Tico Treasures

ITB Innovation Radar

Tico Treasures - connecting tourists and artisans

Exhibitor: Mastercard

Stand Number: Hall 9a | Stand 201

The 17 Artisan Collectives that make up 300 micro, small and medium-sized enterprises of the Costa Rican Institute of Tourism (ICT)’s Crafts with Identity program have received a new boost. The new Tico Treasures platform, launched in December, will connect tourists and artisans, allowing them to sell their crafts online and ship them to any part of Costa Rica and the rest of the world, seamlessly, via the Correos Postal Service.

Costa Rica is home to countless treasures to discover, some visible to the naked eye and others that come to life in unexpected places. Tico Treasures seeks to promote artisanal and creative production, highlighting the authenticity, quality and cultural meaning of each product. With the support and joint work of companies such as Mastercard, Correos de Costa Rica, Banco de Costa Rica and the ICT, artisans will be able to market their “treasures” in an innovative and technological way, allowing products with a 100% Costa Rican seal to reach every corner of the globe.

According to Luz Amparo, who is part of the Artisan Support Center in the Crafts with Identity Program, “The training process has allowed the group of artisans from the Crafts with Identity collectives to have packaging techniques for our products, financial tools, reception of electronic payments and digitalization processes for our businesses. All of this will allow us to increase the competitiveness of our family businesses.”