Since the beginning of the corona pandemic, many travel startups have been struggling to survive. Even former favorite investors suffer extremely from mass cancellations and no bookings. But there are also exceptions that are profitable for the first time during the crisis.
In the pandemic year of 2020, travel startups soon had to fight for their existence. Hardly any other industry was affected by the corona crisis as early as tourism. In March the first wave almost paralyzed the entire segment. Series of cancellations and missing bookings caused a shock to the travel tech startups that have so far been popular with investors. A survey by the Bundesverband Deutsche Startup e.V. at the beginning of the pandemic indicated the extent: Already in April 2020, almost 96 percent of the travel startups surveyed saw their existence threatened. How is the industry doing now?
"The longer the lockdown lasts, the more companies will fall by the wayside – not excluding startups," says Filip Dames of the venture capitalist Cherry Ventures ntv.de. Travel startups should have cut their costs at the beginning of the pandemic, for example through short-time work. "Companies that offer software on the infrastructure side that digitize tour operators, hotels or airlines are better off. The demand is still great," says Dames, who is also invested in the bus company Flixbus with Cherry Ventures.
Had to last year Flixbus cease operations in Germany for months. Now the green buses are not running again. The planned restart for Christmas has been canceled. The results are brutal: In the Corona year 2020, the startup with 30 million passengers worldwide did not even carry half as many people as it did before the crisis. For comparison: In the most important market Germany alone, 22 million passengers will use Flixbus in 2019. Managing director André Schwämmlein does not expect the buses to be running again very soon. "We have a clear goal, which we are working towards, namely summer and the second half of 2021," says Schwämmlein. "The aim is that we have a large, area-wide network again and drive from the California coast to eastern Turkey." In the end, however, one, two or three months doesn't matter either. First of all, it is more important to overcome the corona pandemic.
Sales slumped
At the request of ntv.de, the company announced that it had planned and managed carefully during the pandemic and that short-time work was introduced in Germany last spring. In addition, a large financing round from the summer of 2019 will help. The money was originally planned for expansion, but it is now helping Flixbus to get through the crisis well. If contact and travel restrictions fall, Schwämmlein sees his company as well positioned. Because it mainly transports younger passengers – and a look at Asia gives him hope: "In China you have seen: the young travel there faster than the old, traveling on the ground recovers faster than in the air. We are well positioned there. "
Also for that Online travel portal Urlaubguru 2020 was the most challenging year in the company's history to date. Sales have plummeted due to the corona pandemic. "In between things went a little better, because during the summer months classic package travel destinations such as Mallorca and Greece were in demand again. Tourism in Germany has also improved the coffers a bit," says founder Daniel Krahn ntv.de. However, below average, the company is still well below sales from previous years.
The company not only had to lay off around 40 employees. Most of the employees have been on short-time work since March 2020. Despite all of these savings measures, the company, which was founded in 2012, had to take out a loan for the first time. "We have made it this far and will continue to push our way through," says Krahn. For the year 2021 one is still financially secure.
Profitable for the first time despite the crisis year
For the Holiday home search engine Holidu According to founder Johannes Sieber, the Corona year 2020 was a real rollercoaster ride. In April the bookings went to zero. Numerous cancellations followed in the weeks that followed. For the startup from Berlin, the beginning of a real ice age. During this time, dismissals were avoided as far as possible. "At that time, however, we decided not to open additional office locations as planned and therefore had to give notice to a few employees we had taken on," says Siebers.
Just a few months later, there was no longer any question of crisis mode. "When the lockdown was lifted in early summer, the booking volume also rose explosively," says Siebers. In the pandemic year 2020, the company reported a record summer with 2.6 times the growth in bookings compared to the previous year and more than 130 million euros in newly generated bookings in July alone. In addition, the search engine for holiday homes was profitable for the first time in May and has since generated a seven-digit operating result.
After the bookings fell again in winter due to the renewed lockdown, Holidu is now optimistic again. "We are currently seeing a strong increase in booking numbers and are very confident that travel will be possible in summer 2021," says Siebers. Even if the inquiries for Easter are still a bit cautious. "The bookings for the summer are already so strong that we are growing compared to last year." According to Siebers, successful financing rounds in recent years could also cushion short-term fluctuations well. The investment of more than four million euros by the former managing director of Booking.com, Kees Koolen, is not only a great vote of confidence, but also a sign that investors continue to believe in travel tech startups even in such unprecedented times.
Investors still don't have enough
Also for that Motorhome and camper rental company Paul Camper The pandemic year 2020 and the past few months were a wild up and down. "From the complete downward spiral with zero bookings and zero euros in sales to full occupancy and well over 100 percent growth compared to the previous year, everything was there," says managing director Dirk Fehse ntv.de. Despite the pandemic, the company was profitable for several months for the first time. "So far we've gotten away with a few wounds," says Fehse. Basically, despite lost months in the first lockdown, there was a significant increase in bookings from the 2020 financial year.
"We had a lot more spontaneous bookings and significantly more short trips than in previous years," says Fehse. In order to ensure the survival of the company, however, more than 20 employees had to be laid off after part of the workforce had been put on short-time work for a few weeks in the spring. "We won't survive a third lockdown without cuts," says Fehse. He expects that Easter will start again and that low-contact camping will be possible as one of the first travel options. For him, the last few months have shown above all that people want to travel flexibly and as close to nature as possible.
Dames from Cherry Ventures also agrees: "People will always want to travel and there will be a certain amount of catching up to do." However, this will by no means be so great that the losses of the pandemic can be offset. Dames is certain that investors will not lose their interest in the segment anytime soon. The corona pandemic could not change that, not least because large financing rounds in the crisis year had proven that.
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