Thailand-based restaurant reservation platform Eatigo has raised an undisclosed amount of funding in a ‘pre-Series C’ round from previous investor, travel and restaurant review site TripAdvisor, to expand into new markets.
Eatigo works with restaurant owners to maximise occupancy during off-peak periods. Currently available in six markets, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, India, Hong Kong, and the Philippines, it allows restaurant goers to score discounts of up to 50 percent on food items with a prior reservation. No deposit is needed, but users with three no-shows will typically get their accounts suspended.
The investment was done through TripAdvisor’s restaurant booking and management arm TheFork, a company the US firm acquired in 2014.
Founded in 2013, Eatigo is said to have raised more than $25 million, according to Tech in Asia. It previously closed a series B round led by TripAdvisor in October 2016. The Thai startup claims to have 4 million users and more than 4,000 restaurants using its services.
“These new funds will be integral in allowing Eatigo to consolidate and extend the reach of our leadership and expertise in helping customers reserve the perfect table,” said Michael Cluzel, CEO and Co-founder, Eatigo.
Having TripAdvisor’s seal of approval as it continues investing in Eatigo is key for the firm, as it continues to add new restaurants onto its platform and expand into new markets.
While there are numerous restaurant booking apps operating out of this region, most of the current players do not offer any time-based discounts, preferring to focus on loyalty-based rewards instead. Eatigo’s competitors in Southeast Asia will include Malaysia-based Offpeak and Tableapp, which only provides discounts for selected restaurants.
Editor: Nadine Freischlad