WE Reservatio

International
n
B
Yevgeniy
Sydorenko
Mustafa
Taskiran

About
Web Reservations International (WRI) provides technology, distribution and marketing
solutions to accommodation and other travel suppliers worldwide through a network of owned
sites and affiliate partners.
Headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, WRI was founded in 1999 and has representative offices in
London, Shanghai, Sydney and So Paulo. WRI has developed award winning websites
including hostelworld.com, hostelbookers.com, hostels.com and bedandbreakfastworld.com,
and has successful affiliate relationships with many of the world's leading brands.
The WRI business model is simple and fully automated where travelers pay a modest non
refundable deposit when they book accommodation on line which is retained by WRI. The
balance is paid by customers directly to the accommodation provider at check-in.
Hostels and other accommodation providers rely on WRIs advanced technology platform to
allocate inventory, manage pricing and receive bookings within a fully automated process.

Management
team

Feargal Mooney
Chief Executive
Officer

John ODonnell
Chief Technology
Officer

List of flagship websites

Hostelworld.com
Hostelbookers.com
Itostels.com
Bedandbreakfastworld.com
Trav.com
Boo.com
Things2do.com
Discount-hostels-world.com
Insureandheaven.com

These are the flagship brand websites of WRI and provides 40,000 properties in 180
countries. These websites are in 28 languages and works with B2B and B2C. Have customer
review of over 3 million. Have videos of many properties , blogs and guide section.

Affiliate
examples

www.ebookers.com
European online travel agency specializing in worldwide travel
www.flybe.com
Low-fare European airline
www.kasbah.com
Globally trusted and respected source of world travel and destination information and
booking
www.letsgo.com
Travel guide series that accompanies the free-spirited on treks across the globe
www.lonelyplanet.com
Lonely Planet's is one of the best places to seek out advice on a wide range of travelling
issues
www.raileurope.com
Our Vision is that every North American traveler will choose us to experience the real Europe
by train
www.ryanair.com
Cheap Flights - Lowest European Fares, Low Cost Airline
www.studentuniverse.com

Mission
To provide on-line confirmed bookings for hostels,
budget accommodation centers and package tours,
as well as comprehensive content such as city and
country guides

Revenue Model
WRI provides online reservations to over 45,000 accommodation providers such as Hostels
and budget hotels. WRIs main target markets are Budget youths and Independent travelers.
Since the early 1990s WRI were the first to Identify this niche and they were able to
successfully place their business between this niche market and the accommodation
providers. Being able to generate revenue from a small reservation fee and holding on to the
accommodation deposit until the date of arrival is a key factor in the success of their
business.

Timeline
Analysis

SWOT Analysis
Strengths

Weaknesses

Privately held / easier to make

decisions
Superb CEO
Knowledgeable Personal
(multicultural)
Large scale operation
Distribution Network
Profitable business model
Opportunities

Lack of public funding

Lack of public information
Minimal presence in North
America
Low profit margin
Customer Loyalty

BYIT (Budget, Youth, and

Independent Travelers)
Go public
Growing online travel market
Rebounding travel industry
Worldwide Industry
Retiring baby boomers

Threats

Oil Prices
Inflation
Exchange rate volatility
Geopolitical uncertainty
Major competitors / many competitors
(Expedia, Travelocity, Orbitz, Priceline,
etc.)

PEST Analysis
Political: The company has effectively become the Global Distribution System of the BYIT. The
environment is free from political interruptions but the competitors are superior.
Economic: Economic factors refers to the macro-economic environment of the organization, such
as exchange rates or cost-related matters of the organization. Global crisis does not have a big
impact on the BYIT(budget, youth and independent travel) market. Exchange rates and currency
stability also affects WRIs revenue.
Social: Social factors refers to changes in society in terms of culture or demographics. The demand
has increased for this particular industry as customers have found an easy and safe route of
reservation in which the can check all information necessary online. Changing demographics: The
specific market segment of young travelers, aged 15-25, increased from 14.6% to 20% (also makes
up 20% of all international visitors). However, the use of technology not only brings in young
student travelers, but has also expanded the target markets to include families, business travelers
and flashpackers.
Technological: The technological component of the framework concerns the changes and trends
of the technical and material foundations in the industry, as well as innovation. 40% increase in
online booking. Backpack Online has enabled efficient management. User Generated Content is
also a core component in its marketing strategy, by using their own ratings system and reviews.
Created their own social networking site called myworld. WRI owns individual domains and uses

VRIO
Strategic
Capability

Valuabl
e?

Rare?

Costly to
implement?

Do they have any

structured
organization to use
this resource?

Technology

YES

NO

YES

YES

Architecture

YES

NO

Somewhat

YES

Cost Efficiency

YES

NO

YES

YES

Technological
Capabilities

YES

YES

Somewhat

YES

Competitive
Implications

Sustained
Advantage
Temporary
Advantage
Temporary
Advantage
Sustained
Advantage

Porters five forces

Analysis
Suppliers Power. HIGH

Buyer power: HIGH

Internet service provider have

great impact on business
Switching cost is costly

Cost to the buyer of switching

from
one supplier to another is not
costly
Buyer volume is high
Threat of Substitutes: MEDIUM
Big market share is still one of
WRI strength
Buyer propensity can be
effected to price change and
they can prefer other providers

Rivalry: HIGH

Number of competitors is high

Industry growth is significantly
No barrier to enter market or
exit
Threat of new entry :
HIGH
Threat of new entrants the
industry is not costly
Propensity to substitute is
high

Internal Audit
Strength

Weaknesses

Privately held
Credible CEO
Knowledgeable personnel
(multicultural staff)
Large scale of operation
Distribution network
Profitable business model

Lack of public funding

Lack of public information
Minimal presence in North America
Low profit margin
Customer Loyalty

Internal factor
evaluation
Key Internal Factors
Internal Strengths
Privately held
Credible CEO
Knowledgeable personnel (multicultural staff)
Large scale of operation
Distribution network
Profitable business model
Internal Weaknesses
Lack of public funding
Lack of public information
Minimal presence in North America
Low profit margin
Customer loyalty
Totals

Weights

Rating

0.0 to 1.0 1, 2, 3 or 4

3 or 4

0.10
4
0.10
4
0.08
4
0.10
4
0.10
3
0.12
3

1 or 2

0.10
2
0.08
2
0.12
1
0.06
2
0.04
2
1

Weighted
Score

0.40
0.40
0.32
0.40
0.30
0.36
0.20
0.16
0.12
0.12
0.08
2.86

External Audit
Opportunities

Threat

BYIT (Budget, Youth, and

Independent Travelers) market
growing
Go public
Growing online travel market
Rebounding travel industry
Worldwide industry
Baby Boom market

Oil Prices
Inflation
Exchange rate volatility
Geopolitical uncertainty
Competitors

Competitive profile
WRI
Expedia
Matrix
Critical Success
Weights

Rating

0.0 to 1.0

1 to 4

Global Market Share

0.15

0.45

0.45

0.3

Global Name Recognition

0.15

0.45

0.6

0.6

Technology

0.12

0.36

0.48

0.36

Customer Experience

0.07

0.21

0.28

0.21

Customer Loyalty

0.11

0.44

0.33

0.33

U.S. Market Share

0.05

0.05

0.2

0.15

Social Networking

0.12

0.48

0.36

0.36

Available Financing

0.07

0.14

0.21

0.21

Business Services / Business Travelers

0.09

0.27

0.27

0.18

Accommodations Offered

0.07

0.28

0.21

0.14

factors

Totals

Weighted
Score

Rating

Priceline

Weighted
Score

1 to 4

3.13

Rating

Weighted
Score

1 to 4

3.39

2.84

External Factor
Evaluation
Key External Factors
Opportunities

Weights Rating
Weighted Score
0.0 to
1.0
1 to 4

0.13
0.10
0.09
0.08
0.05
0.11

BYIT (Budget, Youth, and Independent Travelers) market growing

Go public
Growing online travel market
Rebounding travel industry
Worldwide industry
Baby boom market

Threats
Oil Prices
Inflation
Exchange rate volatility
Geopolitical uncertainty
Competitors

Totals

4
2
3
2
3
4

1
2
3
2
2

0.10
0.11
0.08
0.05
0.10
1

0.52
0.20
0.27
0.16
0.15
0.44

0.10
0.22
0.24
0.10
0.20
2.60

Possible alternative
Strategies
Market Development:

Look to increase options allowing customers to book hotels for any destination. Add
more hotels and hostels on the website in South America as well as the US.
Market Penetration:
Go after Expedia, Travelocity and Orbitzs market share
Product Development:
Increase the amount of hostels and hotels on the site and have a variety of hotels and
hostels that range in prices all over the World.

Possible alternative
Strategies
We could also look into selling off our company to Google. We can make a pitch to Google
explaining how they offer countless amounts of services but do not yet have the booking
services that WRI can offer. WRI is a solid company with a network that reaches around the
world. We would explain how the industry is constantly growing and how it is becoming more
habitual for world travelers to book reservations online. Once our investors and Google have
agreed on a price, the deal would be done. The conditions of the deal could include things
such as our investors receiving shares in Google.

st

Recommendation

Become a Publicly Owned Company-Initial Public Offering (IPO)

Get the approval from the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC)
Write a S-1 that will describe everything that the company is doing and why
Have the SEC review the S-1, and make any necessary changes if needed, then get an
approval
Get our shareholders approval by having our private investors vote on whether they should
create the IPO by gathering information from our approved S-1 document.
We will look to choose the NASDAQ stock market
Our trading symbol will be WRI
Funds will be utilized to build the worth of our company and form a joint venture with
Google allowing for the booking of travel reservations on Google.com
30% of shares will be given to Google.com

nd

Recommendation

North American Expansion

Expand across the US by getting a larger variety of hotels and hostels on our website
Be able to offer a variety of hotels and hostels rooms in every state creating greater
options
Expand more into the Caribbean, Mexico, and Canada

rd

Recommendation

Airline Affiliations
Create affiliations with airlines so consumers can purchase plane tickets on our website
Create package deals for our consumers that are willing to book flights on the website
Work with major international tourist destinations to do more business on our website
GCC Expansion
Create affiliation with hotels and hostels
Airline affiliations

Acquisition and
partnerships
Fondokelgawhara.qa
Elmahabahostel.
qa

References
www.webresint.com
www.boo.com
www.worldres.com
www.hostels.com
www.hostelworld.com
www.letsgo.com
www.ryanair.com
www.studentuniverse.com
www.lonelyplanet.com
www.raileurope.com
www.flybe.com