TravelBird

About TravelBird

TravelBird, an online travel agency, was established in Amsterdam on April 26, 2010, by Dutch entrepreneurs Symen Jansma and Dennis Klompalberts. The founders identified a gap in the market, observing that the abundance of online travel deals often overwhelmed consumers. Their objective was to simplify the travel booking process by offering a curated selection of inspirational travel deals daily. Initially, the platform featured a handful of deals within the Netherlands, but its success fueled rapid expansion into other European countries, including Germany and Belgium by 2011.

The business model targeted a mass-market audience of consumers seeking discounted travel opportunities, with deals offering savings from 30% to 70%. Revenue was generated through a transaction fee applied to each trip booked via the platform. The company's key asset was its software platform, which at its peak attracted 9.5 million monthly visitors. TravelBird's service was built around accessibility and cost reduction, providing a variety of categorized travel packages like city breaks and sun destinations. To broaden its offerings, the company made several acquisitions, including Belgian travel platform Mytrip.nl and Dutch platforms BookVandaag and TravelCoupon.nl. A significant feature introduced later was "dynamic packaging," which allowed customers to bundle flights, accommodation, car rentals, and tours in a single transaction.

The company achieved substantial growth, reporting a turnover of €70 million in 2013. It secured significant funding from investors, including Rocket Internet and Global Founders Capital, which facilitated further expansion and the launch of a mobile app. By 2017, co-founder Symen Jansma stepped back from his CEO role, remaining as an advisor, and Steven Klooster took over as CEO. Despite its growth and serving over 7 million travelers, TravelBird faced financial difficulties. After failing to secure additional financing to cover payments to partners, the company declared bankruptcy and ceased operations on October 31, 2018. In November 2018, UK-based luxury travel club Secret Escapes acquired TravelBird's assets, including its brand, IT platform, and customer base, and subsequently relaunched the website.