India-based online travel agency Ixigo is investing in
the first round of funding for smart bus startup GogoBus and
taking a minority stake in the company.
Ixigo has not disclosed the amount of the investment
but said it is joined by investments from Rajesh Sawhney, co-founder and CEO of
Innerchef, and Abhishek Sharma, COO of Dineout.
Launched in January, GogoBus is aiming to raise the
quality and reliability of bus travel in India. It uses an asset-light model
with standardized, new buses, defined pickup points, lounges and an in-house
tech platform for booking, tracking and in-bus engagement. The buses have
reclining seats, GPS-enabled tracking and verified and uniformed drivers.
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GogoBus will use the investment to launch operations
on multiple routes in northern India and to expand its product and technology
teams.
“Despite buses being the most popular means of
inter-city transport in the country, the market is highly fragmented and
non-standardized, with many pain points worth solving in this segment,” says
Aloke Bajpai, co-founder and CEO of Ixigo.
“Generally, travelers end up planning a last-minute
inter-city bus trip due to the lack of availability on trains and high flight
fares. GogoBus allows people to do so in a smart and affordable manner.”
GogoBus says in its first month it has launched
service covering more than 500,000 kilometers.
“The bus market in India is quite attractive with over
five billion bus trips a year,” says Rajnish Kumar, co-founder and CTO of
Ixigo.
“The GogoBus team’s prior operating experience with
buses, domain knowledge of travel and transportation, coupled with Ixigo’s
demand-side scale will help disrupt the bus travel market in a big way.”