WestBridge
Capital, Travelguru to create market leader in India travel
services
Travelguru, India’s first
Metasearch travel solutions company, offers travelers best
price, service
February 1, 2006, Bangalore—WestBridge Capital Partners,
India’s largest and most active venture capital fund,
announced that it is backing Travelguru, a pioneering, technology-enabled
travel company, to build a market leader in India’s
online travel market. Customers will be able to book their
travel across 300 airlines and 55,000 hotels in India and
abroad in a fast, convenient and reliable manner. Started
as a Harvard Business School project in 2004, the company
now has strong fundamentals and has been working for the past
twelve months developing cutting-edge, proprietary travel
technology and establishing close partnerships with leading
travel suppliers in India. Travelguru’s innovative and
patented metasearch technology provides travelers with more travel options
at better prices than any other player in this space currently.
Commenting on the buoyancy in India’s
travel industry, KP Balaraj, Managing Director, WestBridge,
said, “India’s travel industry is expected to
be a $32 billion market by 2008. The future of the internet
and the manner it will change people’s habits is undoubted
– one of the largest gainers from e-commerce is travel,
accounting for over 50 per cent of global e-commerce activity.
The Indian traveler today is more informed, wants more for
less and is constantly looking for value. We believe that
the many travel choices and cheaper prices on Travelguru will
give consumers the best value for their money.”
Mr. Ashwin Damera, co-founder and CEO
of Travelguru, commented, “In a scenario where there
are not just multiple airlines but where fare structures are
dynamic and focused on making travel affordable, a service
of this nature brings all options to the customer. Imagine
traveling to Delhi and having to choose from over 100 hotels
to stay in. With a service like this, Travelguru simplifies
the customers’ decision-making process and adds tremendous
value. To cite some global examples, in the US, nearly 50
per cent of all airline tickets sold are sold online, and
sites like Expedia and Orbitz sell a major portion of this.
Even in China, Ctrip sells nearly half a million hotel room
nights a year. Travelguru will replicate the user experience
and value proposition of these established sites for the Indian
traveler.”
“Having built the foundation
for what we believe will emerge as the Google of the travel
industry, we are heartened by the interest that our business
model has generated amongst potential investors and venture
capitalists and the backing of a lead investor like WestBridge
is very encouraging for us”, added Ashwin. Adding further, KP Balaraj said, “WestBridge
Capital has a strong reputation of partnering with entrepreneurs
and management teams to create market leaders in India. We
have been very impressed with what the Travelguru team has
accomplished to date, and are looking forward to working with
them closely to build Travelguru into a market leader in the
travel services industry.” Commenting on the key differentiators
of Travelguru, Ganesh Rengaswamy, the other co-founder, added,
“A single unifying mission led to the genesis of Travelguru
– the vision to create a consumer-friendly, technology-led
platform to overcome the challenges faced by customers and
service providers in a crowded travel marketplace. We already
have partnerships with more than 400 hotels across India.
Our strategic alliances with several domestic and international
airlines have ensured that Travelguru enjoys a key advantage
on price and availability and we are adding to this portfolio
everyday. By providing rich hotel related content such as
details on nearby attractions, hotel photographs, room facilities
and distance form airport/railway stations, we will empower
customers to make decisions that are right for them.”
Besides being able to book and plan
their travel on-line at www.travelguru.com,
travellers can also book by calling the company’s number,
+91 - 22 - 4030 4878 (standard charges apply)
from anywhere in India. Travelguru’s metasearch technology
ensures that travellers get a larger number of permutations
and combinations of flights and hotels when compared to other
on-line websites. Importantly, Travelguru only provides travelers
with flight fares and hotels rooms that are actually available
as opposed to throwing up lower fares that are never available.
This is closely linked to the company’s ‘4 Mantras’
– Transparency, Choice, Convenience and Savings. Close on the heels of its launch, Travelguru
also announced that it had kicked-off an inaugural promotion
for consumers who choose to book their travel with Travelguru.
An international holiday for two to any one of these happening
cities- New York, Paris, London or Singapore and stay in the
world's finest hotels-Dorchester, Ritz Carlton or The Four
Seasons is on offer as part of the promotion. To enter the
promotion, you need to log on to http://www.travelguru.com,
register and answer a few interesting questions. You can increase
your chances of winning by referring Travelguru to as many
people as possible. The offer will be valid till February
15, 2006.
About Travelguru
Travelguru is a pioneering travel solutions company that
offers travellers the opportunity to plan their travel
in a transparent, hassle-free, quick and smart way. Strategic
partnerships and alliances with travel industry leaders
give Travelguru the edge as an aggregator of travel services.
Backed by next generation, real-time, metasearch technology,
Travelguru throws up a wider range of travel options for
domestic and outbound international travelers. Promoted
by two Harvard Business School alumni with significant
travel, technology and corporate experience and a team
of experienced professionals from industries such as hospitality,
travel & trade, financial services and E-commerce,
Travelguru is set to redefine the way India travels. Travelguru
can be found on the World Wide Web at www.travelguru.com or can be reached by calling the company’s customer support center,
+91 - 22 - 4275 4878 (standard charges apply).
About WestBridge Capital Partners:
WestBridge Capital Partners is a Mauritius-based, leading
Indian venture capital fund with approximately $350 million
under management. The fund focuses primarily on high growth
India domestic services, IT and outsourced services businesses
that are leaders in their market segments. WestBridge’s
investors include leading university endowments and foundations.
The SUN Group is a strategic partner of WestBridge. WestBridge
has offices in Silicon Valley and Bangalore.
For more information, visit www.wbcp.com |
