Erzurum's digital trade potential
Erzurum is one of the largest cities in Eastern Anatolia and the region's logistics, education and healthcare centre. Livestock, tourism, agriculture, food processing and trade stand out in its economy; the strong academic and healthcare ecosystem around Atatürk University is another important dynamic for the city.
Tourism is one of the city's most striking features: Palandöken is one of Türkiye's most important ski resorts and Erzurum is the country's capital of winter sports. Erzurum was named the 2025 ECO Tourism Capital; alongside winter tourism, congress and health tourism are growing fields. That is a substantial digital opportunity for hotels and tourism businesses.
Livestock is the backbone of the economy: the live animal market in Erzurum, covering roughly 124,000 square metres, is among the largest in the world and is considered the largest in Europe. The aim of the livestock organised industrial zone (OSB) project is to turn live animals into branded, higher-value meat products — a concrete basis for branding and for B2B.
Gastronomy and regional products are a strong identity: with Oltu Cağ Kebabı, civil (göğermiş) cheese and dozens of other registered products, Erzurum's regional wealth is considerable. These products are ideal both for gastronomic tourism and for e-commerce with shipping.
Oltu stone is the city's signature craft: prayer beads and jewellery made from a black natural stone are very well suited to online sales and export thanks to their story and their geographical indication, yet most producers still sell locally and in a scattered way.
Although export volumes at provincial level are modest, Erzurum's real growth potential lies in services and tourism: hotels depend heavily on booking platforms, and direct bookings and a multilingual digital presence are weak. The right digital set-up can grow both tourism revenue and the branding of regional products and meat considerably.