Innovazione

🍸 Sottosopra in Trastevere, Rome, pioneers the Aperitea, a fusion of Italian aperitivo and English afternoon tea, available daily from 16:00 to 19:00. A selection of nine tea varieties is explained by staff, paired with eleven sweet and savory delicacies like mini club sandwiches and Valrhona chocolate, priced at 25 euros per person or 48 euros for two. Bookings are recommended for groups over four. Contact: Via di Ponte Sisto 64, Rome, Tel. 06 5894554; Chef Raffaele Crispino leads the kitchen since its opening in September 2023.

🌱 Bonduelle Food Service unveils Contorno Rustico Minute®, a new addition to its Minute® side dishes range. The Contorno Rustico is a mix of green beans, potatoes, carrots, and onions, preserved with IQF technology within 24 hours of harvest. The product offers practicality and high quality by preventing water release and weight loss during cooking. Available in 4-bag packages, each weighing 2.5 kg, Contorno Rustico Minute® joins four other unique products in the range, catering to professional restaurants.

☕ Rhea Vendors Group opens a subsidiary, Rheavendors Turkey, in Istanbul to strengthen its international expansion, now present in 10 countries. The subsidiary aims to enhance customer experience with tailor-made services, leveraging over 60 years of industry experience. Attila Laslo, with significant coffee sector expertise, leads as General Manager. The Turkish branch includes a showroom demonstrating Rhea's commitment to quality, innovation, and sustainability, while respecting Turkey's historic coffee culture.

🍪 In Italy, people annually consume an average of 4 kg of gelato and 3 kg of chocolate per person. GROM and Amedei have created a menu to explore gelato and chocolate pairings. Recommended combinations include pistachio gelato with 70% dark chocolate, cream gelato with dark chocolate pralines and dry fruit, salted caramel gelato with milk chocolate and hazelnuts, fiordilatte gelato with creamy milk chocolate praline, and lemon gelato with fruity dark chocolate from Madagascar.

🍻 Edoardo Freddi launched Drink on Mars, a new company for emerging beverages and a spin-off of Edoardo Freddi International (EFI). In 2023, the non-alcoholic beverage market grew by 4.9%, with projections to reach $1.134 trillion by 2027. The U.S., China, and Europe, where interest in ready-to-drink products increased by 7% in the last year, are among the top-performing markets. By 2025, at least 5 new companies will join Drink on Mars' portfolio. FreedL Group, founded by Freddi in 2018, operates in over 100 countries.

📈 Travelport's study shows that Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the travel sector now handles over 10,000 identifiable options, a significant increase from 500 options 15 years ago. Sandro Gargiulo of Travelport emphasized AI’s role in simplifying data to improve service response times, reduce costs, and enhance customer satisfaction. Demographic studies fine-tune personalization, as noted by Gabriella Galantis of Lufthansa Group, who highlighted AI's utility in adjusting flight routes to avoid turbulence and assisting in luggage scanning operations based on the number of passengers and available space.

🏨 Travelport's study highlights the role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the travel sector, now managing over 10,000 identifiable options, up from about 500 just 15 years ago. Sandro Gargiulo, Travelport's director for Southern & Western Europe, notes that AI personalizes choices, simplifying data and enhancing customer satisfaction. Gabriella Galantis from Lufthansa Group emphasized the need for demographic studies and mentioned AI's utility in flight for turbulence avoidance and baggage scanning adjustments.

💳 IT Wallet, the digital document storage feature on the IO app, has completed its experimental phase and is now available for all Italian adults. Documents such as health cards, driver's licenses, and the European Disability Card can be added. Integration with the European digital wallet, Eudi Wallet, is planned by 2026, enabling use across EU countries. Access requires logging into the IO app and entering the 'Portafoglio' section with an electronic ID card or Spid for the first login.

🍷 SEEP. Just grapes, a new non-alcoholic drink brand, is now on the market, targeting Millennials and Gen Z with its appealing contemporary profile. The brand, created by Gianni Tagliapietra and Alessia Zanin of Hungrycircle srl in Breganze (Vicenza), specializes in innovative consumer products and design. SEEP, meaning "to filter," signifies the reverse osmosis de-alcoholization process used to produce these zero-alcohol grape-based beverages. The brand, which aims to offer a playful, colorful identity, resonates with a health-conscious audience and is available on Amazon.

🔐 Self check-in systems, including key lockboxes, are revolutionizing vacation rentals by offering operational efficiency and guest access management. These systems provide simplified check-in processes, increased security with unique access codes, reduced operational costs by eliminating physical key handovers, and enhanced guest satisfaction due to flexible arrival times. Integration with property management software allows remote access, real-time monitoring, customizable guest codes, and automated access scheduling. Chekin’s self check-in platform further enables secure key management, automated guest verification, and detailed access logging, maintaining high security standards. Regular system maintenance and clear communication with guests ensure ongoing effectiveness and satisfaction.