OTBT empowers Spanish women entrepreneurs

Off The Beaten Track (OTBT) has had a meaningful impact on the Spanish women participating in the program, as in the other European Union countries involved, Italy, Estonia and Slovakia. The Erasmus+ supported project’s objective was to improve women entrepreneur’s employability and professional profile by helping them to develop their soft skills and empowering them. Creating a supporting European net of women entrepreneurs was also another of the objectives of the program, so that participating women could exchange experiences and share knowledge.

In Spain, these three participating women have followed the entire learning path, through mentoring circles, the online academia focusing on soft skills, webinars on professional skills and guided business plan activities. The OTBT project has helped them to develop their entrepreneur projects in the tourism and creative industries:

Silvina Perez: theatrical tourist tours in Barcelona

Silvina Perez, an official tour guide in Barcelona, is passionate about theatre. Through OTBT, Silvina received valuable support in developing a unique project: theatrical walking tours in Barcelona. “The touristic tours in Barcelona are so interesting because they showcase Barcelona’s rich cultural heritage, but why do not make them more engaging and inspiring? This question brought me to work on the idea to develop dramatised tours, and I received very enriching feedback from the mentors of the OTBT project”, Silvina explains.

Marta Bosch: from a youth hostel to a coliving and coworking space

Marta Bosch initially envisioned a youth hostel in Barcelona. However, after participating in the OTBT program and the European Mentoring Circle held in Matera, Italy, her vision evolved. Inspired by the exchange of ideas and the guidance received, Marta decided to transform her project into a coworking and coliving space, a business project that could give response to the housing needs of digital nomads and other individuals willing to take profit of the vibrant and talented atmosphere of Barcelona. “For me the mentoring circle held in Matera was crucial, we visited a coliving and coworking space there which was very inspiring”, Marta says.

Maria Toral: Regalexia takes flight

Maria Toral, an experienced businesswoman in the area of HR, had already launched her business project, Regalexia, when she joined OTBT. It is a gift funding platform and online shop for kids and family experiences. “I joined the project because I needed some guidance and feedback to develop Regalexia, and though my participation in OTBT I could improve several areas of the business model. The gender perspective it gave me was also very useful, because my community is formed by a majority of women”, Maria describes.

The stories of Silvina, Marta, and Maria highlight the transformative power of the OTBT project. They are also an example of the entrepreneurship female talent in the tourism and cultural industries sectors!