The Shiga Prefecture Travel Agents Association (Chairman: Hiroshi Kitagawa, Tabisuke) held its first roundtable discussion on July 12th on the theme of "The Future Direction of Small and Medium-Sized Travel Businesses." 21 member companies attended the discussion at Hotel New Oumi in Omihachiman City, where they enthusiastically spoke about their business challenges and their thoughts on the future of the travel industry. Managing Director Mitsuru Yano (Nagahama Kanko) acted as the moderator and asked the participating travel companies for their opinions.[About inbound tourism] Inbound tourism is on an unprecedented scale, but many small and medium-sized travel agencies are not yet ready to welcome visitors to Japan or develop products for them. In response to comments from several members such as "We don't know how to handle inbound tourism or how to deal with land operators in Korea and other countries," and "It will be difficult to continue in the travel industry if we don't think about inbound tourism," members who are actively involved in overseas business urged collaboration, saying, "In order to do business with land operators with wealthy customers, we will cooperate with members who already handle inbound tourism and create a system for both of us to benefit."[Current situation of the travel industry] For the travel industry, which has a low commission rate, the increase in card payments due to the shift to cashless transactions has led to a decline in profits. "We need to think about how to improve our profit margins by devising ways to purchase products, and I think making good use of online agents is one way to do this." Customers who visit counter stores compare accommodation prices on the spot. "We realize the need to have planning capabilities that are not judged by price," members said, exchanging comments like this.[The role of the Travel Industry Association] Tourism is considered an effective measure for regional revitalization and local revitalization, and small and medium-sized travel companies are now expected to have relationships with local governments. However, a member who has experience working in the government said, "The government only looks at major travel companies, and often leaves work to the major companies. We run our travel business with the governor's approval, but individual businesses have difficulty getting work." He added, "I want the travel association to become an entity that the government expects from us in the future, and to have the spirit to lead tourism in Shiga Prefecture." He argued that showing the prefecture the significance of the travel association's existence will protect member companies. Chairman Kitagawa said, "Last year, eight of the 79 member companies withdrew, and we felt a sense of crisis that if this situation continued, it would become difficult to manage the organization, so we proposed a roundtable discussion at this year's general meeting where we could talk honestly with our members. 17 companies attended the general meeting, but 21 companies attended today, and we could see how enthusiastic everyone was." "We started this roundtable discussion somewhat tentatively, but we were able to get a lot more results than we expected, with a wide range of opinions coming out. I was reminded how important it is to know what our fellow industry members are thinking and what they are doing. I believe that if we discuss how to run the association and how the travel industry will survive, centering on the 21 people who have gathered here today, we can find new avenues for growth. I would like to continue holding these roundtable discussions in the future," he concluded.