Skift Take
Some investors are hesitant to fund startups in places that experience currency volatility, but Triply has overcome that challenge while unifying payment tools for smaller travel businesses.
Elizabeth Casolo, Skift
You have finally found the perfect hotel for your upcoming trip. Check the total in US dollars and enter your credit card details. Reservation. Easy, right?
For travel businesses and travelers in Africa, the experience is not always so simple. Triply Co-founder and CEO Peter Wachira said some booking companies do not take into account the cultural and economic differences in many African countries.
For example, M-PESA, a popular mobile money service for Kenya, is not compatible with some booking platforms. And The value of the Kenyan shilling can fluctuate widely against the US dollar.
Wachira and co-founder Collins Muthinja had to think about where travelers in Kenya and other African countries are coming from: mostly through offline channels and social commerce. With 56% of hospitality spend in Africa coming from domestic visitors to the countries in 2019, travel platforms need to cater to this audience.
Here comes Wachira’s Triply, formerly Tripitaca. Not only does Triply help African travel businesses manage their operations, it can also help domestic travelers. The company’s software combines several features, one of which is a wallet for collecting payments from customers and paying business expenses. While the wallet can currently only hold Kenyan shillings, Wachira said he hopes to expand the wallet’s currencies in the future.
“Keeping your money in the same currency you receive it in allows you to protect its value over the long term,” Wachira said. This can facilitate future transactions in the same currency.
Wachira said Triply’s wallet feature can also curb fraudsters and build trust with customers.
Triply also provides a platform for managing tour and accommodation listings. The company generates revenue through commissions, subscription to use the platform and payment processing fees.
Work with Y Combinator
Startup incubator Y Combinator has helped companies like Airbnb, Stripe and DoorDash to the fore by providing funding and mentoring. The program is competitive and Triply applied twice before being accepted. Tom Blomfield, a group partner at Y Combinator, said Triply’s profitability and growth helped it stand out in its third attempt.
With the volatility of some currencies in East Africa, some investors are wary of the region, Blomfield said.
“What we see in these African businesses is that they need to grow revenue and reach profitability to be self-sufficient,” Blomfield said. “They can’t rely on outside venture funding in the same way that an American company could.”
During the Y Combinator Batch or its cycle, Triply secured the organization template investment of $500,000.
“I think what made them better was their ability to continue to grow revenue,” Blomfield said. Challenges ahead for Triply include understanding the markets of other African countries and working with larger partners in Kenya. Blomfield sees the potential for Triply to partner with larger hotel chains.
While Y Combinator provides support, Wachira faced logistical challenges as an overseas business in the program.
“You spend most nights running things around the house and spend the rest of the day managing the (Y Combinator) process,” Wachira said. “I would say it’s really overwhelming, but it’s definitely worth it.”
Triply was introduced during the Y Combinator Demo Day on April 3rd and April 4th. Demo Day allows companies to share their businesses with past Y Combinator investors.
“You come from a region and you’re supposed to be the best of the best companies in that region,” Wachira said the next day. “And then you come and you hear really incredible pitches.”
Despite the competition, Wachira said emails flooded his inbox after Demo Day.
“People line up to support you and learn more about what you’re doing,” Wachira said.
Strengthening Africa’s travel industry
While the company has roots in Kenya, Wachira aims to establish Triply as “the backbone of travel on the continent”.
“We want it so that (when) you were thinking about traveling to Africa, there’s only one platform that you can think of, and that’s Triply,” Wachira said. “Even if you don’t (always) book through our marketplace, the payments you make — to a property, to our hotels, to our travel agents — are pretty much backed by Triply.”
Covid has challenged Africa’s travel industry, but Triply hopes to continue to identify and fill gaps in the market.
“Nothing had been developed on the travel side, and that’s the main reason we’re doing this … to change the narrative to support business,” Wachira said. It aspires to “bring to life the true ability of continent travel.”
