Unfolding Business Travel Potential: RoomsXpert

Business travel in India has become advanced and business travellers in India have graduated from one level to another. This statement can be very well understood from the high growth rate of Indian business travel segment. There are a lot of travel agencies and Online travel operators that offer services which are designed to fulfil travel related needs of Indian businesses. One such startup is RoomsXpert. To know more about trends in the business travel industry, SMEStreet had an exclusive interaction with Rahul Chauhan, CEO & Founder of RoomsXpert. Here are edited excerpts of the interaction: 

How has the corporate/Business travel industry evolved over the last few years in India?

Business travel in India is growing fastest when compared to any other country. As per a study was done by the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) it is bound to touch more $60 Billion dollar industry by 2022. There are several drivers for such growth potential. In fact, another set of data says that travel expenditures are the second highest spending for businesses. Travel comes after the salaries components which remain to be the highest component of business expenditures.

According to you what are contemporary market trends observed in the segment?

With a growing number of Startups, SME/MSME & Unicorns in the making it is expected to grow 15% year on year till 2030. More and more businesses, SMEs and Startups are coming forward and they realize the importance of travel and networking.

What is your business priority for the next year?

We would be the Corporate Travel Aggregator platform for all business travel needs. IN terms of business expansion, we are expecting to have around two international offices & covered all major metros in India. So next one year, we will remain agile towards capturing business opportunities and expanding our market coverage.

RoomsXpert is currently pursuing the possibility to display tax inclusive rates on their website. This, in turn, will make sure that users don't have to wait to arrive at the final booking page in order to see the total price thus giving RoomsXpert an edge over its peers and competitors in the domain of online travel solution for corporates.

As a startup in such a vast domain, where entry barriers are less, how do you ensure differentiation or exclusivity from your peers?

Most of the players are focused on the retail market & has developed technologies/platforms with them as focus, whereas RoomsXpert is dedicated for business travel. With such a large segment still remaining untapped, it’s a huge opportunity of us.

Please let us know more about RoomsXpert as a platform.

With its dynamic tie-ups with numerous B2B and B2C online hotel reservation sites in India and across the world, RoomsXpert ensures to offer users the chance to choose from over 1 million hotels worldwide. Furthermore, while B2C websites are able to reach customers directly, the mode of operation of B2B companies dictates that only service providers such as RoomsXpert are privy to their rates. Taking into account the fact that oft times discounts available on the rates on B2B sites can be as high as 40 to 50 per cent, they are also able to facilitate a considerable markdown. Thus, in addition to a wide range of options, the service also guarantees one save at least 30 per cent in their annual hotel costs.