RedDoorz to open more than 100 budget hotels in the Philippines
Singapore-based startup RedDoorz, an online booking platform for budget hotels, on June 20 announced it would expand to the Philippines, its third country in Southeast Asia besides Singapore and Indonesia.
Plans are to make an investment of $5 million to offer more than 100 lodging properties across the country in the next 12 months under the RedDoorz brand. The relatively low investment volume is owing to RedDoorz’s business model which is based on franchising and marketing of existing properties. Basically, the company brings together budget hotel owners under the RedDoorz banner with potential clients and books their rooms via an online marketplace, much like Airbnb, just with a consistent branding.
Adding to that are ultra-low rates. One night in a RedDoorz property in Jakarta in the first week of July , for example, can be booked for as low as $16, a quick booking check showed.
As of late, RedDoorz has also began leasing properties and operating them on its own as part of a long-term strategy to provide “predictable, consistent customer experiences,” as well as to “grow deeper in the hospitality value chain”.
In the Philippines, RedDoorz will introduce a new category of properties, RedDoorz Premium. The latter comprises properties that are designed for “budget business travelers,” are located close to business districts and offer more amenities than its other two existing categories, RedDoorz and RedDoorz Plus.
RedDoorz Premium will be a relevant category as the start-up expands into other Southeast Asian cities where there is an influx of business travelers.
“The Philippines ranks second as the fastest-growing Internet economy in the world – right after Indonesia – with an Internet penetration of 63 per cent of approximately 106 million Filipinos. We realised that the Philippines held a strong demand for hotel rooms not only for tourists but also for business travelers. We felt that it was timely for us to make the conclusive move to start expanding here,” said Amit Saberwal, founder and CEO of RedDoorz.
The investment is covered by proceeds from a pre-Series B funding of $11 million in March this year from investors including World Bank Group’s private investment arm International Finance Corporation, United Overseas Bank-backed InnoVen Capital, Sushquehanna International Group’s Asia Investment Fund, and Shanghai-based FengHe Group.
RedDoorz’s venture capitalist partners are Jungle Ventures and 500 Startups. The company was founded in 2015 by executives from Indian online travel agency MakeMyTrip. Currently, RedDoorz markets 500 properties in both Singapore and 16 cities in Indonesia and claims to have brokered more than one million room nights with over 80 per cent occupancy in the two countries since its inception.
Singapore-based startup RedDoorz, an online booking platform for budget hotels, on June 20 announced it would expand to the Philippines, its third country in Southeast Asia besides Singapore and Indonesia. Plans are to make an investment of $5 million to offer more than 100 lodging properties across the country in the next 12 months under the RedDoorz brand. The relatively low investment volume is owing to RedDoorz's business model which is based on franchising and marketing of existing properties. Basically, the company brings together budget hotel owners under the RedDoorz banner with potential clients and books their rooms via an...
Singapore-based startup RedDoorz, an online booking platform for budget hotels, on June 20 announced it would expand to the Philippines, its third country in Southeast Asia besides Singapore and Indonesia.
Plans are to make an investment of $5 million to offer more than 100 lodging properties across the country in the next 12 months under the RedDoorz brand. The relatively low investment volume is owing to RedDoorz’s business model which is based on franchising and marketing of existing properties. Basically, the company brings together budget hotel owners under the RedDoorz banner with potential clients and books their rooms via an online marketplace, much like Airbnb, just with a consistent branding.
Adding to that are ultra-low rates. One night in a RedDoorz property in Jakarta in the first week of July , for example, can be booked for as low as $16, a quick booking check showed.
As of late, RedDoorz has also began leasing properties and operating them on its own as part of a long-term strategy to provide “predictable, consistent customer experiences,” as well as to “grow deeper in the hospitality value chain”.
In the Philippines, RedDoorz will introduce a new category of properties, RedDoorz Premium. The latter comprises properties that are designed for “budget business travelers,” are located close to business districts and offer more amenities than its other two existing categories, RedDoorz and RedDoorz Plus.
RedDoorz Premium will be a relevant category as the start-up expands into other Southeast Asian cities where there is an influx of business travelers.
“The Philippines ranks second as the fastest-growing Internet economy in the world – right after Indonesia – with an Internet penetration of 63 per cent of approximately 106 million Filipinos. We realised that the Philippines held a strong demand for hotel rooms not only for tourists but also for business travelers. We felt that it was timely for us to make the conclusive move to start expanding here,” said Amit Saberwal, founder and CEO of RedDoorz.
The investment is covered by proceeds from a pre-Series B funding of $11 million in March this year from investors including World Bank Group’s private investment arm International Finance Corporation, United Overseas Bank-backed InnoVen Capital, Sushquehanna International Group’s Asia Investment Fund, and Shanghai-based FengHe Group.
RedDoorz’s venture capitalist partners are Jungle Ventures and 500 Startups. The company was founded in 2015 by executives from Indian online travel agency MakeMyTrip. Currently, RedDoorz markets 500 properties in both Singapore and 16 cities in Indonesia and claims to have brokered more than one million room nights with over 80 per cent occupancy in the two countries since its inception.
