EchoVC Localisation Helped Hotels.ng Secure $1.2m Funds- Essien

Mark Essien, founder and chief executive officer of Hotels.ng, Nigeria’s largest hotel booking website, has attributed the Startup’s growth to the availability of local venture capitalist- EchoVC Pan-Africa Fund.

Essien disclosed this in Lagos while speaking to ICT journalists on the efficacies of local companies investing on technology driven small businesses.

He said that hotels,ng which commenced operations in 2012 got its first $225,000  funding in 2013, but the fortunes were boasted by the ability of EchoVC to coorperate with foreign investors, giving an assurance of the viability of the market.

He said, “As at 2013 we $225,000 which was enough to build and take the company through the first stages of growth. In 2014, we were ready to go the next stage, that is, to internationalise and start extensive marketing. We tried to raise another fund, which was very difficult to do, because there were very few and still are very few people that are investing in hotel-technology business in Nigeria.

“The process was so hard and distracting, because you are trying to build the company and same time talking to people to invest. I was able to get another international investors who were willing to invest $700,000 with a clause that there should be a local venture capitalist also willing to invest. That makes a lot of sense, because they are brining funds; not around in the country, so they needed someone to talk to in a constant level.

“That was how EchoVC came in. They gave us $500,000 leading to a total of $1.2million and the combination was what we relied on to scale the business. Now, we are expanding operating in Ghana, Senegal and 50 staff strength. In 2015, we recorded some growths both in revenue and customer base”.

Speaking further on the need for more high net worth individuals, companies and the government to invest on local startups, the Hotels.ng boss said, “Being able to work with a firm like EchoVC which is about 20minutes drive from our office; to discuss teething problems and analyses, it is tremendous and valuable to a startup. It is one of the key drivers of companies like ours, because most of the people working with us will sooner or later go and build their companies.

“From the 50 people we have, we envisage that 30 new companies can emerge through them. When you have people investing in the first company there is a likelihood to create multiplier effect. The works been done now by funds like EchoVC are what will bring about the massive growth in the startup business in the country”.

On the Company’s success story so far, he said, “When I started it was just an idea that people could book hotels online. No body, at the time, had done that across West African countries. But it was there in other countries and why wouldn’t it work here.

“Along the line, I started in Calabar, going round hotels, taking pictures of their hotels. Between then and now, we have been able establish an inventory of about 7,000 hotels. So, people are booking 7,000 hotels online. The change in the hospitality industry is dramatic. Before now, it was usually by word of mouth; asking people where to locate hotels. But today, you search online in any town”.

In terms of revenue, he said that at the beginning, it wasn’t a business, “now, we are making enough revenue to support 50 people”.