Hotel Booking Site Stayful Winds Down and WorldVentures Holdings Picks Up the Pieces
Skift Take
We've seen it over and over again by now: Given the vast marketing resources of major players in the hotel booking arena, it is extremely hard for startups to build their brand with consumers. Building a business-to-business company is somewhat easier but Stayful's pivot might have come too late.
Stayful, a four-year-old San Francisco startup that specialized in enabling consumers to book boutique and independent hotels at negotiated rates, wound down operations, and WorldVentures Holdings of Plano, Texas acquired its technology and what remains of the business, Skift has learned exclusively.
The Better Business Bureau of North Central Texas describes WorldVentures as a "multi-level marketing" company where individuals pay a fee to sell its travel products and, in theory, earn a commission, which can be used for future travel. The Better Business Bureau, which gives WorldVentures a C+ rating, said in 2012-2013 the vast majority of its "independent representatives" didn't earn any commission.
Companies similar to this are widely disparaged in the travel industry as card mills for falsely portraying members as travel professionals and allowing them to take advantage of travel agent perks, although WorldVentures has an FAQ arguing why its "leisur
