Skift Take
Even if you're not interested in the Russian travel market, OneTwoTrip's early traction with what it calls its "travel-as-a-service" model may have inspirational lessons for companies worldwide.
Travel startup OneTwoTrip's gamble with a business-to-business service in Russia and Europe may tempt companies to test similar products worldwide.
The Moscow-based online travel agency has developed a "travel-as-a-service" solution. This name plays off the popularity of software-as-a-service businesses that sell access to cloud-based tools and enterprise applications via a subscription model. OneTwoTrip's Forma product lets banks, telecoms, and other companies sell travel to their customers, allowing those customers to earn cashback in their loyalty programs and pay in installments. Banks can integrate it into their websites and apps to redeem loyalty points on travel.
OneTwoTrip said it has signed up more than 40 banks and fintech players with significant customer bases in Russia and Europe, including Rosbank (controlled by Societe Generale group), Gazprombank, Austria's Raiffeisen Bank, Italy's Unicredit, and the fintech Home Credit based in the Czech Republic.
Forma is essentially a white-label travel agency — though if consumers need customer service on a trip, they speak with branded OneTwoTrip agents (such as for rebookings and cancellations). Comp
