How I Got Here - Inside stories behind innovation and startups in travel

Personal experiences and hearing stories from family members and friends - countless travel startups have been created this way.Freebird is one such brand that was formed from the frustrations of its founder, Ethan Bernstein, who saw how miserable it was for himself and his friends when a flight was canceled and how struggled to get rebooked.The idea and eventual service came about in 2015 and the company has not looked back, having raised around $16 million over a number of investment rounds and secured a profile in the minds of business travelers and their travel management companies.Bernstein's journey from idea through development, raising money and becoming an established brand is what makes Freebird an interesting story.HIGH is a weekly show produced by PhocusWire and Mozio, aimed at getting the inside stories behind startups and innovation in travel and transportation.Other episodes: on PhocusWire and Mozio.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Personal experiences and hearing stories from family members and friends - countless travel startups have been created this way.Freebird is one such brand that was formed from the frustrations of its founder, Ethan Bernstein, who saw how miserable it was for himself and his friends when a flight was canceled and how struggled to get rebooked.The idea and eventual service came about in 2015 and the company has not looked back, having raised around $16 million over a number of investment rounds and secured a profile in the minds of business travelers and their travel management companies.Bernstein's journey from idea through development, raising money and becoming an established brand is what makes Freebird an interesting story.HIGH is a weekly show produced by PhocusWire and Mozio, aimed at getting the inside stories behind startups and innovation in travel and transportation.Other episodes: on PhocusWire and Mozio.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Personal experiences and hearing stories from family members and friends - countless travel startups have been created this way.Freebird is one such brand that was formed from the frustrations of its founder, Ethan Bernstein, who saw how miserable it was for himself and his friends when a flight was canceled and how struggled to get rebooked.The idea and eventual service came about in 2015 and the company has not looked back, having raised around $16 million over a number of investment rounds and secured a profile in the minds of business travelers and their travel management companies.Bernstein's journey from idea through development, raising money and becoming an established brand is what makes Freebird an interesting story.HIGH is a weekly show produced by PhocusWire and Mozio, aimed at getting the inside stories behind startups and innovation in travel and transportation.Other episodes: on PhocusWire and Mozio.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Polina Raygorodskaya formed Wanderu seven years ago with her co-founder Igor Bratnikov.The idea for the business was to build a platform for travelers to book bus tickets in North America - a vision that has evolved over time to include rail.Not content with building a network of partnerships in its domestic markets, Wanderu expanded to Europe in 2017.The growth of the business has been achieved through fairly modest levels of funding (single million digit range) for today's venture-backed online travel startup community.Raygorodskaya's experience as a female entrepreneur in the sector has been soured somewhat with disappointing reactions from the male-dominated world of VCs over the years.But that hasn't diminished both her drive (the opposite, in fact) and achievements to-date.These issues and many details about the formation and evolution of the company are discussed in this episode of the podcast.HIGH is a weekly show produced by PhocusWire and Mozio, aimed at getting the inside stories behind startups and innovation in travel and transportation.Other episodes: on PhocusWire and Mozio.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Polina Raygorodskaya formed Wanderu seven years ago with her co-founder Igor Bratnikov.The idea for the business was to build a platform for travelers to book bus tickets in North America - a vision that has evolved over time to include rail.Not content with building a network of partnerships in its domestic markets, Wanderu expanded to Europe in 2017.The growth of the business has been achieved through fairly modest levels of funding (single million digit range) for today's venture-backed online travel startup community.Raygorodskaya's experience as a female entrepreneur in the sector has been soured somewhat with disappointing reactions from the male-dominated world of VCs over the years.But that hasn't diminished both her drive (the opposite, in fact) and achievements to-date.These issues and many details about the formation and evolution of the company are discussed in this episode of the podcast.HIGH is a weekly show produced by PhocusWire and Mozio, aimed at getting the inside stories behind startups and innovation in travel and transportation.Other episodes: on PhocusWire and Mozio.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Personal experiences and hearing stories from family members and friends - countless travel startups have been created this way.Freebird is one such brand that was formed from the frustrations of its founder, Ethan Bernstein, who saw how miserable it was for himself and his friends when a flight was canceled and how struggled to get rebooked.The idea and eventual service came about in 2015 and the company has not looked back, having raised around $16 million over a number of investment rounds and secured a profile in the minds of business travelers and their travel management companies.Bernstein's journey from idea through development, raising money and becoming an established brand is what makes Freebird an interesting story.HIGH is a weekly show produced by PhocusWire and Mozio, aimed at getting the inside stories behind startups and innovation in travel and transportation.Other episodes: on PhocusWire and Mozio.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are few people that have been at the heart of two significant businesses during important moments in their evolution. One such instance for Philippe Chereque was during the creation and formative years of Amadeus. The airline-owned global distribution system was attempting to do for European carriers what their counterparts had done elsewhere. The Amadeus story since then is well documented but less is known about its early days as, in some respects, a startup. Thirty years on, Chereque is assisting at a legacy business - American Express GBT - that is undergoing huge change as it shifts from its role as a travel management company to service provider for travelers in a digital world. His experiences at both companies are well-informed and give a unique perspective on driving change in an evolving business through innovation and challenging the status quo as an emerging player.Chereque is the latest guest for the How I Got Here podcast.HIGH is a weekly show produced by PhocusWire and Mozio, aimed at getting the inside stories behind startups and innovation in travel and transportation.Other episodes: on PhocusWire and Mozio.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are few people that have been at the heart of two significant businesses during important moments in their evolution. One such instance for Philippe Chereque was during the creation and formative years of Amadeus. The airline-owned global distribution system was attempting to do for European carriers what their counterparts had done elsewhere. The Amadeus story since then is well documented but less is known about its early days as, in some respects, a startup. Thirty years on, Chereque is assisting at a legacy business - American Express GBT - that is undergoing huge change as it shifts from its role as a travel management company to service provider for travelers in a digital world. His experiences at both companies are well-informed and give a unique perspective on driving change in an evolving business through innovation and challenging the status quo as an emerging player.Chereque is the latest guest for the How I Got Here podcast.HIGH is a weekly show produced by PhocusWire and Mozio, aimed at getting the inside stories behind startups and innovation in travel and transportation.Other episodes: on PhocusWire and Mozio.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are few people that have been at the heart of two significant businesses during important moments in their evolution. One such instance for Philippe Chereque was during the creation and formative years of Amadeus. The airline-owned global distribution system was attempting to do for European carriers what their counterparts had done elsewhere. The Amadeus story since then is well documented but less is known about its early days as, in some respects, a startup. Thirty years on, Chereque is assisting at a legacy business - American Express GBT - that is undergoing huge change as it shifts from its role as a travel management company to service provider for travelers in a digital world. His experiences at both companies are well-informed and give a unique perspective on driving change in an evolving business through innovation and challenging the status quo as an emerging player.Chereque is the latest guest for the How I Got Here podcast.HIGH is a weekly show produced by PhocusWire and Mozio, aimed at getting the inside stories behind startups and innovation in travel and transportation.Other episodes: on PhocusWire and Mozio.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are few people that have been at the heart of two significant businesses during important moments in their evolution. One such instance for Philippe Chereque was during the creation and formative years of Amadeus. The airline-owned global distribution system was attempting to do for European carriers what their counterparts had done elsewhere. The Amadeus story since then is well documented but less is known about its early days as, in some respects, a startup. Thirty years on, Chereque is assisting at a legacy business - American Express GBT - that is undergoing huge change as it shifts from its role as a travel management company to service provider for travelers in a digital world. His experiences at both companies are well-informed and give a unique perspective on driving change in an evolving business through innovation and challenging the status quo as an emerging player.Chereque is the latest guest for the How I Got Here podcast.HIGH is a weekly show produced by PhocusWire and Mozio, aimed at getting the inside stories behind startups and innovation in travel and transportation.Other episodes: on PhocusWire and Mozio.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are few people that have been at the heart of two significant businesses during important moments in their evolution. One such instance for Philippe Chereque was during the creation and formative years of Amadeus. The airline-owned global distribution system was attempting to do for European carriers what their counterparts had done elsewhere. The Amadeus story since then is well documented but less is known about its early days as, in some respects, a startup. Thirty years on, Chereque is assisting at a legacy business - American Express GBT - that is undergoing huge change as it shifts from its role as a travel management company to service provider for travelers in a digital world. His experiences at both companies are well-informed and give a unique perspective on driving change in an evolving business through innovation and challenging the status quo as an emerging player.Chereque is the latest guest for the How I Got Here podcast.HIGH is a weekly show produced by PhocusWire and Mozio, aimed at getting the inside stories behind startups and innovation in travel and transportation.Other episodes: on PhocusWire and Mozio.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It took a fairly long time, at least in internet years, for the next wave of travel tools to hit the market.There is a lot more to a trip than a flight and a hotel, especially when an entire trip is considered, yet the established online travel agencies and metasearch engines steered away from trying to connect all the elements of a journey.Getting reliable, technical access to inventory from rail and bus services may have been the trigger in the late-2000s, when the first brands emerged that attempted to connect the dots.Door-to-door, multi-modal - a number of terms have been used over the years since.One of the brands that has emerged through the startup landscape in this area is Omio, which was formed in 2012 under its original name of GoEuro.Under its founder and CEO Naran Shaam, Omio has quietly grown from its base in Germany to become the largest-funded of the multi-modal online travel brands.Almost $300 million in investment has given it the chance to make some major strategic decisions at the right time, including switching to an online travel agency model and go all in on mobile.Shaam joins us for episode six of How I Got Here.HIGH is a weekly show produced by PhocusWire and Mozio, aimed at getting the inside stories behind startups and innovation in travel and transportation.Other episodes: on PhocusWire and Mozio.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It took a fairly long time, at least in internet years, for the next wave of travel tools to hit the market.There is a lot more to a trip than a flight and a hotel, especially when an entire trip is considered, yet the established online travel agencies and metasearch engines steered away from trying to connect all the elements of a journey.Getting reliable, technical access to inventory from rail and bus services may have been the trigger in the late-2000s, when the first brands emerged that attempted to connect the dots.Door-to-door, multi-modal - a number of terms have been used over the years since.One of the brands that has emerged through the startup landscape in this area is Omio, which was formed in 2012 under its original name of GoEuro.Under its founder and CEO Naran Shaam, Omio has quietly grown from its base in Germany to become the largest-funded of the multi-modal online travel brands.Almost $300 million in investment has given it the chance to make some major strategic decisions at the right time, including switching to an online travel agency model and go all in on mobile.Shaam joins us for episode six of How I Got Here.HIGH is a weekly show produced by PhocusWire and Mozio, aimed at getting the inside stories behind startups and innovation in travel and transportation.Other episodes: on PhocusWire and Mozio.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It took a fairly long time, at least in internet years, for the next wave of travel tools to hit the market.There is a lot more to a trip than a flight and a hotel, especially when an entire trip is considered, yet the established online travel agencies and metasearch engines steered away from trying to connect all the elements of a journey.Getting reliable, technical access to inventory from rail and bus services may have been the trigger in the late-2000s, when the first brands emerged that attempted to connect the dots.Door-to-door, multi-modal - a number of terms have been used over the years since.One of the brands that has emerged through the startup landscape in this area is Omio, which was formed in 2012 under its original name of GoEuro.Under its founder and CEO Naran Shaam, Omio has quietly grown from its base in Germany to become the largest-funded of the multi-modal online travel brands.Almost $300 million in investment has given it the chance to make some major strategic decisions at the right time, including switching to an online travel agency model and go all in on mobile.Shaam joins us for episode six of How I Got Here.HIGH is a weekly show produced by PhocusWire and Mozio, aimed at getting the inside stories behind startups and innovation in travel and transportation.Other episodes: on PhocusWire and Mozio.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Six years is all it took for LoungeBuddy to go from creation to a sale to one of the loyalty biggest brands: American Express .The idea behind the company is actually simple - a booking app for airport lounges - but, like many startups, LoungeBuddy's story is not without a few twists and turns along the way.From tweaking the pitch deck when pitching to investors to settling on a brand name, LoungeBuddy's evolution is an example of having a very focused vision of solving a problem that exists with solid technology, good partnerships and excellent design.LoungeBuddy's CEO and co-founder is Tyler Dikman, who created the company after a number of jobs, including seven years at a video streaming business.He's not short of an opinion or two about the venture capital market, as well as describing how the eventual sale came about.Dikman (who now goes by the title of vice president of global premium products and benefits at Amex) joins us for the latest episode of How I Got Here.HIGH is a weekly show produced by PhocusWire and Mozio, aimed at getting the inside stories behind startups and innovation in travel and transportation.Other episodes: on PhocusWire and Mozio.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Six years is all it took for LoungeBuddy to go from creation to a sale to one of the loyalty biggest brands: American Express .The idea behind the company is actually simple - a booking app for airport lounges - but, like many startups, LoungeBuddy's story is not without a few twists and turns along the way.From tweaking the pitch deck when pitching to investors to settling on a brand name, LoungeBuddy's evolution is an example of having a very focused vision of solving a problem that exists with solid technology, good partnerships and excellent design.LoungeBuddy's CEO and co-founder is Tyler Dikman, who created the company after a number of jobs, including seven years at a video streaming business.He's not short of an opinion or two about the venture capital market, as well as describing how the eventual sale came about.Dikman (who now goes by the title of vice president of global premium products and benefits at Amex) joins us for the latest episode of How I Got Here.HIGH is a weekly show produced by PhocusWire and Mozio, aimed at getting the inside stories behind startups and innovation in travel and transportation.Other episodes: on PhocusWire and Mozio.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Six years is all it took for LoungeBuddy to go from creation to a sale to one of the loyalty biggest brands: American Express .The idea behind the company is actually simple - a booking app for airport lounges - but, like many startups, LoungeBuddy's story is not without a few twists and turns along the way.From tweaking the pitch deck when pitching to investors to settling on a brand name, LoungeBuddy's evolution is an example of having a very focused vision of solving a problem that exists with solid technology, good partnerships and excellent design.LoungeBuddy's CEO and co-founder is Tyler Dikman, who created the company after a number of jobs, including seven years at a video streaming business.He's not short of an opinion or two about the venture capital market, as well as describing how the eventual sale came about.Dikman (who now goes by the title of vice president of global premium products and benefits at Amex) joins us for the latest episode of How I Got Here.HIGH is a weekly show produced by PhocusWire and Mozio, aimed at getting the inside stories behind startups and innovation in travel and transportation.Other episodes: on PhocusWire and Mozio.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Six years is all it took for LoungeBuddy to go from creation to a sale to one of the loyalty biggest brands: American Express .The idea behind the company is actually simple - a booking app for airport lounges - but, like many startups, LoungeBuddy's story is not without a few twists and turns along the way.From tweaking the pitch deck when pitching to investors to settling on a brand name, LoungeBuddy's evolution is an example of having a very focused vision of solving a problem that exists with solid technology, good partnerships and excellent design.LoungeBuddy's CEO and co-founder is Tyler Dikman, who created the company after a number of jobs, including seven years at a video streaming business.He's not short of an opinion or two about the venture capital market, as well as describing how the eventual sale came about.Dikman (who now goes by the title of vice president of global premium products and benefits at Amex) joins us for the latest episode of How I Got Here.HIGH is a weekly show produced by PhocusWire and Mozio, aimed at getting the inside stories behind startups and innovation in travel and transportation.Other episodes: on PhocusWire and Mozio.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The story behind Cleartrip is one based on a series of moves to do things differently to the competition, constantly thinking ahead and a small degree of luck.Launched in 2006, Cleartrip's co-founders including CEO Stuart Crighton had been able to see what the global online travel agency marketplace had been doing in its formative years, as well as observe fellow domestic player MakeMyTrip's first few years in India.But Crighton and his team wanted to do things differently, such as taking a simpler approach to design and focusing on key areas in the sector to get the brand a point of difference.Like most startups, Cleartrip's early years are full of intriguing and, especially in Crighton's case, often very funny tales.The storytelling does not mask any such lack of seriousness about the business, however, with the company acknowledging at important moments that it should shift and target an entirely new region, despite the enormous domestic market it launched in.Crighton joins us for the latest episode of How I Got Here.HIGH is a weekly show produced by PhocusWire and Mozio, aimed at getting the inside stories behind startups and innovation in travel and transportation.Other episodes: on PhocusWire and Mozio.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The story behind Cleartrip is one based on a series of moves to do things differently to the competition, constantly thinking ahead and a small degree of luck.Launched in 2006, Cleartrip's co-founders including CEO Stuart Crighton had been able to see what the global online travel agency marketplace had been doing in its formative years, as well as observe fellow domestic player MakeMyTrip's first few years in India.But Crighton and his team wanted to do things differently, such as taking a simpler approach to design and focusing on key areas in the sector to get the brand a point of difference.Like most startups, Cleartrip's early years are full of intriguing and, especially in Crighton's case, often very funny tales.The storytelling does not mask any such lack of seriousness about the business, however, with the company acknowledging at important moments that it should shift and target an entirely new region, despite the enormous domestic market it launched in.Crighton joins us for the latest episode of How I Got Here.HIGH is a weekly show produced by PhocusWire and Mozio, aimed at getting the inside stories behind startups and innovation in travel and transportation.Other episodes: on PhocusWire and Mozio.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.