Entrepreneur Jean Bustinza, originally from Spain, was working as an Edinburgh tour guide when the pandemic dealt a devastating blow to tourism. Forced to rethink his options, Jean, 26, credits The Open University for giving him the tools he needed to pivot fast.
Jean now plans to apply everything he learns during his BSc (Hons) in Data Science to his new business venture, which thrives on complex data. In his own words, this is Jean’s story.
“I was studying political science at a university in Spain in my late teens. But due to family circumstances, I had to leave my studies behind and emigrate to the UK. I moved to London and gave up hope of ever going to university again.
After some years, I set up as a small tour operator. That was before the pandemic. As you can imagine, there was not so much work to do after COVID struck.
I was forced to take a gap year, which became an unexpectedly great opportunity to develop myself as a person and study. That’s when some of my friends recommended The Open University.
The flexibility to start a new business
The OU specialising in distance learning was an important asset to me. Because the pandemic was already causing more organisations to pivot to online learning, I wanted to choose an approach to study that was already designed with that in mind.
Flexibility was another good thing. As a freelancer, I didn’t know when I was going to be back to work, and I already had my new project in my mind. So I didn’t want to start studying full-time, and compromise my job. The flexibility that the OU provides certainly makes it appropriate for students thinking about starting, or currently developing a business.
Creating change in the travel industry
My new business venture – Streetours – approaches tourism in an eco-friendly way. It’s an online platform that offers travellers discounted tours and recommends unique experiences from responsible local businesses.
Because I was a tour guide and I’ve been working in tourism for many years, I know how painful it is for tour operators to deal with online travel agencies. The rates are usually very high. Their customer service is not always good. So I wanted to create a platform that is good for tour operators and also supports local businesses.
When you book a tour, you also normally don’t know much about the tour company because you book it through a third party. So I want to make clear that the tour you’re booking is ethically conscious in some way. That it’s supportive of local business, or the local community or that they are eco-friendly.
So that’s the concept I’m trying to get going. As far I know, there are no other start-ups doing anything quite like this. I already have more than 20 tour operators across the UK signed up to the platform and reselling their services. I’ve just won a grant from the Prince’s Trust to help grow the project.
Learning new skills as an entrepreneur
The OU gave me lots of other tools I needed to pivot and start a new venture. For example, I didn’t have a business plan until I did it for the OU, and that really helped me in finding a path.
I’m still at the beginning of my degree, but as I learn more about data science, I want to be able to create an algorithm to create and match user profiles, so I can make even better recommendations, with much more detail.
It’s great to be back to studying and I’m really enjoying it. Most of all, the OU has helped me realise that it is never too late to start a new career or degree, something that before I enrolled I really didn’t believe.”
LEARN MORE
- Inspired by Jean’s story? Visit the ‘Entrepreneurs Hub’ from the OU Careers & Employability Services team on how to start your business and the support available
- Take a free OpenLearn Entrepreneurship short course to help you transform your business idea into a reality
