A nest to roost

Startup saga

With a name inspired by the ‘bo tree’ (under which Gautam Buddha attained enlightenment), this Bengaluru-based startup is a tech-enabled, affordable accommodation venture promises quality to travellers across major cities in the country. 

‘Treebo Hotels’ was conceptualised by three co-founders — Sidharth Gupta, Rahul Chaudhary and Kadam Jeet Jain — in 2015. After a lot of brainstorming, they finally decided on the idea of conceptualising their love for travel into something that will turn out to be beneficial for others.

Despite being a new player in the market, this venture is fast emerging as a blessing for travellers who look for an affordable yet comfortable stay.

“We are inspired not just by the name but also by the  principles. What trees were to the ancient wanderer, this venture is to the modern day traveller. We offer affordable accommodation without any bias between the white and blue collars. We aim at giving everyone,who steps into Treebo, a comfortable stay,” says Sidharth.
 
The team works with existing, standalone hotels on a franchise business model, where they prescribe the quality standards the hotel operators need to meet and keep in mind.

Staff training, bulk contracts with vendors and technology implementation are a few of these requisites. These hotels are then co-branded under ‘Treebo Hotels’ and are promoted both online and offline.

“We are primarily involved in sales and marketing and daily quality audits. Being a young player in the industry and having a presence in 45 cities across the country, it is a proud moment that we have attained the position of being the third largest hotel chain in India,” adds Sidharth.

With travel becoming an integral part of one’s life today, this venture is adding a new aspect to the hospitality scenario. Sidharth points out that consumers in India are becoming aware of what is good for them and hence, they make their choices
wisely.

He says, “With increasing awareness, people primarily look for value for money, quality in whatever they buy (including their stay in a hotel) and the comfort of
a brand. And that is exactly what we are offering in the travel space too. We are building a confidence among people that now there is a reliable brand available even for budget hotels. Another thing we are doing is making travel acceptable
to many more travellers,”  shares Sidharth.    
From metro cities like Pune, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata, ‘Treebo’ has spread its wings to smaller places like Ooty, Kodaikanal, Mysuru and Goa to name a few.

Talking about their future plans, Sidharth says, “We are looking forward to build it as the most favoured brand in the hospitality industry with an incredible value-for-money accommodations.”