Senegal Based Teranga Solutions Merges With European HotelOnline
Traveltech startup, Teranga Solutions which has extensive operations in Senegal, announced its merger with HotelOnline recently, in a press release. Teranga which is headquartered in Washington DC is founded by Moustapha Ndoye and his brother Alioune Ndoye. The company was recognized as one of the most innovative startups in the continent in 2013 by Demo Africa.
The companies, in their official statement, clarified that individually they had systems and business models that were complimentary and a merger to form a cloud-based ecosystem platform for independent hotels, would give them an opportunity to compete in the global market.
HotelOnline, which has operations in Norway, Poland, Senegal, Kenya and Nigeria, has claimed to have sold 20 k room nights through the platform, totaling USD 1.6 Mn. They also have a commercial presence in Uganda, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Ghana and Pakistan.
Havar Bauck and Endre Opdal, both from Norway, started their journey with the launch of Savanna Sunrise in 2014, a digital hotel marketing solution, targeting independent hotels in East Africa. In 2017, they merged with Polish traveltech startup Hotel Online, to create the company now known as HotelOnline.
In a joint statement, the four founders said “by joining forces we can provide a complete solution specifically designed for hotels in frontier markets. The global frontier markets comprise the majority of the world’s hotels. Most of these hotels are still behind in terms of digital marketing and operations, though. Hence they are the low-hanging fruits.”
Eric Osiakwan, Managing Partner of Chanzo Capital who is an investor in TerangaSolutions and now joins the board of HotelOnline indicated that by coming together under HotelOnline we have the clout to conquer and dominate the hospitality industry in the global frontier markets for the foreseeable future. “I am proud to be part of this amazing global team combining Africa and European expertise and experience considering the tremendous growth opportunities of the merged company.”