ChinaTravelNews - ChinaTravelNews has learned that select overseas accommodation rental booking platform Dujiake recently received an investment to the tune of RMB10 million (approx: US$1.6 million). It also announced the appointment of former Airbnb Taiwan executive Fengchi Hsu to head up its Taiwan accommodation rentals.
Dujiake went online in May 2014 touting itself as an “Airbnb with Chinese characteristics”.
In contrast to Airbnb listings that tend to vary in quality, Dujiake aims to improve users’overseas vacation experiences by providing accommodation choices with more consistent quality yet are able to provide a more localized and authentic experience than hotels, OTA entrepreneur and Dujiake founder Jianbiao Lu told our reporter. “We have accurately predicted a boom in independent outbound travel and upgraded demand for our services and this is confirmed with our turnover doubling every month,” he said.
In 2010, Mr. Lu led a team that developed a tour guide app Leziyou that attracted millions of users. However due to an immature investment environment for tech startups at the time and poor marketization, the company soon ran out of funds and missed the opportunity to cash in on the popularity of the app.
In 2014, Mr. Lu once again led the start up of the Dujiake platform, focusing on the vertical market segment of select accommodation rental. It started by listing guesthouses in Taiwan and forming close partnerships with other OTAs like Mafengwo, Qunar, Qyer and Taobao.
Taiwan guesthouses have become a major draw-card for Chinese independent visitors booking online, but the sector has been plagued by issues such as outdated information and unpredictability. As a large group of OTA’s specializing in Taiwan tourism are using guesthouses as the feature product – among them Dujiake, Go2Tw, Taiwandao, Ourcheng, Zizaike and Fishtrip – the companies will have to work on matching inventory with demand in order to set themselves apart. (Translation by David)
