ChinaTravelNews – Things may become a lot more complicated than seemed when one scratches beneath the surface, as in the case of Haoqiao.cn, whose CEO Zhangtao told ChinaTravelNews that the hotel booking business is a challenging. The comment was made after the company announced a new round of financing to raise RMB 60 million.

Established in 2013, Haoqiao.cn started out as a B2C operator for international hotel booking. The company quickly switched to the B2B model in the summer of 2014 after it found that cost for building site traffic was far too high. 

Haoqiao.cn is now providing traditional travel agencies and OTA startups with standardized information of overseas hotels through its trade websites, OEM services and API service. Travel company operators can access detailed hotel information including pictures, room types, rates and descriptions via the website. 

Mr. Yu told ChinaTravelNews that the company is doing more than just connecting hotels with the trade, but also refining products and creating value, to embrace its travel agency clients which are seeking innovations and breakthroughs in the industry. 

In the past, booking international hotels for clients is tedious for travel agents as they had to conduct price comparison, make payments in multiple currencies for hotels in different destinations and deal with customer issues when a client came across any problem. Haoqiao.cn adds value by providing a one-stop solution, much like a JD.com for outbound hotel distribution or an B2B OTA for its travel agent counterparts. 

Mr. Yu said the company’s current goal was on expansion instead of profitability. However, they had no plan for the rebate game but would rather turn in a small profit. 

“Travel agencies are very smart and they have tried every channel for sourcing hotel products. They may have tried our service as well as other B2B channels. It comes down to who has the best product,” Mr. Yu said. (Translation by Jerry)