Going the distance with GetYourGuide with Johannes Reck
Feb 13, 2023
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Johannes Reck, Co-founder and CEO of GetYourGuide, talks about the company's growth post-pandemic, strategic partnerships, AI innovations, and future plans for funding or IPO. He also discusses the evolution of the Berlin tech ecosystem and the decision to discontinue the 'Originals' program for better customer experiences.
GetYourGuide focuses on personalizing travel experiences for customers while helping tour operators run their businesses efficiently.
Despite challenges during the pandemic, GetYourGuide maintained focus on sustainable growth strategies leading to significant post-pandemic success.
The company aims to become a leading vertical search engine for travel experiences by leveraging AI and strategic partnerships.
Deep dives
Evolution of Get Your Guide
Get Your Guide, a travel tech unicorn, initially started as a social network for students to be tour guides in 2008 but pivoted to the two-sided marketplace now known. The company experienced highs and lows, especially during the pandemic, but now sees immense potential in the rapidly digitized industry.
Innovations and Customer Value
Get Your Guide focused on enhancing customer experiences through innovations like 'Reserve Now Pay Later' and offering 75,000 bookable experiences with customer reviews. The platform provides unique and exclusive experiences like early access to the Vatican, creating trip-making opportunities.
Response to Challenges Posed by the Pandemic
Reflecting on their pandemic response, Get Your Guide preserved product and engineering efforts, made strategic budget cuts, and became more efficient leading to significant revenue and margin growth post-pandemic. The company's focus on sustainable growth strategies and operational efficiency contributed to their success.
Strategic Partnerships and Future Growth
Get Your Guide has established vital partnerships with entities like Amex and Luftantha Group to expand distribution. With a market size of €250 billion annually, Get Your Guide foresees sustained double-digit growth rates and envisions becoming a leading vertical search engine for experiences.
Focus on AI and Future Directions
The company leverages AI and machine learning across its platform to enhance user experience, personalized recommendations, and supplier interactions. Get Your Guide aims to build the best vertical search engine for experiences, emphasizing the importance of sustainable and customer-centric growth strategies.
Resilience in the Berlin Tech Ecosystem
The Berlin tech ecosystem has shown resilience and maturity post-pandemic, focusing on sustainable models and proving value to consumers and investors. Companies are regrouping to emphasize consumer value over rapid growth, fostering a healthier competitive landscape in the tech sector.
GetYourGuide, the Berlin scale-up that enables people to book excursions and tour guides worldwide through an online marketplace, has a few difficult years behind it, in large part because of the global coronavirus pandemic and its extreme effects on global travel.
But, co-founder and CEO Johannes Reck tells me in a recent video interview, there's a profound belief within the company that the best years for the travel tech unicorn are still to come.
With close to $900 million in financing received to date, GetYourGuide has seen more than 80 millions tours booked through its platform since its inception, and its focus is now on helping people personalise their travel experiences while helping tour operators, guides, and others on the supply side run their businesses online more efficiently.
Reck talked about how the company weathered the Covid-19 storms, how big its TAM is (and can become in the future), what happened to its 'Originals' product, how GetYourGuide deploys AI and machine learning to innovate, and the strategic partnerships it's currently building to expand its reach.
He also discussed future plans for funding or a potential IPO or acquisition for GetYourGuide, and shared his insider take on the evolution of the Berlin tech ecosystem.
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