5 New Travel Startups Adding a Middleman to Luggage Storage and Transportation

Modern luggage has been rethought to include charging stations, Wi-Fi hotspots, GPS information, and tracking capabilities, but that’s far from the last frontier of where luggage technology, and how travelers move around their destinations with luggage sets, is poised to go during the next decade.

These five startups noticed a common problem: How to get travelers out of airports faster without baggage claim holding them back and what to do with luggage after check out when a flight isn’t until several hours later. And, if these companies want to make sure travelers see added value, luggage arrival must be punctual and a great deal of trust must be established with these startups handling luggage containing expensive essentials.

>>AirPortr transports travelers luggage to and from airports to their homes, hotels or offices and so far has launched at London’s Heathrow, Gatwick and City Airports.

SkiftTake: Travelers can move about much faster without lugging heavy luggage with them and that means they can get to spending their money in their destinations sooner.

>>LuggagePub stores travelers luggage in between checking into or out of a hotel and their flight arrivals or departures so that they don’t have to carry around luggage while exploring a destination.

SkiftTake: Many hotels would probably enjoy the opportunity to offload the responsibility of looking after luggage of guests who have checked out and no longer have business with them.

>>unPack lets travelers rent a suitcase containing clothing and other travel essentials that’s delivered to their hotels so they don’t have to carry around luggage.

SkiftTake: This is a great idea for travelers who have no clue what kind of weather to expect in a destination or how they should dress, but for the more well-traveled person, unPack probably doesn’t have tremendous potential.

>>Standard Luggage designed carry-on luggage sets that are the maximum size for international carry-on guidelines and are meant to double as both business and leisure travel luggage.

SkiftTake: The name “Standard Luggage” sounds a bit old fashioned and doesn’t exactly channel the new era of carry-on luggage that the company is trying to flood the market with. Its bag designs look trendy and desirable, though.

>>Leave Your Luggage lets travelers leave their luggage at their hotels after they check out and the startup then transports the luggage to the airport.

SkiftTake: By not having to backtrack to a hotel to retrieve luggage, travelers potentially have several hours more to enjoy a destination than they would have in the past. The tricky part is monitoring flight changes and personalizing the service for each individual.