What GastroSuisse does

GastroSuisse is a Swiss membership-based trade association serving the hotel and catering industry, founded in 1891 and headquartered in Zürich. It self-describes as the largest employers' association in the Swiss hospitality sector with approximately 20,000 member establishments, distributed across a federation of 26+ cantonal associations (Kantonalverbände). The association addresses regulatory compliance complexity, fragmented industry representation, and the need for standardized training in the Swiss hospitality market by providing legal advisory services, model contracts, the L-GAV labor-law interface, and a tiered entrepreneur training program (G1/G2/G3 plus CAS Excellence in Gastronomy).

Its core product offering combines a digital platform with service delivery. The proprietary member portal (member.gastrosuisse.ch) supports account management, document downloads, and GastroJournal subscription management. Web-based tools include the Vertragsgenerator/Primelex contract generator and a suite of Onlinerechner (online calculators) for legal and business use. The bimonthly GastroJournal publication (bilingual German/French) reaches approximately 20,000 entrepreneurs. Standardization assets include the Hotelklassifikation classification system aligned with HOTREC European standards, the Hotel Innovations-Award (annual since 2016), and industry promotion labels (Fait Maison, Avanti!, OK:GO).

The business model is subscription-recurring, anchored by tiered membership dues calculated on annual payroll mass (categories A–E) and bundled with cantonal association fees, section fees, and optional training/PR supplements. Ancillary revenue derives from fee-based training and coaching (CHF 1,400 per half-day for members, CHF 1,600 for non-members), sommelier certification courses, and member discounts brokered through partner companies (AVIA, Shell, SWICA, HP, CWS, Protekta). Four operating subsidiaries extend the footprint: Hotelfachschule Zürich and Ecole Hôtelière de Genève provide higher education; Gastroconsult offers business consulting; and GastroSocial administers social security and pension fund contributions for affiliated hospitality employees. Distribution is primarily direct, augmented by cantonal associations and a bilingual website.

Name

GastroSuisse

Legal name

GastroSuisse

Website

https://gastrosuisse.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

1891

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

GastroSuisse is the largest Swiss hospitality employers' association, serving approximately 20,000 hotel and restaurant member establishments with legal advisory, tiered entrepreneur training, the GastroJournal publication, hotel classification, and political lobbying through a federation of 26+ cantonal associations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Zürich

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Primary revenue stream. Membership fees are tiered based on three components: (1) GastroSuisse national fee, (2) cantonal association fee, and (3) section fee in applicable cases, plus supplements for training and public relations. Fees are calculated based on annual payroll mass (including owner salary), with categories A through E determined by the prior year's payroll, ranging from smaller establishments to large operations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

GastroSuisse is a membership-based trade association for the Swiss hotel and restaurant industry providing legal advisory, professional training, industry publications, hotel classification, and political representation. It offers a member portal with protected content, the Vertragsgenerator contract tool, downloadable legal fact sheets, the bimonthly GastroJournal, and a portfolio of G1–G3 plus sommelier certification programs to its approximately 20,000 member establishments.

Product overview

GastroSuisse is Switzerland's largest hospitality and restaurant association offering a platform-plus-services model to approximately 20,000 member establishments. The core offering combines a member portal with tiered entrepreneur training (G1-G3), professional sommelier certification programs, and customized training & coaching services. Supporting products include the biweekly GastroJournal publication, the Hotelklassifikation classification system, the Hotel Innovations-Award, the Vertragsgenerator contract tool, and a Download-Center for legal templates and resources. Industry promotion initiatives (Avanti!, Fait Maison, OK:GO) and the HotelGastro365 labor integration program complement the portfolio.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• HotelGastro365: A joint initiative by GastroSuisse, HotellerieSuisse and Hotel & Gastro Union to improve labor market integration in the hospitality sector.
• GastroJournal
• G1 Gastro-Grundseminar (Wirtekurs)
• G2 Gastro-Betriebsleiterseminar
• G3 Gastro-Unternehmerseminar
• Hotelklassifikation
• Fait Maison
• Avanti!

Products and services

• GastroJournal Bilingual (German/French) industry magazine delivered bimonthly by post to members and available digitally, reaching approximately 20,000 entrepreneurs in the restaurant, hotel, and tourism sectors with industry news, innovation showcases, and advertising opportunities.
• Hotelklassifikation (Hotel Classification) Standardized national hotel classification system aligned with HOTREC European recommendations, offering 1–5 star labeling to hotels and hotels garnis to create transparency, orientation, and security for guests. Valid for three years with regular reviews.
• Gastro-Unternehmerausbildung (G1, G2, G3, CAS) Three-stage modular entrepreneur training program for hospitality managers: G1 Gastro-Grundseminar (basic), G2 Gastro-Betriebsleiterseminar (operational management), G3 Gastro-Unternehmerseminar (advanced), plus an optional CAS Excellence in Gastronomy.
• Sommelier-Kurse (Sommelier Courses) Series of professional sommelier certification courses covering wine, beer, spirits, water, sake, and cheese sommelier specializations, conducted by trained sommeliers in their respective fields.
• Training & Coaching Customized in-house training programs including GastroLeadership, guest hospitality development, sales training for hotel reception and restaurant service, housekeeping, hygiene training, service training (three modules), and beverage training. Pricing CHF 1,400 per half-day for members; CHF 1,600 for non-members.
• Vertragsgenerator (Contract Generator / Primelex) Web-based tool enabling members to create legally compliant employment contracts by selecting contract types and generating individualized templates which can be reused.
• Hotel Innovations-Award Annual innovation award recognizing outstanding hotel concepts in Switzerland. Winners include Landhotel Hirschen (2016), Fondazione Corippo (2017), Nestwood SA (2018), SV Hotel Stay KooooK (2019).
• HotelGastro365 Joint initiative by GastroSuisse, HotellerieSuisse, and Hotel & Gastro Union to create better labor market integration pathways for the Swiss hospitality sector, enabling genuine entry opportunities.
• Branchenförderung (Avanti!, Fait Maison, OK:GO) Industry promotion initiatives including Avanti! for industry and professional image promotion, Fait Maison label for artisanal kitchen authenticity, OK:GO initiative for accessibility, and WLAN promotion in mountain regions.
• Download-Center Centralized portal providing members access to templates, legal fact sheets, checklists, and guides that can be quickly found and filtered.
• GastroSuisse Merkblätter Rechtsdienst (Legal Fact Sheets) Comprehensive collection of legal information sheets covering hospitality-specific regulations, employee management, rental agreements, and compliance requirements, backed by member legal advisory hours.
• Branchenspiegel (Industry Report) Annual economic reflection of the hospitality sector providing key statistics, trends, and data for the industry.

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Hotelfachschule Zürich (HFZ)coreOthersHotelfachschule Zürich is a subsidiary institution of GastroSuisse, providing higher education in hospitality management. It is listed as a daughter company/institution of the association and featured under the 'Tochtergesellschaften & Institutionen' section on the main website.
• Hotelfachschule Genf / Ecole Hôtelière de GenèvecoreOthersEcole Hôtelière de Genève (EHG) is a subsidiary institution of GastroSuisse, offering internationally recognized hospitality management education. Listed as a daughter company/institution of the association.
• GastroconsultcoreOthersGastroconsult is listed as a subsidiary institution of GastroSuisse, providing business consulting and advisory services tailored to the hospitality sector.
• GastroSocialcoreOthersGastroSocial is a subsidiary institution providing social security and pension fund administration for hospitality employees. It processes AVS (1st pillar) and pension fund (2nd pillar) contributions for members. Members are required to process payroll through GastroSocial if affiliated with a professional association compensation fund.
• HotelGastro365 (with HotellerieSuisse and Hotel & Gastro Union)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGastroSuisse, HotellerieSuisse, and Hotel & Gastro Union jointly launched HotelGastro365, a collaborative initiative aimed at improving labor market integration in the Swiss hospitality sector. The initiative represents a significant cross-association partnership to address shared workforce challenges.
• Swiss Hospitality Schools (HFZ and EHG)coreOthersGastroSuisse maintainsHotelfachschule Zürich and Ecole Hôtelière de Genève as institutional subsidiaries, providing foundational and continuing education for the hospitality sector.
• Swiss Tourism Federation / Nachhaltigkeits-Netzwerk (KONA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGastroSuisse is a key member of the Competence Center for Sustainability (KONA) under the Swiss Tourism Federation. GastroSuisse participates in the Sustainable Tourism Days event organized by KONA, positioning the association within the Swiss sustainable tourism ecosystem.
• AVIA (Fuel Partner)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerAVIA is listed as a member discount partner of GastroSuisse, offering preferential fuel pricing/terms to members.
• Shell (Fuel Partner)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerShell is listed as a member discount partner of GastroSuisse, offering preferential terms to association members.
• SWICA (Health Insurance Partner)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerSWICA is listed as a member discount partner offering health insurance services to GastroSuisse members. SWICA is also referenced as an insurance partner in the industry knowledge section.
• HP (hp-online-store) (IT Partner)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerHP hp-online-store is listed as a member discount partner offering IT hardware procurement at preferential rates.
• Protekta (Insurance Partner)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerProtekta is listed as a member discount partner offering insurance products tailored to hospitality operators.
• CWS (Workwear/Textiles Partner)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerCWS is listed as a member discount partner offering workwear and textile solutions to GastroSuisse members.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA): The largest US hotel industry trade association. Comparable as a national membership organization for hospitality employers with broad lobbying, training, and member-service functions, though operating at significantly larger scale than GastroSuisse.

Others

• HOTREC: The umbrella European trade association for hotels, restaurants, pubs, and cafés. Comparable as the supranational coordinating body whose recommendations (e.g., on hotel classification) shape GastroSuisse's Hotelklassifikation standards and policy positioning.
• Federalimentare: Italian food and beverage industry federation. Comparable as a related sector trade association providing adjacent industry representation, training, and lobbying support to Italian hospitality and food operators.

Direct peers

• HotellerieSuisse: The leading Swiss hotel association, directly comparable to GastroSuisse as a parallel membership organization representing Swiss hospitality employers. Operates in the same regulatory and political ecosystem (L-GAV interface, lobbying) and is explicitly partnered with GastroSuisse via HotelGastro365.
• Hotel & Gastro Union: Swiss trade union representing employees in the hotel, restaurant, and catering sector. Directly comparable as a counterpart labor-side organization working on the same L-GAV framework and partnering with GastroSuisse in HotelGastro365 for labor-market integration.

Regional players

• UKHospitality: The principal UK trade body representing hotels, restaurants, pubs, and food service operators. Comparable as a national membership association with dues-based funding, lobbying, training, and member services for hospitality employers.
• DEHOGA Bundesverband: Germany's main trade association for the hotel and restaurant industry, providing a structural analog to GastroSuisse in the much larger German hospitality market. Comparable employer-association function, training programs, and political advocacy.
• WKO Tourismus und Freizeitwirtschaft (Austrian Federal Economic Chamber): Austrian tourism and leisure industry division within the Federal Economic Chamber. Comparable as a national-level organization providing representation, training, and member services to hospitality operators in a neighboring Alpine market.
• Horeca Vlaanderen: Belgian Flemish hospitality trade association representing hotels, restaurants, and cafés. Comparable as a regional employer association offering member services, training, and sector advocacy in a neighboring market to Switzerland.
• UMIH: France's leading independent hotel and restaurant trade association (Union des Métiers et des Industries de l'Hôtellerie). Closely comparable as a national employer/operator association with member dues, training, and political representation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/gastrosuissech
• Facebookfacebook.com/GastroSuisse.Verband
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/gastrosuisse

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about GastroSuisse