Stayzilla, the online marketplace providing hotel stays, is fast moving into the alternative stay segment of homestays. “It is a case of demand and supply. India has a huge demand for rooms, particularly on weekends, and here BnB options can play an important role. The demand is much more in the tier-II and tier-III cities. Places like Mahabalipuram run of out options on weekends and the price that is charged often makes you rue your decision,” says Yogendra Vasupal, Founder and CEO of Stayzilla. What makes Stayzilla different from other contenders in the market is that it strengthens hosts by allowing them to pick guests according to interests and educational and professional connections. “There is an old lady in Chandigarh who only wants to host fans of Jagjit Singh. There is a Punjabi aunty in Delhi who wants to offer cooking classes.” It reminds Yogi, as he is fondly called, of his younger days when he could not find an Aye Rand fan in his vicinity. “I had read all her works by the time I was 16 but had nobody to talk about them. Then I discovered that there are Yahoo groups on the Internet with people with common interest. Internet empowers you in many ways and this is one.” Then, he says, there are people who want to host people who belong to their club or institution. “Like ex-IITians. It opens a whole new window and takes care of the anonymity aspect.”
Claiming that Stayzilla already has 20,000 rooms to offer in the homestay segment, Yogi says the company is ahead of the competitors. Stayzilla charges 15 per cent of the amount as its commission and has a checklist of 60 points which a team verifies before giving a place go ahead. “A liquor shop in the vicinity can be problematic for single girls but for a section of boys it could be the USP of the place,” says Yogi. Then they organise townhalls in different cities to generate interest and dispel myths.
“There are a large number of properties that are lying unoccupied because people don’t know what to do with them. Recently we organised a townhall in Delhi. Some 250 people registered and out of them 180 signed up.”
Putting the rising demand of BnB options in India in perspective, Yogi says this generation doesn’t want to take obligations from the relatives when they visit a city. Gone are the days when you could eat anything that the aunt cooked. “They want to be on their own, try their own food.” Yogi says smaller centres are in demand because these days urban couples want their kids to have an experience of farm. “Today’s kids know how to use gadgets but they don’t know what to do with sand and spade. I take my kids for farm stays.”
