Is it possible to get a major player in the tourism, culture and entertainment industry to work with an innovative young company, where two worlds seem to be at odds? What role can entrepreneurial support organizations like MT Lab, but also Centech, ZĂą, la Piscine, Le Camp or Digihub, play in these “collisions”? A “collision” is the moment when the paths of large and small companies cross.
During a panel discussion organized by Expo Entrepreneurs, Martin Lessard, MT Lab’s General Manager, spoke with two startups(Linzi Shang, Director of Operations, Gallea and Isabelle Leblond, Founder & CEO ofHappy Hotels, two innovative companies supported by MT Lab), to tell us about their collaboration with Marie-Claude McDuff, Director, Hotel and Student Affairs, at theInstitut de tourisme et d’hĂ´tellerie du QuĂ©bec (ITHQ), one of MT Lab’s partners.
1. How can a partner choose to work with a good innovative company?
“Startups come from an incubator where we’re a partner, so we’re lucky to talk to them, to see them. This enables us to understand whether it’s a good solution to sell, and to see how sustainable the innovation is. We’re not looking to set up 100% finished products in our structure, just something concrete.
You may have the best company in the world, but honesty and transparency are going to come first. When ITHQ wants to put its name somewhere, it has to be a win-win situation. It’s not necessarily the maturity of the project that will be looked at first, but whether the project is very clear, very precise. What I like about MT Lab is that when young startups arrive, they’ve been coached, when they present their product, it’s synthesized, it’s clear, it’s not a sales pitch just to sell! When you work with a major partner, it’s vital to establish a relationship of trust; you become a showcase for their innovative solution.
The best approach to working with a partner is to have fun, to be creative, to be original, to go for the imagination, to go for the partner in a different way, to put yourself in the other person’s shoes. It’s also important to bear in mind that the timing isn’t always there, so you need to give yourself time. One piece of advice is to avoid being too aggressive in your approach. The key is patience! – Marie-Claude McDuff, ITHQ
2. What does it mean for a start-up company to work with a major corporation?
“We learned to speak the same language, to understand their reality, to transform our solution into a business opportunity. MT Lab helped us grow professionally, offering coaching sessions, workshops, training with experts, developing sales pitches, marketing tools, practicing a qualitative pitch. We reached new heights thanks to this support: a new business model, a new way of sharing ideas, our sales pitch, a network of contacts. Major partners need to see their opportunities coming and be aware of the latest trends. The hardest thing for them is to take action; the flexibility of start-ups means they can better understand the partner’s needs. Bringing innovation into their structure allows partners to expand their vision and be at the forefront of technology and thus help them have discussions, take them on to things they don’t think about.” – Isabelle Leblond, Happy Hotels
3. Any advice for a young entrepreneur just starting out who’s wondering about the value of doing business with a partner?
“Be ambitious, bold, not afraid of having the door shut in your face. We believe in ourselves! You have to know how to manage this relationship and learn how to solidify it. The hardest part is getting in touch, knowing which door to knock on; the network of contacts is essential, knowing who is the right person to contact and ask questions of.
- Try to do our best, think about our resources.
- As an emerging company, what can you do to get your partner to innovate?
- Implement projects and improve your product.
- Prove that your solution works, improve it according to industry needs. Support them in their desire to innovate. Imagine bigger.” – Linzi Shang, Gallea
As you can see, “collisions” are a way for innovation to circulate, and these encounters can lead further than you think. The MT Lab is such a catalyst between big and small business.
We’ll end with this metaphor given by Martin Lessard, during this panel: “The great partner is a big mountain you want to aim for; sometimes you’re lucky, there’s a train going there. And sometimes there are sherpas: incubators, gas pedals who will guide you towards it! Sometimes the final project is so far away; you have to find small projects! Sometimes you can miss yourself, but you have to take the opportunity when it comes and ask yourself this question: What can my solution bring to this great partner? ”
Originally published on Tourisme Express on March 29, 2021
