economy, and what an important role you play in the experience that your guests have in this country, whether locally, regionally, domestically or internationally. What you do counts - a lot!

At last month’s Rendezvous Canada tourism industry trade show in Edmonton, Destination Canada’s CEO, Marsha Walden, delivered a heartfelt presentation about the future of Canadian tourism. It’s no secret that, in Marsha’s words, “Canada’s global competitiveness has continued to slip since 2009. The World Economic Forum’s Travel and Tourism Development Index, which measures the impact of factors and policies which enable sustainable development of tourism and its contribution to over 100 countries worldwide - ranked Canada as 13th – a drop of three places and marking the first time Canada has fallen out of the top ten.

“This is a pivotal moment for the tourism industry in Canada. We know tourism is already outpacing the global and Canadian economies but without a transformative shift, we risk stagnation and vulnerability to future economic shocks.” 

The Tourism Industry Association of Canada’s President and CEO, Beth Potter, also weighed in saying, “Tourism operators can innovate their offerings and align with the goals outlined in the 2030 Strategy, such as enhancing sustainability, promoting local experiences, and expanding seasonality. By differentiating themselves through unique and authentic offerings, SMEs can attract more visitors and contribute to the diversification of Canada’s tourism offerings.

“By forming partnerships, operators can expand into new markets, share resources, and develop innovative solutions to common challenges facing the sector,” added Potter.

These sentiments were shared by Keith Henry, the CEO of the Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada, when he stated, 

“We have an amazing opportunity ahead of us to reach 160 billion dollars by 2030. This is especially exciting as we can triple Indigenous tourism in this country, create thousands of new jobs and support hundreds of new businesses. It's time to work together to market, develop and grow tourism in this country. That is true economic reconciliation in action”.

For those of you already engaged as members of Firecircle, you know you are building these skills, differentiating your businesses, demonstrating authenticity, forming creative partnerships and leveling up your tourism offerings. Indigenous and non-Indigenous Firecircle members already know that you are stronger operators and tourism leaders because of the resources and mentorship you are accessing and hard work you are putting into your tourism ventures. You ARE contributing to a better Canadian tourism industry!

Firecircle’s 5x5 MethodTM is a foundational program for individual small and medium-sized enterprises in achieving a level of competitiveness that ensures financial, socio-cultural and environmental sustainability. The business skills that are not taught to any startups and are missing from many veteran operators can easily be accessed through this step by step entrepreneur program.

This 1-minute video says a lot about the impact that Firecircle is having on our members: Testimonial Video

In addition to Firecircle’s foundational 5x5 MethodTM entrepreneur program, our Tourism Experience Development Program is making an impact on destination development for both tourism industry sectors and rural destinations across Canada.

In partnership with Destination BC and Wine Growers British Columbia, Firecircle recently led 10 wineries through our proprietary experience development program, resulting in 100% completion and delivery of 10 new wine experiences across the province. Read more here Cultivating Experiences.

From a tourism sector perspective, this program could easily be applied to other growth sectors across Canada, including:

• Culinary (culture-based such as Indigenous cuisine, slow food, land to table, sea to table, craft beverages, food tours, culinary pop ups) 
• Agri-tourism (specialty growers and producers, farm stays, land use partnerships, etc)
• Meetings and Events (conferences, festivals, special events, retreat development, etc)
• Outdoor Hospitality (glamping, camping, RV parks, rural cabin and motel operators, etc) 
• Outdoor Recreation (canoeing, kayaking, boating, hiking, SUP, snowshoeing, bird-watching, equipment rentals, etc) 
• Wellness (spa, yoga, meditation, thermal waters, massage, esthetics, medi-spa, mental health, physical fitness, medical treatment recovery, etc)
• Tour Operators (destination discovery, culinary, cultural, wildlife, hobby-based, recreation-based, etc)

If you are interested in Firecircle’s Tourism Experience Development Program for your own organization, please contact [email protected] for more information and pricing.