LetzTrail launched its outdoor activity and community-focused app this month, providing over 3.7 million kilometres of trails in Europe—all free of charge for end-users.
LetzTrail co-founders Philippe Lassine (CEO) and Fred Giuliani (CIO)—themselves cyclists, hikers, runners and triathletes—got the initial idea to develop the platform as they were hiking in France. They had ascended Mont Ventoux and then decided to tackle the serpentine Lacets de Montvernier (Shoelaces of Montvernier), which has 17 hairpin curves. At a nearby hotel, they were given a printed trail map, but there weren’t any GPX files available. The pair asked certain questions—about bike shops, whether restaurant at the top was open or not—but the hotel didn’t have the answers.
“People record their tracks over a watch or GPS device, they push it to Strava or Komoot, and if you want GPX files from there, you have to pay. And finally, users take photos and post them on Facebook on Instagram,” explains Lassine, who spent 30 years in finance before beginning this initiative. “So, why shouldn’t we create a world with shops, users, GPX files, a free community where everyone could share and have a direct communication channel between each other?”
Commitment to its end-users
While the initial idea for LetzTrail was there, its development was shelved for some time as the pair investigated a revenue model. Giuliani, whose previous role was Head of IT at Spuerkeess, came up with the concept of selling waypoints, or geolocations along the maps.
The team then added advertising and sponsored tracks, plus the possibility of targeted events. Thanks to this revenue model, the co-founders promise that for end-users, the app will be completely free of charge, a key point of differentiation they believe will set them apart from other apps, which use subscription or freemium models, for instance.
Another distinguishing feature: the focus isn’t on performance, rather on sharing the passion of LetzTrail’s co-founders of being active outdoors, exploring and sharing with a community. “Our app is really social media. You have your feed, then your discovery part linked to your geolocalisation,” Lassine explains.
LetzTrail has 3.7 million km (over 60,000 trails) in its database, around 470,000 km of which are in Luxembourg, the rest in other regions in Europe, including Luxembourg’s neighbouring countries, plus northern Italy, Switzerland, etc.
“Once we have some users, they’ll generate the next [level of] content,” Giuliani adds. “They’ll do trails, upload automatically if they want, and help improve the network.”
Several syncing options will also be available through the app (e.g., trails can be synced to Garmin, and links can be made with certain health apps).
Luxembourg as a testbed
The team has already been in discussions with Facebook groups of outdoor enthusiasts and local influencers—with cyclist Andy Schleck serving as one of the brand’s ambassadors, per Lassine. LetzTrail has also signed on a number of restaurants, cycle shops and hotels, and the feedback the team has received is that these locations see the potential of becoming more visible through such an app.
In one year from now, the team hopes to have at least 60,000 users. The first focus will be on proving their model, starting in Luxembourg. At a later stage, it may be looking for investors to scale up.
The app is available as an Android and iOS mobile application.
CaptionLong-time friends Fred Giuliani and Philippe Lassine are co-founders of the LetzTrail app as well as fellow triathletes. © Courtesy LetzTrail
