Luxury Hospitality: Career

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Digital Disruption For Europe's Hospitality, Shipping And Recruitment Sectors

Technology has disrupted industries such fashion, music, travel, and education. You only have to look at companies like Snap Fashion, Spotify, Uber, and Brainly, to see how digital startups are able compete successfully with much larger organisations. Now, some new tech developments in Europe are poised to shake up a few more industry sectors.

Settle your tab by phone

The days of sitting in a restaurant waiting for the bill may soon be over, thanks to a new mobile payment apps that let you keep an eye on the bill, split it at the end of the meal and pay on your smartphone without having to wait for a waiter to bring you the card machine.

It is early days for mobile payments in the hospitality sector, but take up is growing fast, and the creators of the apps are attracting investor interest. In one of the largest first round funding sessions in the UK, mobile restaurant payment app Velocity has secured $12 million in new investment from a select group of angel investors.

Founded by friends Zia Yusuf and Alex Macdonald, Velocity is used to pay restaurant bills and join loyalty schemes, and is aimed at high-end dining establishments. Many of the restaurants currently using Velocity are reporting a 14% increase in average spend from users of the app. In addition, restaurants can turn their point of payment into a point of engagement by integrating it with their own loyalty programmes.