AIMING to groom a new generation of start-ups focused on travel commerce, Travelport today announced the development of a seed-stage investment and mentorship programme.
The programme will be handled completely by Travelport experts with start-up experience and mentorship background, running in four-month cycles with up to four start-ups accepted in each cycle.
Participants in the programme will have access to Travelport’s experienced staff of product managers, designers, developers and coaches across the world as well as to its APIs, software development kits and data feeds.
Travelport will also provide office space and other practical support services under the programme, which is similar to Travelport’s own in-house incubation scheme.
At the end of each cycle, the start-ups will be given the chance to pitch their innovations to senior Travelport executives, investors and other potential business development partners in the travel industry.
Jason Nash, head of marketing and product incubation, said in a statement: “We’re serious about redefining travel commerce and we know there are some highly talented developers and travel start-ups out there who are also looking to have a positive impact on the travel commerce landscape.
“Our programme is different because we’re running it completely in-house with dedicated experts which really demonstrates how involved we want to get and our level of commitment to taking the most successful ventures forward.”
Application details can be found on Travelport’s website here.
AirAsia Group also launched its own incubator programme for start-ups in the travel, payment and retail verticals in April this year.
