Tourism professionals, including those in senior managerial positions who were laid off or are on unpaid leave in the State, have understood the adage ‘do not put all your eggs in one basket’ the rough way, following the COVID-induced crisis.
Many have ventured into a variety of jobs, including selling wares on the wayside. Armed with soft skills gained through years of exposure in the tourism trade, most of them have shed their initial inhibitions and are now game for any work, from selling products on the streets with bare minimum investment to tying up with like-minded people to begin enterprises.
One such young but experienced professional is Rajaneesh S.R., an MBA in tourism and finance from the Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management, Gwalior. He was in the inbound tourism sector for the past 15 years and went on to co-partner a venture named The Sanchari. “I was already in distress since the firm, where I was head of southern India operations and later went broke, still owes me ₹6 lakh. The COVID crisis worsened the plight. I thus sold my car and also my apartment at a lesser price than I had purchased,” he said.
But willingness to try a variety of in-demand options sustain him. He has tied up with a few friends and have together taken on lease 75 cents in the city to do organic farming. “The vegetables are moving fast during weekends, since people have become highly health-conscious. My weekdays are spent mostly on selling grow bags, plastic, mud pots, and fertilisers purchased from wholesale dealers and high-yield seeds procured from the Kerala Agricultural University, considering the heightened interest in kitchen gardens,” Mr. Rajaneesh added.
His industry colleague has joined him in the manufacture and sale of home-made pickles at residential colonies and hotels. “The crisis taught me to have multiple sources of income. I know at least 60 people from the tourism sector who are now eking out a living by selling face masks. Still, the State government has not readied a plan of action to help out Kerala’s tourism sector, which earned ₹45,000 crore in 2019,” he said.
There are others like Paul M.S., executive committee member of Tourism Professionals Club, who joined like-minded stakeholders and began ventures to provide door delivery of groceries.
