FindMyStay, a unique reverse bidding platform for hotel booking has raised funds in its Pre-Series A round led by the Indian Angel Network (IAN) and the round was led by Rishi Parti & Yogesh Bansal.
“We believe that hotel booking is the fastest growing domain in travel as a category and FindMyStay has the right mix of ideas, execution, talent and leadership to disrupt this space. The company has already registered tremendous growth and traction”, said Rishi Parti
The investment further validates the disruption that FindMyStay’s differentiated approach is creating in the online travel space. It helps customers to book hotels of their choice at the price they want to pay by connecting them in real-time with hotel partners who are looking to sell the inventory they foresee going unsold. The company plans to leverage the raised capital towards product development, brand building and also enhancing its tech backbone. FindMyStay also aims to double its hotel partnerships and increase coverage of cities in its next phase of growth.
Hotel booking, the fastest growing sphere of the online travel domain, has recently seen a huge spurt in the number of suppliers. The Indian Online Hotel Booking Market is estimated to reach 1.8 Billion USD by end of 2016 vs 0.8 billion USD in 2014. However, out of the 59% internet audience who research online, only 29% book online. Rest book offline because of better prices and ability to negotiate.
In such a scenario, FindMyStay’s model of empowering customers to offer their price to the hotel through the reverse bidding process, packs immense advantage for both consumers and hotel owners. It is able to help customers save more money and hotels generate more revenue from distressed inventory in one go.
Rohit Khetrapal, Co-Founder, FindMyStay, commented, “On an average, 50% of a hotel's inventory lies vacant. By making customers bid their price for this inventory and getting hotels to accept it, we are clearly creating widespread disruption in our category. On an average, our customers end up saving 25% more than when they opt for larger OTAs and last minute hotel booking apps. Thanks to these unique benefits that our business model delivers, we have managed to win the trust of reputed investors such as Indian Angel Network. Their support acts as a huge encouragement for us and the funds raised will help us broaden our horizons tremendously.”
Speaking on the growth opportunities and customer experience of FindMyStay, Co-Founder Simran Sial said, “With an increased smartphone penetration and our strong technology team, we are extremely confident of delivering a large-scale world class experience not just on web but also on our iOS and Android apps. Our focus always has been to delight the customers with a great experience. With the new round of funding, we are now in a position to invest more into developing products and technology focusing on improving customer experience further.”
Adding to the above, Yogesh Bansal quoted “Differentiating your product and continuous innovation is the key in today’s world for any startup to be successful. I see huge amount value that can be added to not so perfect world that includes travel and leisure”
Currently, FindMyStay has more than 2000 hotels on its platform across 35 plus Indian cities. Ittarget is to double the count within the next 18-24 months. Some of the key partners include the Lalit Group, The Park, Pride Group, Ginger Hotels, Oyo, etc to name a few. It is available on web and both android and iOS platforms.
With close to 400 investors from 10 countries, IAN’s presence spans 7 locations, which includes cities in India and UK. IAN has invested in startups from diverse industries/sectors. The investor group comprises successful and established entrepreneurs as well as dynamic CEOs. They not only invest in innovative startups but also provide valuable inputs on strategy, in addition to providing access to their vast global networks. IAN also became the world’s first angel investor group to establish operations outside of its home country, when it started operating in London. Over 4,000 entrepreneurs pitch to IAN each year, and IAN has invested in over 55 ventures over the last two years.
