EaseMyTrip Acquires Majority Stake In Hotel Booking Marketplace cheQin

EaseMyTrip on Tuesday (January 25) said it has acquired a 55% stake in hotel booking marketplace cheQin. However, it didn’t disclose the acquisition cost.

cheQin is a real-time marketplace which allows travellers to bargain with hoteliers. The bargaining algorithm of the startup brings in the top five lowest offers by the hoteliers, allowing travellers to make better decisions. cheQin also allows customers to pay at the hotel directly as well via its web, Android and iOS apps.

It also allows hoteliers access to real-time booking requests and enables more control over the hotel’s bookings. Further, cheQin allows hoteliers to see the demand and regulate pricing to get better sales. The hoteliers get a free signup, via which they can access a dashboard and receive commissions.

In a release, Easemytrip said it plans to strengthen its hotel channel in terms of tech, adaptability and personalisation with the acquisition, while also enabling bulk bookings and long-stay requests.

“With this acquisition, EaseMyTrip is in a great position to give its customers a wide range of innovative hotel booking options at the most competitive prices. Customers can gain from making hotel reservations for large groups, extended stays, and last-minute reservations,” the release said.

EaseMyTrip CEO and cofounder Nishant Pitti said that cheQin provides unparalleled options in all segments and has the potential to scale and strengthen cross-selling.

Adding to Pitti’s comments, Venu G Somineni, founder of cheQin, said, “EaseMyTrip and cheQin would have a strong synergy…The robust bargaining algorithm of cheQin would draw in a tonne of customers in no time…We expect to strengthen the market in the years to come, thanks to our partnership with EaseMyTrip.’’

The listed online travel aggregator is on an expansion spree and is looking to expand into new verticals. Earlier, Pitti told Inc42 that the startup would complete three acquisitions before the end of the financial year 2022-23 (FY23).

On Monday (January 23), EaseMyTrip also announced its entry into the offline travel space via franchise model. It said that its franchise approach will offer a commission structure on all transactions and bookings.

It will also have a 24X7 dedicated support centre to resolve queries and provide live training on products, operational break-even and business growth for three to four months. The franchise model will offer regular marketing, credit support and lead generation support to franchisees to scale their businesses.

Shares of EaseMyTrip ended 1.7% lower at INR 53.45 on the BSE on Tuesday.