Travel Daily Media (TDM): FutureLog has been steadily growing across Asia—what have been the key drivers behind this momentum?
Franz Lingl (FL): The growth in Asia can be attributed to our inspiring team with so many talented individuals, coupled with the fighting spirit and advanced adoption of technology. COVID-19 was the catalyst to accelerate digitisation within Asian hospitality, as the hotels did not recruit back to the pre-pandemic level, but had to focus on digitisation to overcome labour shortages. The acceleration of digital adoption in procurement and invoicing has been a critical enabler of our momentum in Asia.
TDM: How does the Asia-Pacific region compare to your other global markets in terms of adoption and growth potential?
FL: We have witnessed that the Asia-Pacific region has the biggest growth potential globally. The main reason is that, particularly in Southeast Asia, the traditional pen and paper methods are still widespread. There is significant demand from Europe, too, but more often it is migration from previously installed software. It is interesting to note that while Europe has high digital maturity, APAC leapfrogs by adopting cloud-native solutions quickly, driven by a young workforce and mobile-first culture. The growth here is exponential rather than linear.
The market fragmentation with independent hotels, smaller chains, and unique tax and invoicing frameworks for each country requires a tailored approach to the projects. However, where others see fragmentation, we see opportunity. Our role is to bridge tradition and technology, helping hotels shift their focus from admin to guest experience.
TDM: Which new markets in Asia-Pacific are you most excited about entering, and why?
FL: In our experience, Japan is the most exciting market with its renewed inbound boom. Customers and users in Japan are not afraid of change. They see the potential improvements that digitisation brings to the table.
TDM: What unique opportunities or challenges do you foresee in these new markets compared to your existing ones?
FL: Japan is one of the most unique markets when you consider the language and cultural perspective. You cannot simply fly into Japan and start a software business in English. This is the reason our software is fully translated into Japanese by our team with Japanese language capabilities. It is essential to build trust and show sincerity in dedication and investment in Japan to entrench a long-lasting business partnership. However, when considering the traditional market many have in mind, the most exciting opportunity arises from the openness to transitioning from paper and pen to digitalisation, such as our mobile apps. While in other countries, we experience hesitation when it comes to change management, in Japan, we met teams who could not wait to digitise their business processes with solutions like FutureLog. They directly started their first inventory via our mobile app – and were incredibly thankful to provide them with our software. However, again, the process is first to build trust and show our genuine interest in investing in the market before we reach a stage of finalisation.
TDM: FutureLog recently announced plans for expanding its presence in Asia. Can you share more about your office expansion roadmap?
FL: The Bangkok office expansion is more than just a move; it’s a commitment statement to Asia. The office space was designed by regroup architecture, with inclusiveness enhanced through the support of Steps. This space will serve not only as a regional hub for operations but as a talent and innovation centre. This further underpins our readiness to scale and deliver strong client success across the APAC region.
