Doug Schuessler always He was a founder. This passion, which has been with him since childhood, led him to launch two startups, move to San Francisco, and work at Square to see what a “real rocket shop” was like. He later became chief revenue officer at Resy, a restaurant reservation platform. Before becoming an entrepreneur again.
After Resy was sold to AMEX, Schuessler said he began studying the hotel technology industry more and fell in love with hotels.
“Independent hotels really need help,” he told TechCrunch.
He said that decades ago, most hotels in the U.S. were independently owned, but hotel chains began purchasing these smaller properties, making competition more intense for the remaining independent hotels.
Schuessler and his co-founder, Cody Rose, who had worked at Resy, decided to create Safara, a company that would allow customers to book virtually any hotel in the world, whether chain or independent.
This list was curated using a mix of consumer data and community-sourced recommendations. There is also a rewards program that gives people who book through the platform cashback that can be applied to their next trip. Independent hotels using Safara have fee-free access, but technically any hotel can connect to the platform.
“Think of it as another direct challenge along with the website,” Schuessler said. “We then connect these two products to improve the guest experience by allowing web customers who book directly on the hotel site to manage those reservations in the Safari app.”
Today, Safara announced undisclosed plans led by Sequoia and Defy.vc and the acquisition of Skipper, an online booking engine used by independent hotels. The additional funding brings Safara to $14 million in funding to date.
The Safara and Skipper teams came together after being introduced by a mutual investor who thought the two companies had similar prospects for the hospitality sector. The Skipper co-founder will be joining Safari in some capacity.
“We actually approved the deal earlier this year,” Schuessler said. But the stars eventually aligned. “Both companies are much more likely to achieve their shared vision together than apart.”
Safara aims to differentiate itself from others in the market by providing software solutions for hotels and products that also serve consumers.
“The magic will happen in 2025 when we connect these two products more deeply to create new experiences for both hotels and guests,” said Schuessler, the company’s CEO.
Schuessler said he met investors through warm introductions. Sequoia partner Alfred Lin was the company’s first major believer, but he was the first to pass.
“I remember him saying, ‘Maybe we could be partners in the future.’ I thought that was BS at the time, but it turned out to be true,” Schuessler said. He met Brian Rothenberg, a partner at Defy.vc, through the AngelTrack network and said the two immediately hit it off.
“He is very supportive through the good and the bad and we tend to see the world through a very similar lens,” he continued.
Safara will use the new capital to expand its product development and the number of hotels using its products.
“Our focus beyond 2025 will be to empower independent hotels with the same technology and network advancements as chain hotels,” Schuessler said. “If we do this right, not only will we be able to help this hotel succeed, but the type of experience that will be provided to our guests is something that frankly doesn’t exist right now. And if we can achieve both, the sky is the limit for Safara as a company.”
