Impact Ventures Connect with Major Hotel Chains

 

 

 

Between June and September 2026, Mayma, through a program supported by Visa Foundation and in partnership with Promotora Social México, worked with the hotel associations of the Riviera Maya, Cancún, and Cozumel to deliver a series of workshops for hotel procurement teams. A total of 100 hotels representing 43 different brands participated. Corporate procurement managers from major chains, including Hilton, Hyatt, Wyndham, Xcaret, and Iberostar, sat down with local impact-driven businesses participating in Mayma’s SME capacity-building program.

 

The workshops were delivered in collaboration with two leading sustainability certification organizations in the hospitality sector: EarthCheck and Preferred by Nature. Discussions focused on certification criteria, responsible procurement policies, existing gaps and challenges, and opportunities to integrate local businesses into hotel supply chains.

 

The starting point was a shared recognition that corporate procurement decisions can be a powerful driver of economic transformation in local communities. Quintana Roo welcomes more than 21 million tourists each year. The tourism industry accounts for 45% of the state’s GDP and is home to more than 1,481 hotels.. The opportunity to connect local entrepreneurs with this substantial market is enormous — yet remains largely untapped.

 

During the workshops, procurement teams outlined their purchasing volumes and quality requirements, while entrepreneurs presented viable solutions across a range of categories, from organic food supplies to sustainable hotel amenities. This exchange of information aims to break down technical barriers, based on the conviction that, with the right support, a significant share of hotel procurement budgets can be redirected toward strengthening Quintana Roo’s local business ecosystem.

 

In 2024, Mayma conducted a value chain assessment of the tourism sector in the Mexican Caribbean, identifying market gaps and designing targeted interventions to drive systemic change. Since 2025, Mayma’s place-based program has supported local SMEs and impact-driven startups through two complementary tracks: a capacity-building program for micro- and small businesses and an acceleration program for impact ventures with growth potential. To date, 82 SMEs and 24 startups have benefited from one of these programs, with women leading 60% of the participating businesses.

 

In November, Mayma will host the first Triple Impact Business Roundtable in the Mexican Caribbean, a business matchmaking event bringing program participants face-to-face with corporate procurement teams from the hotel sector. It will mark another step toward building a more inclusive and resilient local value chain. In Quintana Roo, the question is no longer whether local entrepreneurs can play a role in the tourism industry, but how to expand their access to the market and multiply their impact.