Navigating Growth in Travel Lodging

Today’s guest is Elia Wallen, the CEO and founder of Hotel Engine, a company that was established to be the middleman between businesses and hotels for more seamless corporate travel. Elia discusses how his team sought to alleviate the headache that booking hotel rooms can bring to companies and their employees, and how Hotel Engine offers technology to save time, money and eradicate the hassles traditionally known to businesses and the hospitality industry. Despite the limitations that Covid brought to travel, he and his team found several niches for their services and they were able to pivot during the pandemic, focusing on other areas (i.e., refundability) where they could serve as a much-needed intermediary between lodging facilities and organizations. Elia discusses how he created something that arose from the demand “Can you book hotels for us?” and how his platform’s technology has made this process a much easier and more profitable one. He also talks about hurdles related to obtaining investors and attracting new customers, as well as what is changing in the industry going forward.