Leader of the Pack: Corinne of Geneva

Today is a good day for Travel Massive as tonight the very first Switzerland meet up is taking place in Geneva.

The idea of hosting event started at another inaugural meet up in Dublin last October when Travel Massive founder Ian Cumming met the now chapter leader of the Swiss Travel Massive, Corinne Stopelli.

To get a bit of background on this Geneva networking event and of the chapter leader herself, I caught up with Corinne before tonight’s event.

What’s your connection to the travel industry?

I’m connected to the travel industry in many ways. I have been blogging about travel and a nomadic lifestyle since 2008 on Vie-nomade.com, I design products to help travel bloggers professionalize their activity via Cleio.co, and as well as all that, I’m also involved in a travel startup project since May (which I can’t tell much about now). My main activity is UX/UI designer with Exiledesigns.com, and even though I’ve worked mostly for the gastronomy and culture industries, I’m trying to head towards travel more.

When did you first get involved in Travel Massive?

This is the first meet up I’m involved in organising. I decided to do it after meeting Ian at TBEX in Dublin. I’m organising it with the precious help of Jonathan Maitrot of Voyagecast.ch

Tell us about the travel industry in your city.

Geneva, where we will hold the first event, has a lot of energetic young entrepreneurs.

What are the biggest trends you’re seeing in the online travel industry in your city?

Switzerland travel brands have been a little bit slow in collaborating with bloggers, but I can see how things have really sped up over the last year. Travel brands and companies are starting to understand how a person’s influence gets a very different reach than the regular advertisement.

What’s your number one tip for your city?

Switzerland is all about nature. Whether you like to hike or ride, you should at some point just get lost in the curves of our gorgeous landscapes.

What travel company do you admire most and why?

I’m really fond of Airbnb. It has revolutionized the way I travel. I’m very glad to contribute to somebody’s extra income while having the opportunity to live the life of a local in the towns I visit. Hosts are also generally a good starting point to get to know more people or good places if you are visiting a place you don’t know yet. It’s a very interactive way of traveling!

What are some of your favourite travel websites? Why?

I use Tripit a lot. It helps me keep all my travel information in one place. I don’t read much about travel usually, I prefer surprises and big culture shocks!

What is your favourite thing about being a part of Travel Massive?

I love how we are part of this huge international network of travel professionals. Now every time I travel to attend conferences or fairs I look for Travel Massive events to make new connections or meet old international pals.

Why should people attend your Travel Massive?

There aren’t many networking travel / tourism events happening in Switzerland. It’s a great opportunity to meet people working in travel startups, to create new opportunities between brands and bloggers, or simply to spend a lovely evening chit-chatting with fellow travelers.

Leader of the pack is a monthly series that profiles organizers of Travel Massive meet-ups around the world!