Lola.com

Last updated
Lola.com
Lola.com logo small transparent version.png
Type of site
Corporate travel SaaS
Available inEnglish
Created by Paul M. English
Bill O'Donnell
URL lola.com
CommercialYes
RegistrationRequired
LaunchedJuly 6, 2015;8 years ago (2015-07-06)
Current statusOffline

Lola.com is a software as a service (SaaS) company based in Boston, Massachusetts. It is best known for developing corporate travel management and expense software for web browsers, the App Store and Google Play. [1] The company was founded in 2015 by former Kayak.com executives, Paul M. English and Bill O'Donnell. [2] [3]

Contents

The website operates under a travel agency model for hotel and flight search information as well as booking services for businesses. It also has administrative analytics on employee travel and associated costs. [4] Lola has received more than $80 million in funding since its foundation. [5]

History

In July 2015, Blade, a Boston-based incubator, began focusing on a single startup. By December, English announced that Lola had emerged from stealth mode. The company's name was derived from a combination of the words "latitude" and "longitude". [6]

It acquired HopOn, a travel booking company, in 2015 and Room77, a hotel metasearch website, in 2016. [7] [8] The company launched an iOS application in April 2016 where users chatted with human travel agents. [9] That same month, it completed a $20 million Series A funding round led by General Catalyst and Accel. [10]

The company had more than $44 million in total funding after a December 2016 Series B round led by Charles River Ventures. [5] GV and Tenaya Capital each invested $5 million in the round, while previous investors General Catalyst and Accel also participated. [5] In July 2017, Lola had its second major release on iOS and the Android operating system. This iteration of the application focused on business travel by adding self-service hotel and flight booking and personalized travel recommendations. [11]

In July 2018, English announced he would assume the role of chief technology officer at Lola, with Mike Volpe, the chief marketing officer at Cybereason, becoming the company's chief executive officer. [12] Lola announced a five-year exclusive partnership with American Express Global Business Travel in November 2018 to sell its travel management software. [13]

In March 2019, the company announced a $37 million Series C round led by General Catalyst and Accel. [14] The round also included participation from all previous investors – Charles River Ventures, GV, and Tenaya Capital. [14]

In February 2021, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on tourism, the company pivoted to developing software for the financial technology industry. [15]

Lola ceased operations in September 2021 according to a notice on its website citing "new things to come" for the company. [16] In October 2021, it was announced that Capital One was acquiring Lola. [17]

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References

  1. ↑ O'Brien, Kelly (2017-10-04). "Paul English's Lola Travel reboots with businesspeople in mind". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2019-01-18.
  2. ↑ Castellanos, Sara (2015-12-02). "Everything you need to know about Kayak co-founder's new travel startup". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2019-01-18.
  3. ↑ Flynn, Kerry (4 October 2017). "This app wants to be the easiest, fastest way to book travel". Mashable. Retrieved 2019-01-18.
  4. ↑ Lieberman, Melanie (2017-10-06). "Every Business Traveler Can Now Have Their Own Personal Assistant". Travel + Leisure. Retrieved 2019-01-18.
  5. 1 2 3 Whittaker, Zack (2017-01-09). "Kayak co-founder Paul English raises $15M for his travel startup Lola". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2019-06-17.
  6. ↑ Bilis, Madeline (2015-12-03). "Kayak Cofounder Paul English Is Introducing His New Venture, Lola". Boston Magazine. Retrieved 2019-01-18.
  7. ↑ "Paul English's startup Lola will rethink travel agency tech first". www.phocuswire.com. Retrieved 2019-01-18.
  8. ↑ "Lola Travel Agent App Acquires Room 77 Technology". Skift. 2016-11-15. Retrieved 2019-01-18.
  9. ↑ Avakian, Talia. "We tested a new app from a cofounder of Kayak, and it was like having a travel agent in our pocket". Business Insider. Retrieved 2019-01-18.
  10. ↑ O'Neil, Sean (2016-04-05). "Lola, a travel concierge startup, closes its $19.7 million Series A". www.phocuswire.com. Retrieved 2019-01-18.
  11. ↑ Biesiada, Jamie (2017-10-04). "Lola chat app squares focus on business travel: Travel Weekly". www.travelweekly.com. Retrieved 2019-01-18.
  12. ↑ Maffei, Lucia (2018-07-16). "Cybereason CMO Mike Volpe to Become CEO of Lola". BostInno. Retrieved 2019-01-17.
  13. ↑ O'Brien, Kelly (2018-11-13). "Travel startup Lola.com to partner with American Express venture". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2019-01-18.
  14. 1 2 Lunden, Ingrid (2019-03-26). "Lola.com raises $37M to take on SAP and others in the world of business travel". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2019-06-17.
  15. ↑ "Four months after pivot, Lola.com CEO says he sees results". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2022-11-14.
  16. ↑ "Travel management firm Lola ceases operations: Travel Weekly". www.travelweekly.com. Retrieved 2022-11-14.
  17. ↑ "Lola.com is being acquired by Capital One". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2022-11-14.
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