09 Jun 2017

Indian tours app Guiddoo raises $300,000

Indian tours and activities app Guiddoo has raised $300,000 in pre-Series A funding.

The business was featured as part of Tnooz’s StartUp Pitch series in March 2014, although it has pivoted from its initial role as a freemium service offering audio-visual guides to destinations and attractions via an app.

It now operates mainly as a seller of tours and activities. It sources its own inventory as well as selectively aggregating tours and experiences from aggregators and wholesalers, which are then distributed via third parties such as Cleartrip and Yatra as well as its own site.

It has recently started to sell holidays, spas, hotels and dining.

The selection process, it claims, not only guarantees the quality and service of the experiences but also allows it meet the specific needs of Indian domestic and outbound travellers.

The cash raised has been earmarked to help grow its technology and data unit in Pune and to add product.

Vineet Budki, cofounder and CEO said:

“We have seen a strong 12X growth in the past  year post our pivot into the in-destination experience model which is an estimated market of $20 billion annually…Our focus is to provide great new experiences with an assurance of service quality to Indian travelers through extensive use of technology and ground relationships.”

The funding has been led by existing investors Pawan Borle and Nirmal Singh.