Roomer

About Roomer

Roomer operates a peer-to-peer marketplace focused on the secondary market for travel, specifically addressing the issue of non-refundable hotel reservations. Founded in Tel Aviv, Israel, in 2011 by Gon Ben David, Ben Froumine, and Adi Zellner, the company is now headquartered in New York. The founding idea originated from co-founder Gon Ben David's personal experience of having to forfeit a significant cancellation fee for a hotel room he couldn't use. This led to the creation of a platform where individuals with unutilized, prepaid hotel bookings can sell them to other travelers at a discount.

The business model centers on creating a win-win scenario: sellers can recover money that would otherwise be lost, while buyers gain access to hotel rooms at reduced prices, often with discounts ranging from 10% to as high as 90%. Roomer facilitates the entire transaction, including validating each reservation posted to the marketplace and managing the name change on the booking. The company generates revenue by taking a 15% commission from the sale price of the room. The service is accessible through its website and mobile apps for both iOS and Android, which were launched in 2014.

The company's journey began with a $2 million seed funding round in March 2013 from BRM Group, a notable Israeli venture capital fund. This initial investment was supported by a strong board, including Uri Levine, the co-founder of Waze, who serves as a director and advisor. A subsequent Series A funding round in November 2014 raised an additional $5 million, led by Disruptive Capital. The platform initially targeted major U.S. cities like New York, San Francisco, and Las Vegas before expanding its operations globally. More recently, Roomer has evolved its product line, introducing "Roomer Flex," a feature that provides cancellation protection, and has started exploring video-based travel content to enhance the user experience.