Competitive environment and sector

In this section, we will assess the direct competition that our suggested accommodation type has in Coroico in the Los Yungas area. The research was carried out through the Internet and analyzing each of the web pages, information on Booking and TripAdvisor for each of our competitors. Our accommodation will offer a quality service so we will base ourselves on those accommodations that have 4 stars and above on online reviews webs.

There is a total of eight different companies that are our direct competition. Among them are Eco hotels, hostels and Eco lodges. We have analyzed these companies as they are the closest to the type of service we want to offer.

Next, we will describe each company in general terms:

● Hostal Ecolodge Sol y Luna: On their website, they are defined as ‘’ the ideal place for all those who love nature, silence, a retreat and life in the country’’. It is an Ecolodge that is located 2 km from the central square of the city of Coroico. It offers different types of cabins for large groups and some of them like the Apartments have beds, a kitchen and a fridge. They also have an ecological path within the same terrain with a variety of flowers. They have a small and large pool, panoramic views (viewpoint) and offers yoga classes and massages. They also have a meditation room, a camping area and an outdoor hot tub. They have their own website in four languages, Spanish, English, French and German. From this evidence, the photos and comments we deduce that their clients come from Germany, France, Spain and the USA.

● La Senda Verde Wildlife Sanctuary and Ecolodge: It is a privately managed ecotourism refuge registered in Miami-Dade County (Florida) located in Yolosa 7 km from Coroico.

This center provides care to different animals from wildlife trafficking in a natural environment, under conditions of technical and scientific management. It houses 785 animals rescued from the black market. This center is also known for receiving volunteers from all over the world. Likewise, they have an Eco Lodge with three types of cabins and a tree house. In their restaurant, they offer vegan, vegetarian food made

with local food. As activities, they offer a guided route through the animal sanctuary, a recreational house with pool tables, music and DVDs for the volunteers, walks through the waterfalls, bird watching and it has a program for wildlife photographers. They have a very well elaborated website, with current information, descriptions and good photos and videos. They have good national and international recognition, appear in various press articles and have a good position on Google. Everyone who visits Coroico wants to visit this animal sanctuary.

● Cabañas Villa Bonita in Coroico: Villa Bonita offers rustic-style cabins in a relaxed and natural setting. This accommodation is well located and couples love it that is why it has an 8.6 / 10 on Booking. It offers free parking, garden, terrace. The restaurant offers homemade and vegetarian food. The activity it offers is hiking. It does not have a website, corporate image, or social media strategy. According to Booking information, this place offers service in English, German and Spanish.

● El Jiri Ecolodge: It is immersed in the Parque Nacional Cotapata. According to its description on TripAdvisor, it provides high quality accommodation and food services. It also offers adventure programs, ecotourism, agrotourism, trail walks, swings, canopy tours, bird and wildlife watching, a tour of the Jewish National Museum, and interaction with the community that makes coffee and chocolate. The lodge has a natural pool, grill, bonfire area, bar, dining room, vegetable garden, coffee, citrus plantation and other products of the region. Although they receive good comments, they do not have a website and on their Facebook page since 2017 they do not publish anything.

● Hostal Restaurante El Cafetal: It is located 1 km from the center of Coroico. It is an establishment that has family rooms, continental breakfast, swimming pool, free Wi-Fi and parking. The type of food offered in its restaurant is French. Regarding activities, it offers bike tours. They do not have a website or Facebook. According to Booking, they offer the service in three languages: English, Spanish and French.

● Mariposa azul Eco-lodge: This accommodation is in a natural environment with good views. It has four rooms. They offer free Wi-Fi, restaurant, pool and garden, barbecue

are subject to extra payment. They do not have a website but they do have Facebook, which has good comments and where they actively publish.

● Lodge Blue Pine cabañas: It offers different types of houses for large groups and families, they are not cabins because they are made of brick and cement. They have kitchen, garden, barbecue area, fireplace and bar. The activities they offer are local culture tour, bike tours, walking tours, cycling, hiking and canoeing, all subject to extra payments. It does not have its own website; they do not have a corporate image and they have not published on Facebook since 2017. However, they appear in several accommodation search engines such as: Booking, TripAdvisor, Agoda, Airbnb, Hotel reviews, Planet of hotels, Gites (French page), Ruta 0, Priceline, Via Michelin, Bed &

breakfast, Mas posadas, Skyscanner, Checkinly, Trivago, Hotel and place, Hotels Combined, Lonely planet, Holidaycheck, 9 flats, Ready to trip, Infotel, Lodging world, Cybevasion (page French), Visit monde, 2 look 4 beds and Let's book hotel.

● Hostal Pedacito de cielo: It has a good location. Its rooms are like small apartments made of brick and cement. It has a swimming pool, picnic area, terrace, barbecue area, shared kitchen and garden. It does not have a cafeteria, restaurant or bar. The type of breakfast offered is a la carte and American breakfast. The type of activities offered are tours (they do not specify what type), walking tours, hiking and a games room for families and children. They do not have a website, but due to the type of publications found on their Facebook page, their offers are aimed at large groups and families. Since February they have not published anything on their Facebook page.

Below we present a table divided into 4 points: place, product, price and promotion. To identify the type of service and product we will offer in relation to our competition.

To conclude and collecting all the information from our direct competition, Alwa Eco Hotel will be an innovative type of accommodation in the area. Our accommodation will have a good location, cabins and tree houses built with materials from the area, we will apply solar panels, hydraulic energy, we will take advantage of the rain water and all rooms will have ecological dry

Source: Own elaboration Table 11. Competitive environment

In addition to working with the community, we must not forget that employees are the cornerstone of any business. That is why they will receive different training courses such as:

customer service, languages, trends in tourism, sustainability, trips with the company and bonuses.

Regarding our image, we will hire a company specialized in marketing and advertising. We know that online marketing is constantly changing and if you do not join the trend line as a business, your product / service may be forgotten. That is why we will apply marketing in our day to day.

Knowing that our target audience is young people, we will have a good social media strategy to capture them.

To sum up, we consider that this business idea can be successful in relation to our competition, the type of service and products they offer, the type of visitors that Bolivia receives. And above all, the tourist experience that many young travelers seek today, such as responsible tourism, reducing the carbon footprint as much as possible, visiting natural destinations, collaborating in social projects, being close to local inhabitants and taking care of the environment. For this and much more, we are certain that we can meet those needs.

3.2.2 Threat of new entrants

This section is important in regards of the possible threats in the market from the competition that may affect the company or help create a huge positive impact. In regards to that the following aspects refer to the barriers and obstacles that may be difficult for the new business to enter in the market.

● Capital requirements → Not enough initial investment and low.

● Legal barriers → The need of certifications, licences to build on the territory, permissions.

● Customer loyalty for existing sustainable products → Introduction and Growth, Maturity, Decline and Abandonment.

● Consumer switching costs are low → Screen candidates, social media, qualified candidates, make use of job boards or platforms.

● Accessing distribution channels is difficult → The promotion, publicity and marketing is not well enough and so practices and techniques used are useless.

Figure 3. Five forces analysis