Founded in 2019, the Origin curated travel experience just got a big boost — $5 million in seed funding from Project A and Cavalry Ventures.
The membership travel company offers an app that links members to curated travel experiences to destinations around the world. The Origin personal travel assistant service creates individualized, customizable trips while taking the hassle of planning out of travelers’ hands. This is the first half of Origin’s mission: To help people save precious time in planning their next adventure. Origin also aims to deepen these experiences through personalization and unparalleled connections.
“We created Origin because modern travel has become extremely complicated and we believe that transformational travel allows people to live out their dreams,” co-founder Eli Bressert said in a statement. “The barrier of travel planning, the time it consumes, and insider knowledge on destinations are holding people back from maximizing their travel experiences. Origin removes all those obstacles and makes the end-to-end experience a breeze.”
While today’s travel provides more options than ever, this means that trip planning gets ever more complex. It’s not uncommon for travelers to spend at least two to three days planning and then booking for each week of vacation. With limited help and sources for advice, organizing trips takes a lot of time to research and to lay out options. Technology has helped make travel more searchable, but there lies a deep gap between this information and personalization. Origin aims to tackle that issue by providing personal help when customers need it and allowing them to manage trip details through one convenient, self-serve app.
Bressert, who serves as Origin’s CEO, brings experience at Apple, Netflix, and Stitch Fix that adds up to a deep knowledge of machine learning, artificial intelligence, and scalability. Bressert, for example, was instrumental in scaling Stitch Fix, one of the most effective high-touch forces in e-commerce. Under Bressert’s leadership, Origin is applying similar techniques to superpower travel experts alongside highly scalable machine learning services.
This enables Origin’s target market — travelers who are more ambitious and demanding regarding their travel experiences. Using the world’s best travel curators, the app integrates local experts on the ground and then superpowers curated trips with machine learning. Endless browsing, multiple connections with airlines and hotels, and uncertain bookings are a thing of the past with Origin, even during uncertain pandemic times.
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With destinations closing, then opening, and then closing again, Origin curators are available to accommodate constantly changing local travel regulations, aligning to COVID-19 requirements, and adapting with cancellation policies. This level of agility and support is often beyond standard travel agencies. The Origin app also offers self-service support, which eliminates the headaches of traditional phone and email support. As the travel landscape continues to evolve, Origin will continue to develop features to ease travel planning and provide users with innovative travel solutions on the go.
“The Origin team is incredibly well equipped to be the leader in curated travel experiences,” angel investor David Rosenthal said. “It is an exciting time to shape the travel industry for the next ten to twenty years.”
This includes considering travel’s environmental footprint and providing a positive impact on the places that Origin members explore. The company carbon offsets all member trips, and prioritizes accommodation and destinations that have a strong connection to the local community and share Origin’s sustainability values.
Interested travelers can sign up to be members for a $3,000 annual membership fee for unlimited trip servicing and curated trips on the Origin app. Memberships include unlimited trips, unlimited trip revisions, and hassle free 24/7 support. Whether a traveler’s dream is to book an African safari, visit Greenland and the Faroe Islands, explore the Grand Canyon, or tour Scandinavia, Origin takes care of all of the details with cutting-edge technology and human expertise.
Check ’em out at www.origin.me.
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