Seven Start-ups to Pitch at Web In Travel’s (WIT) Bootcamp

01 Oct 2013 – SINGAPORE – Seven start-ups have been selected to pitch live at the Web In Travel (WIT) Bootcamp on October 21, 2013 for the chance to be crowned Web In Travel’s Start-Up of the Year 2013. The seven semi-finalists – Grata, Voyagin, BeMyGuest, Ikut Ikut, Trip38, Travelatus and CherryPickedTravel– were shortlisted by a judging panel from a record 20 entries received for this year’s start-up competition, now in its fourth year.

Say’s Yeoh Siew Hoon, WIT’s Producer, “It’s been encouraging to see the growth in interest in travel by both entrepreneurs and investors. When we first started our Pitch, it was difficult to convince entrepreneurs to one, even think of travel and two, to share their ideas in a public forum but in the last 24 months, we’ve seen a pick-up in momentum in interest, ideas and deals.”
She added “What is exciting is to see the confluence between the growth of travel and the evolution of digital in Asia and I believe the intersection of the two will open up new pathways and opportunities to the smart, bold and innovative.”

While last year’s Start Up Pitch attracted an abundance of social-based models, this year’s list is a mix of curated models, activities plays and mobile-only propositions; reflecting how travel is changing and demonstrating where entrepreneurs see an opportunity to insert themselves into the travel value chain.  

The semi-finalists originate from Australia, China, Indonesia, Singapore, India and Europe. Of the seven, three finalists will be picked at the WIT Bootcamp to go on to the Grand Finals on October 23, 2013 and pitch in front of an esteemed panel of judges at the WIT Conference. The winner will be announced at the closing of the event.

Start-ups that have made their debut at WIT over the years – among them, Singapore-based Flocations and Travelogy and last year’s Start-Up winner Trippiece, from Japan have had encouraging success. Each has received funding and now faces hard work to build up sustainable businesses. 

Last week, one of the WIT Start-Up alumni FlexTrip, a Tours and activities player was acquired by Nor1, Inc. the technology leader in upsell solutions in a move considered to be a nod to the growing interest in the tours and activities space.