Turkey’s leading accommodation platform Otelz is launching in the UK and will switch its head office to London as it targets rapid international expansion.
Bertan Aner, Otelz co-founder and chief executive, said: “We’re moving to be at the centre of the London tech hub as we grow in global markets.”
Otelz was set up in 2014 and sold primarily to Turkey’s domestic market up to 2020 while expanding to visitors to Turkey and selling to Turkish communities in Germany and the UK as well as in Russia and the Middle East.
But now the platform has launched an advertising campaign on London buses with the support of Turkish government funds which will expand next month and, if successful, also expand to Manchester.
Aner told Travel Weekly: “We have started to advertise here [in London] and in Brussels to build brand recognition. You will see the brand on buses, taxis, the London Underground.”
He reports overseas users grew from 2% of Otelz customers pre-pandemic to 40% in 2022, expects to reach 50% this year and is targeting 70%-80% following the expansion.
Aner reports UK bookings on Otelz were 3% of the total last year but he expects to reach 10%.
Otelz offers airport transfers, car hire and yacht charters, but primarily focuses on hotels, directly contracting with more than 20,000 properties in Turkey. Wholesale agreements with Expedia, Amadeus and Booking.com allow it to offer accommodation outside Turkey with up to 600,000 properties featured on the platform. The hotels determine pricing, with Otelz taking a commission.
About one in eight customers (13%) make payments through Otelz in return for a price discount. The majority pay at their accommodation.
Aner noted: “We offer ‘Book now, pay later’ and instalment payments in Turkey. If this works, we will launch it internationally.”
He acknowledged Otelz growth in Turkey had been helped by a regulatory ban on Booking.com since 2018 on the grounds of anti-competitive behaviour.
Aner insisted he has no plans to offer flights, saying: “I don’t like flights because the commissions are low.”
Otelz is also in the process of setting up a hospitality fundraising platform called Launchpad aimed at providing pre-season funding to hotels which typically rely on tour operator loans made in return for discounts on room rates. Aner said: “We aim to disrupt the market.”