News Briefs

Avalara, Inc., a provider of tax compliance automation software for businesses of all sizes, today announced new and innovative efficiencies for the lodging and hospitality sectors, with the release of Avalara Tax Content (ATC) for Lodging. Leveraging Avalara's proprietary, AI-infused technology, ATC for Lodging gathers, processes and organizes lodging tax data specifically for the lodging and hospitality industries – making it the ideal solution for organizations that require lodging tax content for tax calculations.

ATC for Lodging is a robust addition to Avalara's industry-leading suite of compliance products for lodging and hospitality customers, which includes Avalara AvaTax for Hospitality and Avalara Returns for Hospitality.

"Lodging tax regulations are constantly changing across the state, city, and jurisdictional levels, making it challenging for businesses to maintain the accuracy of tax calculations," said Pam Knudsen, Senior Director of Compliance Services at Avalara. "ATC for Lodging provides organizations, including hotel chains, online travel agencies and marketplaces, property managers and others, with the ability to calculate tax, using AI advances to deliver the researched tax content they need to increase accuracy, uniformity and reliability across multiple locations."

ATC for Lodging provides lodging and hospitality businesses with new benefits and capabilities, including:

• Increased Automation: This new offering supports the efficient use of business resources by replacing manual compliance processes with intelligent automation capabilities, giving businesses control over data management, processing, and scheduling.
• Decreased Risk: ATC for Lodging reduces risk by granting users access to researched and regularly updated lodging tax content, providing uniformity and increased accuracy across locations.
• New Efficiencies in Tax Calculation: By offering both full and partial updates of tax data, ATC for Lodging helps reduce file sizes and gives customers more options.
• To learn more about how your business can benefit from Avalara Tax Content for Lodging, click here.

Chipotle Mexican Grill will open its 1,000^th Chipotlane restaurant on November 21. Located in the Kansas City metro area, the milestone restaurant will feature the company's signature digital order drive thru pick-up lane. Of the company's more than 3,600 restaurants in its real estate portfolio, nearly 30% feature a Chipotlane.

"Chipotlanes are a critical piece of our long-term growth goal of reaching 7,000 restaurants in North America," said Chris Brandt, Chief Brand Officer. "This restaurant format is the fastest way for fans to get Chipotle and has proven to increase sales, margins, and returns."

Inside the Chipotlane

Chipotle first introduced the Chipotlane format in the U.S. in early 2018, giving guests and delivery drivers the ability to pick up their Chipotle orders without leaving their cars. New restaurant openings that feature the digital order pick-up lane have demonstrated higher volumes and greater returns than a traditional Chipotle restaurant format. On average, it takes guests less than 30 seconds to complete the Chipotlane process.

Chipotle is building a real estate pipeline that will allow it to accelerate new unit growth to be in the range of 8% to 10% per year, with the majority of new restaurants featuring a Chipotlane. The company is on track to open between 285 to 315 new restaurants this year, which marks record growth for the business. In 2025, Chipotle anticipates opening between 315 to 345 new restaurants with at least 80% including a Chipotlane. 

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) launched the second edition of its iNet Zero Roadmap for Travel & Tourism, revealing the number of global Travel & Tourism businesses setting climate targets has surged by 27% in the past three years, with more than half now actively committed to emissions reduction.

Launched at COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan today, the report reveals, 53% of the 250 leading Travel & Tourism businesses analyzed have now set climate targets, a significant increase from 42% in 2021, when the first Net Zero Roadmap was created.

Among these businesses, one third have committed to Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi) goals, underscoring their dedication to meeting rigorous emissions reduction benchmarks.

Notably, the number of companies adopting SBTi targets has more than doubled since 2021, signalling an accelerated effort by the sector to align with global climate standards.

Developed in collaboration with Accenture, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and supported by the State Tourism Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan, this second edition of the roadmap underscores the urgency of climate action as the sector works towards net zero by 2050.

Building on the foundation of the original roadmap launched in 2021 at COP26, in Glasgow, Scotland, the latest edition addresses the escalating environmental impacts on tourism.

It introduces an enhanced decarbonisation framework, including new target corridors to guide Travel & Tourism businesses in setting ambitious, actionable climate targets.

The roadmap highlights that there is no ‘one size that fits all’ solution, as each industry faces its own challenges, with some able to meet their net zero targets earlier than others. 

A major focus of the updated roadmap is improving sector alignment and transparency, particularly as demand for sustainable travel options grows, with 75% of global travellers now expressing a desire to travel more sustainably.

The roadmap also draws on WTTC’s Environmental & Social Research (ESR), which reveals a significant decrease in Travel & Tourism’s carbon emissions footprint.

According to the latest ESR data, Travel & Tourism accounted for 6.5% of global emissions in 2023, down from a peak of 7.8% in 2019, representing an 10.2% reduction in the sector’s greenhouse gas intensity, showcasing the sector’s significant strides toward decoupling growth from emissions.

Across a number of industries, the roadmap notes significant improvements in carbon intensity.

In 2023, the aviation industry achieved a 6% reduction in carbon intensity from 2019, when Travel & Tourism was at its peak, while the cruise and accommodation industries both decreased their carbon intensity by 11%.

These reductions are critical as the sector works to balance growth with a meaningful transition to lower emissions.

Julia Simpson, WTTC President & CEO, said, “The urgency of climate action in our sector has never been clearer. Climate change is not a future threat – it’s here, and we are all facing the consequences.

“This updated roadmap is a call to action for every business in Travel & Tourism. The sector is moving forward; but we mustn’t rest on the laurels. We must work together with greater ambition and urgency to create a sustainable future for Travel & Tourism. Every step counts towards preserving our planet and the livelihoods of millions.”

Jesko-Philipp Neuenburg, Accenture’s Global Travel and Aviation Sustainability Lead, said, “Global Travel companies have made good progress on emissions targets and measurement. The second edition of the roadmap underscores the importance of moving from commitments to actions and provides pragmatic advice on how to work towards decarbonisation of the Travel & Tourism sector.”

Niclas Svenningsen, UNFCCC Manager, Programmes Coordination said: “Since the first edition of this report was published three years ago, the world has experienced a continued out-of-control climate change with new heat records set across the entire planet.

“The impact has been devastating, not least in the tourism industry where many destinations have not only been negatively impacted, but in some cases the impact has been enormous. In a world where business-as-usual for Travel & Tourism is no longer an option, acting on the pathways and target corridors presented in this report, is the only way it can maintain its License to Operate.”

Kanan Gasimov, Head of Cabinet, the State Tourism Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan said: “This roadmap serves as both an actionable guide and a vision-setting tool for the industry, helping us set ambitious goals while providing clear steps to reduce emissions across all tourism subsectors, from accommodation to aviation.

“Azerbaijan is proud to be part of this project. Through our COP29 Presidency, we have successfully advocated for tourism’s inclusion in international climate discussions and committed to embedding sustainable practices in our national policies. Together, we can build a tourism sector that aligns with global climate goals, preserves our natural heritage, and supports the livelihoods of our communities.” 

The updated roadmap also highlights the role of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) in reducing aviation’s carbon footprint.

Reducing emissions by up to 80% over the fuel’s lifecycle, SAF has emerged as a cornerstone for aviation's decarbonisation pathway, and the roadmap calls for the expansion of SAF adoption across airlines, supported by investment and regulatory alignment, to accelerate emissions reductions.

It also provides more detailed guidance for small businesses which represent the backbone of Travel & Tourism yet face unique challenges such as defining and following a more strategic decarbonisation approach.

It emphasises the importance of accessible green financing for small to medium enterprises (SMEs), that can often lack the resources to implement sustainability measures.

Despite these advancements, the report identifies ongoing challenges, both internal and external, that require attention. Measuring Scope 3 emissions remains a complex task for many companies, as does achieving regulatory alignment across regions.

A Call to Action for the Sector

WTTC and its Members urge businesses to adopt the roadmap’s target corridors, which suggest specific emissions reduction strategies across various timeframes. These tailored strategies aim to mitigate emissions within the next decade and reinforce long-term climate resilience.

WTTC encourages Travel & Tourism companies, stakeholders, and governments to support and implement the measures outlined in this roadmap.

Whilst the global Travel & Tourism sector is making progress, the global tourism body is urging governments to provide further incentives and subsidies to businesses in order to ensure targets are met.

By uniting in pursuit of net zero, the sector can achieve meaningful climate action, protect vulnerable destinations, and meet the expectations of environmentally conscious travellers worldwide.

To read the report in full, please visit WTTC Research Hub.

Legion Technologies, an innovator in workforce management (WFM), has expanded its relationship with Vail Resorts,a leading mountain resort company. Over the past winter season, Vail Resorts mountain resort leaders, managers, and frontline employees implemented the technology and data in the Legion WFM platform, allowing them to optimize resort staffing to elevate guest service, employee experience, and efficiency.

Vail Resorts initially piloted Legion WFM's scheduling functionality at its two largest mountain resorts, Whistler Blackcomb and Park City Mountain. Over the past season, Vail Resorts expanded this functionality to all 37 of its resorts in the US and Canada.

“As an experience company, we are always looking to invest in innovative technology to improve not only the guest experience but our team members’ experience,” said Bill Rock, president of the Mountain Division, Vail Resorts. “Our leaders and employees had been giving us feedback that they wanted a better experience that gives them better visibility and flexibility to schedule our employees where and when they can make the biggest impact on the experience of our guests. Legion’s workforce management tool has helped us schedule our employees more efficiently, which is essential given the intricacies of our mountain resort operations.”

“Vail Resorts’ operations are complex, from running retail and rental to staffing lifts and restaurants and scheduling team members in hospitality; Vail Resorts needs intuitive and flexible scheduling software to optimize labor operations. With Legion’s experience and employee-centric platform, we help ensure they always have the right staff at the right time in the right place to meet demand while simultaneously maximizing employee engagement,” said Sanish Mondkar, CEO and founder, Legion Technologies.

The expansion of the Vail Resorts partnership marks another milestone in what remains a remarkable year for Legion. Earlier this year, the AI Breakthrough Awards named Legion WFM the “Best AI-based Solution for Workforce Management” for the second year in a row. In addition, the company ranked No. 26 on Inc. Magazine’s list of the Pacific region’s fastest-growing private companies and made Deloitte’s Fast 500 list of the fastest-growing technology companies in the United States.