How Simon and Lani te Hennepe built global travel startup TRAVLR out of a simple PDF document

Simon and Lani te Hennepe’s travel startup TRAVLR operates across six countries, has over 85 staff, and has raised $5 million in venture capital. But nine years ago, the startup existed only as a single PDF document.

It started as a simple thought: Lani, a seasoned Bali traveller, was planning her and Simon’s first trip to the island together, and was taking notes on different bargains for hotel and restaurant prices.

“I remember her telling me this hotel was $300 bucks a night online, but she knew if you rang then up and bartered with them, you could get it for $100,” Simon te Hennepe tells StartupSmart.

“We thought ‘people should know this’, and it all stemmed from there.”

Those notes became a PDF document — a scripture shared with close friends and relatives that quickly gained notoriety. Hundreds of people were asking for it, so the pair created a Facebook page that went from two followers to 10,000 in a matter of weeks. Read more

Dominic Powell - Smart Company - 5 Mar 2018