The Poshpacker

Jul 13, 2014

Try The Poshpacker Posted Predicting A Future Free Of Dollar Bills Ever been intrigued in a hotel after looking at its brochure only to find it not so compelling when you set foot in it? Next time, try taking a look at Instagram posts taken at the hotel from travelers staying there. That’s one way The Poshpacker , a hotel booking site, is looking to capture the “new generation of travelers.” Using Instagram is smart, but their selling point is that they’re the leading directory of creative hoteliers priced from $15 to less than $100 USD per person. The Poshpacker won best pitch at the Lisbon Investment Summit  yesterday, and it was one of the top ten startups at The Lisbon Challenge . Anna Kojzar , co-founder and CEO, was studying for her masters in Barcelona when she met Tania Cruz , co-founder and COO. They took a trip to the Canary Islands and after several hours of research, they found a hotel that was “super beautiful and well-designed” and only cost 25 euros per person. “We were like, why is there not one site where you can go and just find these places once. Why not curate a selection of it … and we thought that maybe we should do it,” Cruz said. Kojzar wrote a 500-page business plan about The Poshpacker for her masters, and initially they created a “discover” type of blog to see what people thought about their idea, and to collect hotels and hostels their friends told them. That’s exactly what The Poshpacker is right now — a curation of hostels and hotels in five continents under $100 USD (for the most part), where users can book rooms and use a free concierge service for people who can’t find what they’re looking for. They said they try and get back to people under 24 hours. The Poshpacker was recently selected to be a part of Start-Up Chile , where they will spend six months developing their project there. But they don’t list just any hotelier on their site. Kojzar said at The Poshpacker, they try to follow the “P’s Philosophy”: Presence, Privacy, Price, Perks, People and Place. Presence: They make sure the hotelier has high design properties and a nice atmosphere, but they look for places that have a historical aspect and a unique presence. Privacy: They make sure the hotelier has at least one private room option, amongst a variety of others. Price: 99 percent of The Poshpacker picks are less than $100 per night. In cities such as London, where the standard of living is higher, the price may go up to $150 USD. Perks: The look for cool amenities the hoteliers have, such as free Wi-fi, classes, walking tours or bike rentals. People: They always make sure there is a staff onsite to receive the traveler, such as a receptionist. They also figure outline the types of people that frequent a particular hotelier, if it is a calmer location or a place that has a party-vibe. Place: They try to find places that are located in an off-the-beat area, but are still near tourist hot-spots. “Posh represents what we envision as a new travel ideology of today’s generation. Posh is the sophistication, style and design. Packer refers to the backpacker or the laid-back mentality,” Kojzar said. Today, millennials want something that is safe, looks nice and clean, but they’re not interested in staying in well-established hotels like The Hilton. They want a more unique and authentic experience — something posh. IMAGE BY The Poshpacker (IMAGE HAS BEEN MODIFIED)