Danielle Hyams, Skift
This week in hospitality news, former SoftBank darling Ritesh Agarwal is paring back his ambitions for Oyo, beginning with cutting more than 1,000 staff. Plus, Skift predicts that 2020 will be the year of subscription travel.
1 week ago
Raini Hamdi, Skift
Air India and Oyo couldn’t be more different, not just in their respective businesses, but both could be gone in a New York minute if they aren’t able get past the biggest test they face currently.
1 week ago
Raini Hamdi, Skift
Those unbelievable expansion numbers that Ritesh Agarwal used to rattle off? We won’t be hearing them again in 2020. The Oyo founder is forced to think of business sustainability. Let’s see if he’s adept at it.
2 weeks ago
Yixin Ng, Skift
More than ever before, small independent hotels in Asia are in need of distribution and revenue management solutions. But Oyo and other budget hotel chains aren’t necessarily the ones that will be throwing them that lifeline.
2 months ago
Saritha Rai, Bloomberg
Looks like Oyo is taking a more sustainable approach to global growth rather than simply looking to boost hotel numbers at any cost. But will the new board appointment lead to a discernible change in strategy?
2 months ago
Raini Hamdi, Skift
Roles are changing fast in the hotel industry. Some are gone, or going, like the chief marketing officer. Others require new skill sets. Even those at the top aren't spared. IHG's latest Asia changes remind us of this.
2 months ago
Sean O'Neill, Skift
Oyo has disclosed a surge in losses in documents related to its $1.5 billion in new funding. The hospitality company claims it will turn profitable three years from now, yet Skift Research dug beneath the headlines to deliver analysis substantiated by Oyo's latest income statements.
2 months ago
Raini Hamdi, Skift
While it focuses on arresting a drop in Chinese arrivals, Thailand should spend equal or more time assessing why European arrivals are declining. It's the higher spending market. The reasons are different, and it's time for Thailand to look internally rather than blame external factors like Brexit, the baht, and a trade war for Europe's shrinkage.
2 months ago
Dennis Schaal, Skift
WeWork's implosion is putting pressure on all of SoftBank's investments, Oyo included. If it's not changing course already, the budget hotel chain may soon have to decide whether, as CEO Ritesh Agarwal put it, to grow fast or grow right.
3 months ago
Raini Hamdi, Skift
Asia leads the global hotel pipeline and many more luxury hotels and wellness resorts will be opening in its fragile environments. Low-impact advocates are trying to lead by example, but they're too small and too few to effect a sea change.
3 months ago
Raini Hamdi, Skift
A deeper engagement with owners is definitely one of the key things Oyo needs to achieve to address some of its problems. CEO Ritesh Agarwal, who recently took a larger stake in the company, seems to be on the case.
3 months ago
Dennis Schaal, Skift
MakeMyTrip definitely faces some near-term challenges, but it doesn't consider a recently announced regulatory probe in India to be one of them.
3 months ago
