Montréal, Friday, November 27, 2020 ‒ The Strategic Forum on tourism took place today as part of the Relaunch MTL movement, powered by the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal and its partners. Mélanie Joly, Canada’s Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages, Caroline Proulx, Quebec’s Minister of Tourism, and Luc Rabouin, Ville de Montréal Executive Committee member responsible for economic and commercial development and design, participated in the event. Nearly 600 participants interacted with close to 30 panelists to define avenues for action and solutions to enable the sector to get back on its feet after the crisis.
During the event, tourism industry strategic partners identified the main challenges facing the industry that the pandemic has exacerbated. Accessibility and fluid travel emerged as the main issues that affected the sector before the pandemic. Since then, the inevitable closings leading to losses of flagships and talent are a source of serious concern for actors from the sector, who see this issue as the biggest impact of the crisis on Montréal’s tourism sector.
Participants reiterated the importance of quickly providing financial support to tourism actors to lift the industry out of the crisis and avoid jeopardizing the city’s position in the long term as a leading international destination. The other priorities participants identified were focusing on proximity and Canadian tourism and demonstrating Montréal’s leadership as a safe destination in terms of health in the long term.
This prioritization of solutions initially presented in the Action Plan to Strengthen the Tourism Sector, jointly developed by the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal and Tourisme Montréal, with content partner, KPMG, is the result of an exercise conducted at the Forum. The action plan studied in part the impact of the near complete disappearance of 11 million tourists and visitors and close to $5 billion in economic benefits for Montréal.
“Montréal’s tourism industry has experienced a major shock since March,” said Michel Leblanc, president and CEO of the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal. “We are facing a paradoxical situation: on the one hand, our product, Montréal’s DNA, remains strong. On the other, the situation is generating tremendous uncertainty in the sector. The period that lies ahead will be a difficult one for Montréal hotels, restaurants, and event organizers, despite aid programs that have been put in place. We are also facing a major labour challenge. Requalification will be important, but we need to avoid it weakening the recovery. The issue of downtown is also fundamental; we need to continue paying it particular attention. We must prepare now so that when Montréal is ready for the recovery, tourism sector actors can ensure the city remains a first-class destination. Along with Tourisme Montréal, the Chamber will be present to ensure the recently announced aid works on the ground and is effectively communicated.”
“Today we drew a portrait of tourism in Montréal, an essential economic sector, while it is going through a disruption which could have dramatic consequences,” said Yves Lalumière, president and CEO of Tourisme Montréal. “We need to avoid the destructuring of Montréal’s tourism sector and act now, while pursuing discussions with our allies at the Ville de Montréal and the provincial and federal governments. We need to continue deploying efforts to foster resilience, innovation, and the creativity of our sector and city.”
The enhanced action plan, following a collaborative session held as part of the Forum, will soon be available on the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal website. While awaiting the updated version, you can find the action plan here.
About the Strategic Forum on tourism
The Strategic Forum on tourism, which is part of the Relaunch MTL movement, is jointly developed by the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal and Tourisme Montréal, in cooperation with MT Lab and YUL Montréal-Trudeau International Airport.
About the Relaunch MTL movement
The Relaunch MTL movement is powered by the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal, the Government of Canada, the Government of Québec, the Communauté métropolitaine de Montréal and the Ville de Montréal, in association with Investissement Québec and the Palais des congrès de Montréal, and in cooperation with the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, the Conseil emploi métropole, CN, the Fonds de solidarité FTQ and KPMG. The movement is also created with the support of Air Canada, CGI, Desjardins, Hydro-Québec, La Presse, Montreal Gazette, RBC Royal Bank and Rio Tinto, and in partnership with Aéro Montréal, AluQuébec, the Association de la construction du Québec, the Quebec Film and Television Council, CargoM – Logistic and Transportation Metropolitan Cluster of Montréal, the Conseil québécois du commerce de détail, Culture Montréal, Écotech Québec, Femmessor, Finance Montréal, the Fonds de recherche du Québec, the Guilde du jeu vidéo du Québec, the Junior Chamber of Commerce of Montréal, mmode – the Metropolitan Fashion Cluster, Montréal International, Montreal InVivo, Numana, Propulsion Québec and Tourisme Montréal. More details on the movement at www.relaunchMTL.ca.
About the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal
With a network of over 8,000 members, the CCMM is active on two fronts: being the voice of the Montréal business community and delivering specialized services to businesses and their representatives. With its finger on the pulse of current events, it acts on issues that are decisive for the prosperity of the city’s businesses. With the support of the Acclr experts, the CCMM’s goal is to accelerate the creation and growth of businesses of all sizes, at home and around the world.
Facebook: www.facebook.com/chambremontreal
Twitter: @chambremontreal
To continue the discussion: #RelançonsMTL
-30-
Source: Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal
Information: Caroline Des Rosiers, 514 880-2881, cdesrosiers@national.ca
Related link:
http://www.relançonsMTL.ca