Travel startup Hotel Engine raises $16 million in Series A funding after 4 years of bootstrapped growth

Hotel Engine Raises $16 Million in Series A Funding After 4 Years of Bootstrapped Growth
The Denver-based travel tech company’s first round of external investment of $16 million in Series A funding after four years of bootstrapped growth. The round, which was led by Telescope Partners now values the company at over $150 million.

This new funding will allow Hotel Engine to further their mission to make managing business travel lodging simpler. The company will focus on expanding its foothold within the small-to-medium business market and continue building out its team. More importantly, partnering with Telescope will speed up the development of new product features and functionality for business travelers that are hungry for more customer-centric innovation.

Despite being bootstrapped since its founding in 2015, Hotel Engine has experienced 300% growth year-over-year and is now valued at over $150 million. The company has managed this growth through massive expansion in its customer footprint, adding over 10,000 new users a month. Hotel Engine’s proprietary booking and management platform supports companies of all sizes across the private and public sector and provides access to over 200,000 available hotel properties in more than 185 countries.

Founded and launched in 2015, Hotel Engine provides hotel booking solutions designed for business travel. The startup is innovating the business travel industry with a free, private hotel booking and management platform. Through its vast partner network and smart technology, Hotel Engine is able offer curated solutions on demand to meet every business need. With over 200,000 properties globally, Hotel Engine offers up to 60% off publicly available hotel rates for private and public sector business travelers.

“I’m extremely proud of what the Hotel Engine team has built in just a few short years, and I’m excited for the opportunities we now have in front of us with this investment,” said Elia Wallen, founder and CEO of Hotel Engine. “This partnership gives us the added resources we need to increase our velocity and meet this growing market demand. We’re very excited to work with Mickey and his team and to take advantage of Telescope’s experience and knowledge to support Hotel Engine in our mission.”

Telescope Partners was founded in 2016 by former Sequoia Capital partner Mickey Arabelovic. Mr. Arabelovic has been in the venture capital industry since 2005 and has worked with software companies, including Carbon Black, Hirevue, and Waystar. Telescope will provide business insights, guidance, and advice based on extensive investment and technology industry experience.

“We’re thrilled to partner with Elia and the team at Hotel Engine. Until now only the largest companies had access to the hotel rates and software tools that allow for optimized travel spend, Hotel Engine brings that power to every business owner,” said Mr. Arabelovic.

There is an ever-increasing demand in business travel for solutions that not only save time and money but also provide valuable insights to empower strategic decision-making. With this infusion of resources, Hotel Engine is better equipped to be a stand-out leader in this competitive market than ever before.