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Investors that participated include SOSV, Artesian, Found Ventures, Huashan Capital and other angel investors as well as existing investor Traveloka, one of SE Asia’s leading lifestyle tech unicorns. The round is aiming to accelerate the growth of PouchNATION’s Contactless Hospitality Platform as many tourist destinations are reopening in SEA.
High Hygiene Standards with Contactless Technology
PouchNATION’s new Contactless Hospitality Platform is focusing on increasing hygiene standards and providing a contactless experience for guests staying at hostels, hotels, resorts and theme parks. Upon arrival guests are given an NFC wristband that acts as guests’ digital identifier, door key as well as cashless wallet all in one. Indeed it allows guests to purchase food and drinks and redeem breakfast vouchers without any physical touch. “We’ve always felt that faster adoption of technology can play a big role in providing a better experience for the hospitality industry. Indeed, the pandemic has accelerated that trend and currently many hospitality providers are embracing contactless technology to guarantee higher hygiene standards for their guests,” says Ricardo Santos, PouchNATION’s VP of Growth.
Increase in F&B spend as an additional Adoption Driver
Since the launch of the new Contactless Hospitality Platform PouchNATION has signed some high caliber clients including Collective Hospitality, Asia’s largest hostel company and fourth largest globally. Collective Hospitality counts over 2,500 beds with brands such as Bodega, Slumber Party, Socialtel and Path being part of the group. “One of the main drivers for the adoption of Contactless Payments systems using NFC wearable devices is the overall increase in F&B spend that the Venue will experience right from the start,” says Edmund Lowman, CEO of Collective Hospitality. Historical data shows that PouchNATION’s system increases spend on average by 30% which is extremely important in a post pandemic revival phase when Venues are still lacking the same room booking volumes as before.
Plans for the Future
PouchNATION has big plans for 2022. Its new Contactless Hospitality Platform SaaS business model has proven to be extremely scalable with clients already using the platform not only in SEA but also in Latin America and other continents. Indeed, PouchNATION is currently in discussions to close an additional round of funding to expand the SaaS system beyond Asian borders and pursue a truly global strategy.
Source: PouchNATION(Press Release)
