AFP, Mumbai :
An Indian startup is turning its attention towards usurping the West’s largest hotel chains after establishing itself as India’s biggest player and shaking up the Chinese market.
Oyo Rooms, which specialises in no-frills accommodation, was only formed in 2013 but is already worth an estimated $5 billion after receiving funding from international venture capitalists.
The app-based company has quickly become India’s largest hotel firm by number of rooms and one of the biggest in China as it pursues an aggressive expansion abroad. Oyo, as it is commonly called, entered the British market in September and is eyeing other European countries, fuelled by money from Japanese group SoftBank and America’s Sequoia Capital.
“We are seeing great results in all our global markets and are growing aggressively in London,” Oyo’s founder, 25-year-old Ritesh Agarwal, told AFP.
“We will definitely consider expanding into the broader European region,” he added in the telephone interview.
Oyo teams up with owners of budget hotels to help connect them with tourists looking for cheap but clean accommodation that meets certain hygiene standards.
Oyo staff carry out inspections of hotels. If they are deemed to be up to scratch then they are made available for booking on Oyo’s website and mobile app.
Many offer hot water, free wifi and regular laundry services for as little
as 1,800 rupees ($25) a night, well below what mid and high-range hotels
charge.
The startup takes a commission for facilitating bookings while the hotels
– often small, independent ventures – are re-branded as an “Oyo hotel”.
The company’s distinctive red and white logo has been put up outside
thousands of Indian hotels across the vast Asian country over the past five
years.
An Indian startup is turning its attention towards usurping the West’s largest hotel chains after establishing itself as India’s biggest player and shaking up the Chinese market.
Oyo Rooms, which specialises in no-frills accommodation, was only formed in 2013 but is already worth an estimated $5 billion after receiving funding from international venture capitalists.
The app-based company has quickly become India’s largest hotel firm by number of rooms and one of the biggest in China as it pursues an aggressive expansion abroad. Oyo, as it is commonly called, entered the British market in September and is eyeing other European countries, fuelled by money from Japanese group SoftBank and America’s Sequoia Capital.
“We are seeing great results in all our global markets and are growing aggressively in London,” Oyo’s founder, 25-year-old Ritesh Agarwal, told AFP.
“We will definitely consider expanding into the broader European region,” he added in the telephone interview.
Oyo teams up with owners of budget hotels to help connect them with tourists looking for cheap but clean accommodation that meets certain hygiene standards.
Oyo staff carry out inspections of hotels. If they are deemed to be up to scratch then they are made available for booking on Oyo’s website and mobile app.
Many offer hot water, free wifi and regular laundry services for as little
as 1,800 rupees ($25) a night, well below what mid and high-range hotels
charge.
The startup takes a commission for facilitating bookings while the hotels
– often small, independent ventures – are re-branded as an “Oyo hotel”.
The company’s distinctive red and white logo has been put up outside
thousands of Indian hotels across the vast Asian country over the past five
years.
