Introducing Marc Gomez: the new SALTO WECOSYSTEM CEO on vision, innovation, and the future of Smart Access.
Introducing Marc Gomez: the new SALTO WECOSYSTEM CEO on vision, innovation, and the future of Smart Access.
We’re thrilled to introduce Marc Gomez as the new CEO of SALTO WECOSYSTEM. His rich and varied background as a business leader and his forward-thinking approach will bring valuable experience to bear in Salto’s vision of transforming the future of smart access and taking our growth to the next level. In this interview, Marc shares his thoughts on Salto’s unique and differentiated purpose, the launch of the SALTO WECOSYSTEM and his visions for innovation and sustainability in the smart access industry. Here’s an inside look at his plans and perspectives.
Salto has become a world-leading force in electronic locks and smart access. What would you say has driven this success?
Salto’s success is rooted in our innovative DNA, entrepreneurial culture, and a constant drive to evolve. Since joining, I’ve witnessed first-hand a commitment to innovation in every part of our organisation, from technology and products, through business models and industries that focus on a specialised vertical audience, to social and environmental initiatives. It’s all about team effort—our talented people and collective dedication to growth is what makes Salto stand out as one of the forces shaping the future of smart access tech globally.
In February 2024, Salto launched the SALTO WECOSYSTEM, bringing together brands like Gantner and Vintia. What inspired this move, and what does it bring to the industry?
The new branding is just one of the outcomes—though undoubtedly among the most visible—of a deep strategic reflection exercise. The process took over a year, but we believe it was essential to ensure our continued growth and successfully address the challenges that lie ahead.
This exercise not only allowed us to redefine our purpose as an organization, but also to establish a new structure that enables us to continue growing rapidly—just as we have done since the company’s foundation. Furthermore, this reflection saw us reassess how we communicate these changes to the market through our brand.
Thus, the SALTO WECOSYSTEM was born. It came from a shared vision of digitally transforming access and identity management. By bringing these core brands under a single platform, we’re creating a powerful ecosystem of diverse but cohesive expertise that allows us to offer smarter, more tailored solutions across a range of industries. Each brand brings its own strength to add value for partners, and the combined strengths of Salto, Gantner, and Vintia will drive more sustainable and connected access solutions for years to come.
How do these brands complement each other within the SALTO WECOSYSTEM?
Every brand in the SALTO WECOSYSTEM plays a unique role, amplifying its unique strengths in pursuit of a shared goal in this new structural alignment. Gantner maintains its position as a frontrunner in developing reliable, smart identification, cashless payment, and locker solutions. Salto, meanwhile, continues to spearhead advancements in building access, identity management, and electronic locking technology. Vintia, the latest entrant, specialises in ticketing and booking solutions that enhance visitor experiences and streamline operations at leisure and attraction locations. Together, they signify the commitment to innovation that’s fundamental to the new platform.
Can you highlight some recent technological advancements within the SALTO WECOSYSTEM?
At Salto, we’re long-recognised leaders in smart access technology, with many of our innovations now an essential part of modern security systems. Our vision of ‘Empowering Smart Access’ depends on developing new solutions in facility access, identity management, and electronic locking technology, reimagining the smart access ecosystem by eliminating the reliance on traditional mechanical keys. These include enhanced mobile access options, seamless integrations with third-party systems, new ways of access and identity like face recognition and advanced electronic locks with improved security and user features.
How does Salto meet the evolving needs of different industries?
We’re committed to being the leading smart access solutions provider partner in the security and access control industry. We want to create more secure, smarter and more efficient buildings. We want to support our business partners in their active role in the transition to more digital buildings and drive meaningful change to accelerate the transition to smart access.
Our industry-leading innovations address a variety of needs and offer smart solutions to access control, including hosted, cloud-based and mobile applications, face recognition, ID visitor management, door intercom, integration services and more. Properly planned and implemented, these features allow businesses to improve convenience, safety, operational efficiency, and the overall user experience in any industry, whether it’s hospitality, residential, commercial, or critical infrastructure.
What are the long-term goals of the SALTO WECOSYSTEM in the access control industry?
We have several ambitious goals aimed at shaping the future of the smart access industry. Firstly, we want to increase the value of buildings by improving users’ experience, operational efficiency and security. Innovation is also a key long-term aim, as we plan to stay at the cutting edge of smart access technology and continually adapt to industry trends, retaining our position as a global sector leader.
Our commitment to sustainability is another priority, with a focus on creating energy-efficient and eco-friendly products, promoting the circular economy principle to optimise resource use and minimise waste across the entire production chain. We want to apply a systemic approach built around transition theory, extending end-of-life strategies and delivering secure access solutions. We also value partnerships and want to expand our global reach to deliver comprehensive solutions to a broader market.
You mention our commitment to sustainability. How does Salto incorporate this in product design and operations?
Sustainability has been central to Salto since our founding. We have embraced the United Nations Global Compact and are working towards integrating the Sustainable Development Goals into our business strategy, culture, and day-to-day operations.
We’re also on a path to reach net-zero emissions by 2040, with a formal climate policy that includes reducing greenhouse gas emissions and promoting a circular economy as I mentioned. We aim to minimise our environmental footprint throughout our products’ lifecycle; focusing all our efforts on decarbonising our activities, implementing environmental management at our factories and incorporating a circular approach that reduces the environmental impact of our product lifecycle.
But it’s about more than our products and group operations. We unified our social and sports support efforts 20 years ago under Free2Move.org, which is still in use today. And recently, we established the SALTO FOUNDATION—which uses sport as a platform to drive social inclusion globally—to amplify these efforts, increasing the scale and intensity of our philanthropic actions to go beyond short-term solutions and fragmented support. So this represents the next stage in our evolution, one where we formalise and sharpen the focus of our social initiatives to have a more significant and lasting impact.
What challenges and opportunities do you see for Salto as you look to the future?
Our possibilities are unlimited in an industry that’s evolving constantly. Imagine the transition of all mechanical keys to smarter access and identity solutions for doors in the workplace. The options to unlock a future of innovation and security are limitless.
One of our biggest challenges, and also opportunities, is to stay at the forefront of a rapidly evolving industry. This means understanding the needs and challenges of our channel partners, helping to expand their reach and scale their operations by adapting our organisation, our services and the products we deliver. We must also continue to seek ethical and transparent leadership, based on the values that respond to the expectations of integrity that our customers and partners rightly place on us.
I’m very optimistic; there is tremendous potential for growth, especially because of our ongoing commitment to invest in research, development, and innovation. Our team of over 2,000 talented and innovative professionals is dedicated to finding new ways to meet the increasing expectations of the clients and communities we serve.
We share Marc’s optimism. We’re excited to have heard his insight and vision, and look forward to seeing where the future takes us with our new CEO.
