Combining work with leisure: New idea from a Swiss start-up

The covid pandemic has given a boost to new forms of work. In April 2020, 52% of the Swiss working population worked from home. That's 1.2 million employees who could be potential "work tourists" working from another destination instead of from home. An interesting potential for the tourism industry.

Work where others go on vacation

Due to climate change, volatile occupancy rates and last but not least Covid-19, the tourism sector is facing major challenges. The start-up Workplayz, based in Trin (GR), captures the current zeitgeist of remote working while addressing the difficulties in Swiss tourism. Reto Gurtner, tourism visionary and member of the start-up's advisory board, says: "Work tourists - i.e. guests who work in the mountains during off-peak times and relax in nature at the same time - are an opportunity for the transformation to all-year-round businesses in mountain regions. Workations fit perfectly into Laax's strategic direction."

Workplayz offers packages for a 3-, 4- or 5-day stay in around 15 different Swiss destinations, both for teams and individual employees. The packages include accommodation incl. breakfast, a comprehensively equipped workspace and various leisure activities.

Merging work with leisure

Not only tourism, but also employers are facing increasing challenges. Alexandra Kühn, Managing Director of the Work Smart Initiative and also a member of the start-up's Advisory Board: "Companies are competing for the best talent. For them, self-determined working is a growing need. Often, the supporting corporate culture is missing. With Workations, companies can anchor mobile working in their corporate culture in an innovative way."

Workplayz takes up the trend, according to which work increasingly merges with leisure, and makes working an experience. The workstations remain in the memory for a long time. Employees talk about them in their private networks and on social media. This has a positive impact on the employer's image and benefits it in terms of staff recruitment and retention. What's more, the actual experience is also productive working time.

Wincasa focuses on result-oriented and interdisciplinary work

Wincasa - a leading real estate service provider in Switzerland - is one of Workplayz's first customers. Marco Kissling, Head of Business & Digital Excellence, is working from Laax in mid-October together with an interdisciplinary team: "We understand mobile working as more than just home office. The Workplayz offer therefore fits well with our #weworksmart initiative. During the stay in Laax, we are working on an innovation project for the future of Wincasa and have set ourselves clear goals for the three days. The inspiring location and the varied social program with yoga, a bike tour or hike in the Grisons mountains should help us to look at projects from a new angle and grow even closer together as a team."

More information: www.workplayz.com