### **1. Company Overview** TBO Tek Ltd. (formerly TBO Global) is a leading global B2B travel distribution platform founded in 2006. Headquartered in India, TBO operates across more than 55 countries and 70 cities through 21 legal entities. It connects **over 159,000 travel buyers** and **1 million+ suppliers** in **150+ countries**, serving the rapidly growing $900 billion **premium assisted-travel segment**—where trust and complex itinerary planning are critical. The company’s core differentiator lies in its **modular, API-first technology platform** that enables seamless cross-border booking of flights, hotels, and ancillary services (transfers, sightseeing, car rentals, rail, cruises, insurance). TBO powers bookings for retail agents, tour operators, corporate travel firms, OTAs, and loyalty platforms through a multilingual, multicurrency, and multi-product ecosystem. TBO is the **fourth-largest and fastest-growing B2B travel distribution platform globally**, with a **3-year CAGR in GTV of ~20%** (FY22–FY25). --- ### **2. Recent Strategic Acquisition: Classic Vacations, LLC (Oct 2025)** In a landmark transaction, **TBO Tek completed the acquisition of Classic Vacations, LLC**—a prestigious U.S.-based luxury B2B2C travel company—for **$125 million** (inclusive of adjustments), effective **October 1, 2025**. - **Structure**: Classic Vacations is now a **wholly-owned subsidiary of TBO LLC** and a **material step-down subsidiary of TBO Tek Ltd.** - **Funding**: The acquisition was funded via an inter-company loan of up to INR 350 crore (USD equivalent) from TBO Tek to Tek Travels DMCC, supplemented by internal accruals and a $70 million term loan. - **Brand & Operations**: Classic Vacations will **operate as an independent brand** under its existing leadership team, preserving its legacy in the U.S. luxury travel market. #### **Strategic Rationale**: - **Market Expansion**: The deal significantly strengthens TBO’s presence in the **U.S.**, one of the world’s largest outbound travel markets. - **Access to Premium Advisors**: Classic Vacations brings over **10,000 active U.S. travel advisors** and deep relationships with **top-tier travel consortia**, including multi-decade partnerships with the big three. - **Luxury & High-End Supply Chain**: The company has direct integrations with **Marriott, IHG**, and bespoke access to **~1,500 premium hotels**, complementing TBO’s TBO Platinum program. - **Revenue Synergy**: The acquisition enhances TBO’s ability to capture share in the **premium outbound travel segment**, which is growing at twice the rate of the overall travel market. - **Network Effect Boost**: Integration enables **cross-selling of Classic Vacations' advisor base** with TBO’s global inventory and **reverse access** of TBO’s technology and suppliers to Classic Vacations’ network. #### **Classic Vacations Financials (FYE Dec 31, 2024)**: - Gross Bookings: **$475 million** - Revenue: **$111 million** - Operating EBITDA: **$11.2 million** The business operates two verticals: - **FIT (66% of revenue)**: Bespoke individual and family travel - **Group (34%)**: Luxury events, including destination weddings With **Net Promoter Scores (NPS) among the highest in the industry**, Classic Vacations is a trusted brand in the luxury space. --- ### **3. Core Business Drivers & Growth Strategy** TBO’s long-term growth is built on **three structural pillars**: 1. **Expanding the Buyer Base** (especially B2A retail agents) 2. **Increasing Transaction Frequency per Agent** 3. **Raising Average Transaction Value (ATV)** via premium and bundled offerings #### **Revenue Model**: - **B2B Rate Model**: Markup on net hotel inventory (higher margins) - **Commission Model**: Transaction fees from airlines and ancillaries - Gross profit is **~3.87% of GTV** (FY25), with **84% contributed by hotels & ancillaries** (3x higher margins than air business) #### **Geographic Diversification**: | Region | Key Markets | GTV Contribution (May 2025) | Growth (YoY) | |-------|-------------|-------------------------------|--------------| | **Europe** | Spain, France, UK, Germany, Italy | **36% of hotel GMV** | +68% (Europe GTV) | | **Middle East & Africa** | UAE, Saudi Arabia, South Africa | 25% of hotel GMV | +25% | | **Americas** | U.S., Brazil | 18% of hotel business | +32% (2-yr CAGR) | | **APAC** | Australia, Indonesia, India | 8–10% | +89% CAGR (2 yrs) | | **India** | Tier 1–4 cities | 8% of hotel GMV | +8% YoY | - India remains the **largest GTV market**, with **31,000+ active agents**, but ATV is lower than international markets. --- ### **4. Strategic Growth Levers** #### **A. Product & Segment Expansion** - **Hotels & Ancillaries**: Now the core profit engine, contributing **59% of GTV and 84% of gross profit**. - **TBO Platinum Program**: Curated luxury hotel collection with **110+ properties** across 40 destinations. Offers exclusive benefits (upgrades, meal vouchers) to drive agent loyalty. Contributes **5.4% of global hotel GTV** (Jun 2025). - **Umrah Travel**: A high-margin niche with **twice the conversion rate** of other products. Offers proximity-based hotel filtering, guided stays, and bundled experiences. - **Cruise & Rail**: Beta-tested cruise platform shows **higher repeat usage and booking values**; Eurail offering sees **+100% YoY growth**. - **"Connected Trips"**: Bundling flights, hotels, and experiences to increase ATV. Over past two years, **AVT has grown ~10%**. #### **B. AI & Technology Leadership** TBO is investing heavily in **AI-first automation** to improve efficiency, conversion, and user experience: - **Smart Search & H-Next Platform**: Allows agents to input **conversational queries** (e.g., “family-friendly beachfront villa in Dubai with private pool”), powered by LLMs. - **Emma Bot**: AI voice agent that communicates with **1M+ hotel suppliers**, delivering **5x faster responses at 50% lower cost**. - **AI Email & Ticket Classification**: Automates **40–45% of supplier emails** with **99.5% accuracy**; reduces operational load. - **AI Sales CRM & Customer 360**: Proprietary data platform for dynamic pricing, cross-selling, and personalization. - **Campaign Manager**: Drove **20–25% uplift in hotel campaigns** via data-driven targeting. #### **C. Sales & Market Expansion** - **On-the-ground “feet-on-street” model**: High-touch agent onboarding with **1-year payback** on sales investments. - **73 new sales hires in FY25**, expansion into **15 new countries** including Australia, France, Germany, Japan. - **Local leadership hiring**: New **President of International Business** (Dubai) and **Commercial Lead for North America**. - **Local entity setup**: Indonesia, Greece, Israel to support hyper-localization. #### **D. Inorganic Growth** TBO actively pursues strategic M&A in underserved markets: - **Jumbonline (Spain, Dec 2023, EUR 25M)**: Supplies 120,000+ European hotels; contributed **8.5% of GTV and 7.6% of revenue** by Nov 2024. - **BookaBed (Switzerland, 2023, INR 90.4Cr)**: Strengthened UK and Ireland footprint. - **Island Hopper (India, 2019)** & **Gemini Tours (India, 2022)**: Enhanced Indian Ocean and Maldives supply. --- ### **5. Financial & Operational Highlights (FY25)** - **GTV**: ~**$8.66 billion** (+16% YoY) - **Revenue**: INR **1,737 crore** (+25% YoY) - **Gross Profit**: INR **1,193 crore** (3.87% of GTV) - **Adjusted EBITDA**: INR **75 crore** (Q1 FY26, +26% YoY) - **Active Agents**: ~**49,000** (+9% YoY) - **Active Bookers**: ~**70,000** (+12% YoY) - **Daily Bookings**: ~**44,000** - **Platform Utilization**: 16 languages, 88 currencies, 20+ payment methods, 24x7 support in 11 languages --- ### **6. Competitive Positioning** - **Key Differentiators**: - **Only major B2B platform built exclusively for the assisted-travel segment** - **High-margin focus on luxury and complex itineraries** - **AI-powered automation at scale** - **Strong network effects**: 70K+ searches/day, 13.2M+ annual transactions - **Competition**: - Global OTAs (Expedia, MakeMyTrip) - Bedbanks (Hotelbeds, WebBeds) - Corporate booking platforms TBO differentiates through **personalized high-touch service, superior tech stack, and luxury curation**—areas where price-focused competitors lack depth.