The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) has joined with the Municipality of León (Guanajuato, Mexico) to present the first UNWTO project on Shopping Tourism, with the aim of boosting the local economy, creating jobs and driving sustainable and inclusive development.
The pilot project is the result of more than a
year’s collaboration between the United Nations specialized agency and the
Municipality of León, carried out with support from the Ministry of Tourism of
the State of Guanajuato. The initiative aims to maximize the benefits of
tourist activity in the city of León and promote it as a shopping destination,
both within Mexico and around the world. The project focuses on several key
areas, namely: attracting visitors, the creation of tourism products, the
efficient use of tourism attractions and the quality of infrastructure.
Alongside these, attention is also given to community involvement in tourism as
well as local socio-economic wellbeing and the promotion of employment.
Around 65 interviews were conducted with actors from the tourism, commerce and
design sectors, as well as with public sector and government representatives.
Two participatory workshops were then conducted to identify, create and
validate proposed initiatives. As a result a total of 21 initiatives were
identified, out of which 10 were selected based on different criteria, such as
their contribution to the Sustainable Developments Goals (SDGs), their impact
and the timeline.
Initiatives include the development of tourism products and services such as
the León Shopping Card as well as urban interventions such as the León Design
districts, which involves the conversion of emblematic areas and the
installation of designer ateliers, boutiques or the House of Innovation and
Trends, a unique public interactive space, open to all, where local designers
can interact with visitors and come up with the design trends of the future
Gloria Cano de la Fuente, director general of Hospitality and Tourism of León
said “Being a leading destination requires us to create a new culture of
visitor service, based on the creation of innovative and value-added
experiences, this is how this Shopping tourism prototype will define us” León,
the capital of footwear and leather, was the selected destination because 27%
of its visitors come to the city to shop, mainly for leather. With this project
and the support of the UNWTO, León aims to position itself as a destination for
value-added shopping tourism through innovative experiences in shopping
tourism. At the same time, it aims to promote the integration of companies and
individuals from different areas in the value chain of tourism and commerce in
León and its surroundings (artisans, agriculture, leather, footwear, design,
automotive, among others), while stimulating the creation of employment and new
opportunities based on the promotion of high value-added shopping tourism and
local development.