Travel brands are increasingly adopting and experimenting with new technologies to change how we plan and experience travel. Even more than established brands, young startups are driving this change from the front and that is why it is crucial to help them grow. Startup Incubators, with their mentors, advisors, partners and investors, help provide the fuel to startups in their early days. Travel Startups Incubator started by the veteran travel entrepreneur Matt Zito (Also read: In conversation with Matt Zito) is an incubator strongly focussed on travel startups bringing new technologies and their applications to the industry.
From L to R: Mike Coletta, Nicole and Matt Zito
TSI was launched in August 2014 and since then, it has invested in 16 promising travel startups. Some of the early ones have shown good signs of progress and now, Travel Startups Incubator is looking for support from the industry to continue helping the young startups and building promising products. They are looking to raise up to USD 6M for the same.
This could be a promising opportunity for investors who want to be a part of the travel innovations that we will see in future and help in shaping the same. If you are a VC, here is why you should consider investing in TSI:
Exclusive to travel
The mentors, advisors and corporate partners that are a part of the incubator have a very important role to play in the success of a startup. TSI, with the focus only on travel, brings together partners from the same space. This offers more opportunities to the startups as compared to any other incubator focusing on multiple domains.
Highly experienced mentors
Travel Startups Incubator was founded by Matt Zito who brings over two decades of travel industry experience. Nicole Zito, Managing Partner comes with 20+ years of experience of handling two successful travel companies and the Managing Director Mike Coletta has been an active travel entrepreneur. Along with the core members, the team comprises of experts from leading brands like Facebook, Amadeus, Wings Travel Group among others.
Global presence
Innovation isn’t limited by geography and that is why it is important to keep an eye on the global industry. That is why TSI hasn’t limited itself to prominent startup hubs and operates virtually on a global scale. This allows for startups from any part of the world to associate with Travel Startups Incubator and leverage the resources to grow.
Growth opportunities
Investing have to look at the potential return on their investment while investing in any idea. Investing in early stage startups offers less competition and thus giving better ROI to the investors. There are certain risks associated at that stage but with the combined experience of the team, they are more than capable to identify the right startups to work with. The risk is also minimised by diversifying at scale and investing in multiple startups over time.
Promising portfolio
The previous point is highlighted by the impressive portfolio of startups they work with. Focussed on the upcoming trends we see in travel, the early startups to join TSI have shown good progress. Proxce is an identity management solution that has wide applications in hotel and airline industry. Adventure Bucket List is a B2B distribution platform for tours and activities. GoHeroGo, an AI and human powered personal travel concierge has also recently joined TSI. The portfolio showcases how the startups that have joined are bound to grow.
The due date for soft investment commitments is August 1, 2016 and the terms will be finalised over the next one month. They plan to use around 67 percent of the funds to invest in 75 startups over the next 3 years and follow-on investments in the top startups. The rest will go towards strengthening the team and infrastructure to offer even better support to the startups and further improving the digital platform. Interested? Head over to their website for more details.
