Revenue view: OYO Rooms to tap empty flats, create mini hotel rooms

Ritesh Agarwal-led OYO Rooms plans to tap unused properties, including residential apartments across the country in a bid to boost its business and increase supply.

The SoftBank-backed startup had posted losses of Rs 496 crore on revenue of Rs 32.8 crore in the last financial year, according to documents filed with the Registrar of Companies. But, lack of comparable figures makes it hard to see the company's true performance.

OYO Rooms which started on the year 2011 has gained popularity as the idea of business was unique. The company fundamentally works by aggregating and owning hotel rooms and services and transforms them to bring in more standardised facilities such as enabling free wifi zone, make rooms air conditioned before giving it to customers.

OYO currently has 5,855 hotels in its network with a total inventory of 68,300 rooms. About 95 percent of its traffic comes from their sales channels which includes their app, website and call-centre.

Now after its hands on hotel rooms, the Softbank-backed startup is now eyeing empty flats and homes and has approached homeowners to create mini hotel rooms which could be rented out to guests, The Times of India reported.

However, unlike hotel rooms, the flat rooms will have no caretaker. But there will be a person who will help the guests with the check-in process.

The company is already testing the new business project in Goa and soon plans to start it across the country.

All the empty homes will have similar facilities as those of OYO hotel rooms -- a room with free Wi-Fi and air conditioner, flat-screen televisions but with an additional benefit of a furnished kitchen as well.

Recently, OYO Rooms have also launched its own chain of fully managed hotels to fight the sturdy competition given by another startup Treebo launched in 2015. The two start-ups, however, differ in their primary business model.

Last month, OYO also said it planned to double its inventory of 70,000 rooms to 1.5 lakh by the end of next year and will add about 10,000 to 20,000 rooms this year.

"We have been doubling our revenues year-on-year and within this year we will continue to grow our revenues by two-and-a-half times year-on-year. We will see more properties coming up in areas where occupancy rates are high," said Founder of OYO Rooms Ritesh Agarwal.