The PME Excelência (SME Excellence) status was awarded to 465 tourism companies that stood out for their economic, financial and management performance in 2021. IAPMEI and Turismo de Portugal honoured today, in a public ceremony, the merit of a segment of SMEs of recognised importance in the Portuguese economy. The award ceremony took place this morning at Exposalão, Batalha, and was attended by the Minister of Economy and Sea, António Costa Silva and the Secretary of State for Tourism, Trade and Services, Nuno Fazenda.
Altogether, the tourism companies distinguished as PME Excelência (SME Excellence) represent 10,825 direct jobs and have a turnover of 431 million euros. Tourism thus represents a 12% share of the Excellence universe, distributed by the following activities: 364 catering and beverages establishments, 76 accommodation establishments, 8 travel agencies, 12 tourist entertainment companies and 5 rent-a-car companies. These numbers show the effort and the important contribution of companies in the tourism sector, in a particularly difficult context of recovery of the national economic activity.
It is to the recovery and sustainability of companies in the sector, namely SMEs, that Turismo de Portugal intends to contribute, boosting an agile and proactive relationship between the public administration and the business fabric, strengthening access to investment, training, markets and knowledge, with the aim of positioning Portugal as a pole of reference in innovation and in the production of goods and services for the tourism industry, one of the goals of the 2027 Tourism Strategy.
Created in partnership with IAPMEI and the main banks, PME Excelência (SME Excellence) is a status of business qualification, which aims to reward the merit of small and medium-sized enterprises with superior performance profiles and aims to give notoriety in the market and provide easier access to financiers and credit solutions adjusted to their investment strategies.
