In August 2017, Neha Parikh left Hotels.com where she’d been since April 2008 to become president of Hotwire and it’s clear she’s bringing her own style and personality to the brand which calls itself “a leading discount travel site that offers ridiculously low prices”. Last November, she announced a “something kind of crazy” promotion called a Million Dollar Sale. It offered five star hotels in Las Vegas for just $50.
Neha Parikh: Learning to get things done in a scrappier way.
She said, “I know it might sound too good to be true, so you may ask yourself, ‘What’s the catch?’ But it’s real. I believe Hotwire is a different kind of travel site, a different kind of company. I am putting my money where my mouth is in terms of showing the incredible value we bring to people who love to travel …’
How is Parikh, who’s worked her way steadily up the ranks at Hotels.com, making the transition from working within one of Expedia Inc’s most global brands to a US-centric business?
Q: In your transition from Hotels.com to Hotwire (where you were last senior vice president, hotels.com global brands and retail), what’s the one thing you had to unlearn and what’s the new thing you have to learn?
One new thing I’ve had to learn in my role at Hotwire is how to get things done in a scrappier way with less resources; but I love it! We’re small which means we can move fast, take risks and push our thinking to try new things; in ways that are often harder to do at bigger companies. This is one thing that makes working at Hotwire super fun in my opinion.
I don’t know if I’ve had to ‘unlearn’ anything per se because I’m a big believer that every experience you have in life builds upon each other but if I had to say one thing it’s probably to not always reference “what we did at Hotels.com” (which is hard when you’ve worked somewhere for almost a decade!) and instead start focusing on what we’re going to do at Hotwire!
Q: Given you’re seen to be a niche product for last minute hotel bookings, how have models like HotelTonight impacted you?
Actually, I wouldn’t say that Hotwire is a niche product. While we do excel at offering amazing last-minute deals, we also have a range of offerings including opaque deals for farther out stay dates, retail hotels, flights, packages & cars so whether a customer is shopping for tomorrow or next month, they can find a great deal. The travel market is a $1.6 trillion dollar global market – there’s plenty of room for more competition and in fact, I love seeing more players – it’s better for customers and it forces us to keep raising our game!
Q: There’s a startup in Malaysia now, Staydilly, doing mystery hotels at low prices. Given Hotwire’s been in it a long time, what advice would you give this startup and what lessons could you impart?
Well, of course firstly I’d say this is a business model that I really believe makes sense – for supply partners and for customers – so go for it! But secondly, I’d say it’s not easy because for both customers and partners, you’re asking them to do something quite different from how they normally book or sell travel today and whenever you deviate from the norm, gaining momentum can be challenging. Something that’s really important to get right is understanding what your value proposition is to both customers and supply partners—and being ultra-clear in how you communicate that.
Q: Will the Hotwire model work outside the US? Any plans for Asia?
Yes—I completely believe the Hotwire model can work outside of the US simply because there is so much value in the model for both suppliers and customers; however, at this time we are focused on growing our presence in the US. That being said, leading a team in Asia was one of my favorite things about my role at Hotels.com so never say never!
Q: Mobile – what % of your traffic/transactions come from mobile given I assume your customers would tend to be younger?
As our app really simplifies the booking process, we’ve found that many of our customers now prefer it. Nearly half of our transactions take place from a mobile device and this number just keeps growing!
Q: Do you offer alternative accommodation choices other than hotels?
At this time, we offer an array of hotels ranging from national chains to local boutiques, however we’re continually reviewing our approach to make sure we have the supply customers want.