- Non-tech and tech-based projects from the tourism industry are eligible.
- Investment of up to €100,000 per project.
- Applications must be submitted through our Ignition Partner Network
Lisbon, 12 January 2023 – Portugal Ventures, a venture capital firm that is part of Portuguese promotional bank Banco Português de Fomento, in partnership with Turismo de Portugal and NEST – Tourism Innovation Centre,has launched a restructured Call FIT – Fostering Innovation in Tourism, aimed at investing in non-tech and tech-based tourism projects in the pre-seed stage. Submissions are open until 12 February 2023.
Aware of the market failure identified in the tourism sector, Portugal Ventures reworked Call FIT, which before targeted only finalist projects of the acceleration, open innovation and ideation programmes of Turismo de Portugal – Fostering Innovation in Tourism, making it available to all projects that meet the eligibility requirements. Applications may only be submitted through one the entities that are part of the Portugal Ventures Ignition Partners Network.
Portugal Ventures will invest up to €100,000 per project under Call FIT and the following are eligible:
- non-tech projects offering differentiating concepts for the country’s tourism offer and that contribute to enriching the tourist experience and to strengthening Portugal’s competitiveness as a tourist destination;
- tech-based projects offering solutions to boost the efficiency of companies in the tourism sector and their supply of products and services.
The previous version of Call FIT, which saw four editions, invested in the following companies: Bag4days, Classihy, Sailside and Wide Ocean Retreat.
For Pedro Mello Breyner, Executive Director of Portugal Ventures, “in a year in which the tourism industry saw record-breaking numbers, the restructuring of Call FIT is essential to address a need in the sector, which is reflected in investment in the earliest stage of the projects to leverage their products and market entry. We will thus provide projects with the resources needed so that, together, we can continue to boost Portugal’s most dynamic economic sector, and also promote Portugal as one of the best tourist destinations in the world.”
