(Seoul, South Korea – April. 4. 2023) ONDA, a South Korean hospitality tech company, has made a strategic investment in a key partner of the Southeast Asian market to accelerate its global expansion.
ONDA has announced a strategic investment in Hoteliers.Guru, a Thai hospitality technology company, to lead the digital transformation of the global hotel industry.
ONDA’s strategic investment is aimed at establishing a strong foothold in the Southeast Asian hospitality market, and Hoteliers.Guru will work closely with ONDA to maximize revenue and improve guest experience for its partner hotels. In particular, ONDA will be able to provide rapid technical support to Taiwanese and Thai hotels interested in adopting ‘DIVE’, ONDA's SaaS-based PMS.
Founded in 2013, Hoteliers.Guru has already built trust in the market through its channel manager and booking engine, which are being used by over 700 major hotels and resorts in Thailand. The Thai government has selected the Hoteliers.Guru’s booking engine as a key digital solution to revitalize domestic tourism during the pandemic. Demand for Hoteliers.Guru's solutions is growing rapidly among hotels and resorts in Southeast Asia as international tourism reopens and the need for digital transformation increases.
Both companies signed an agreement last August to bring Hoteliers.Guru's partner hotels and resorts to major online sales channels in South Korea through ONDA-HUB(formerly ONDA GDS). Since then, they have been in discussions to build a higher partnership, and this investment brings them together as strategic partners in the digital transformation of the global hotel market.
Parkphoom Thamperakul, CEO & Co-Founder of Hoteliers.Guru said, "We are excited to welcome ONDA as a strategic partner and investor. The commitment provided by ONDA is recognition of Hoteliers.Guru’s positive impact on the hospitality industry and the potential we offer for creating long-term value for our investors and the country we operate in." He added, "ONDA is a partner who shares our vision for creating a sustainable travel tech industry that will enable us to accelerate the delivery of our business plan.”
Hyun-seok Oh, CEO of ONDA said, "ONDA's goal to lead the digital transformation of the hospitality industry is perfectly aligned with Hoteliers.Guru's business philosophy." He added, "With the technology and market expertise of both companies, we are confident we can supply innovative solutions that will lead the digital transformation of global hotels."
ONDA is a hospitality tech and data company that commands around 70% of the domestic online accommodations bookings market. It has built strong partnerships with big global tech companies, including becoming the first Airbnb Preferred Partner and the first Google Hotel partner in Korea.
Last year, ONDA was selected into “The Baby Unicorn Project” by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, and was ranked in the Financial Times list, "Asia-Pacific High-Growth Companies” for the second consecutive year in 2022-2023. In Skift’s "Global PMS Vendor" list, a renowned U.S. travel research company, ONDA ranked 34th, becoming the first Korean company to do so. With such significant strides, ONDA is on track to become a leading player in the global hotel tech market.
