Despite this year’s stock market volatility, the US economy still stands on strong footing. The Federal Reserve’s new chairman Jerome Powell just recently held his first press conference, where he discussed several topics including a strong economy. The Fed said in its press release that “the economic outlook has strengthened in recent months” and raised its 2018 GDP forecast from 2.1 to 2.4 percent. They plan to pursue a steady path of gradual interest rate hikes, in anticipation of a faster growing economy and rising inflation.
Dozens of sectors have benefited from the US strengthening economy, including the travel industry. According to US Travel, “the share of U.S. residents searching for [temporary] lodging within the U.S. increased yet again to another new high. Eighty-eight percent of U.S. residents searched for lodging within the U.S. in February [2018].” The data continues to show that the US’ extremely lucrative travel industry is well positioned for the future.
In addition, tourism and travel continue to grow as one of the world’s largest economic powerhouses. Global tourism is a $7 trillion plus market, with billions of travelers participating each year. As a result of this incredible opportunity, many companies are stepping up to meet the industry’s growing needs. One such company is Cool Cousin, who has a platform that allows residents (called “Cool Cousins”) to offer travel tips and tourist guides to visitors. Their goal is to create “enhanced travel experiences powered by a decentralized P2P travel agency, optimized for the millennial traveler.”
The Cool Cousin app has over 500,000 users and boasts of a very strong 4.7 / 50 star rating on Apple’s App Store (the Android version is still in the works). The app, which lets travelers purchase city guides curated by locals, has been an instant hit because it provides users with the ability to connect with locals, view city recommendations, and track favorite spots all in one easy-to-use place. As of now, travelers can search for “Cousins” on a list of over 65 global destinations, including New York City, London, and Copenhagen. In a world that is increasingly digital and impersonal, the platform lets locals and travelers connect directly and create lasting relationships, no matter where one is on the globe. It’s no wonder that Cool Cousin has received press from reputable news sites like the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, and TechCrunch.
In an effort to make the platform even more efficient and globally minded, the Cool Cousin team is launching an ICO to raise funds to implement blockchain solutions. The new development will be powered by one of blockchain’s greatest contributions called smart contracts. Smart contracts are self-executing contracts whose stipulations are directly coded onto a blockchain. Once the conditions of the contract are met in full, the smart contract automatically executes the contract’s terms without requiring any additional action from either party. This instills a manner of trust and security in financial contracts that was previously unattainable.
On the Cool Cousin platform, smart contract integration will play a key role in the decentralized travel ecosystem. They will serve as an immutable system of checks and balances between all transacting parties, such as Cousins and travelers. Every transaction is quick, transparent, and secure, so neither Cousins nor travelers have to worry about the party on the other side of the deal.
The platform will also use a trustless, decentralized token called CUZ, which removes all third party entities like banks, credit card companies, and clearing corporations, keeping costs lower for travelers and profit margins higher for Cousins. This implementation will also allow for cross-border payments and international transactions, and will spare both Cousins and travelers the hassle of dealing with currency exchange rates. For an industry like global travel and tourism, this is particularly significant. Cool Cousin’s highly anticipated token sale will begin on April 10th at 10am UTC, and offers investors the ability to participate in one of the most exciting travel platforms available today.