1C. Gareth Williams of Skyscanner... on multi-modal
Skyscanner is one of the digital travel era's biggest success stories.
Created by a trio of friends in 2004, Skyscanner started as a simple flight metasearch tool and ended up part of the Ctrip empire following a $1.75 billion sale in 2016.
A lot happened in the intervening 12 years, including a number of acquisitions, a launch into hotel search and the creation of the one of the most popular travel apps in the market.
Gareth Williams found himself in the CEO hot seat and steered the company alongside co-founders Barry Smith and Bonamy Grimes until he took on a chair role in May 2017.
In one of his first in-depth interviews since stepping aside, Williams is the first guest for the new How I Got Here podcast.
In a wide-ranging conversation, he discusses the formation of the company, its funding and marketing strategy, competition, early ups and downs, and the sale to Ctrip.
HIGH is a weekly show produced by PhocusWire and Mozio, aimed at getting the inside stories behind startups and innovation in travel and transportation.
It's hosted by PhocusWire editor in chief Kevin May and Mozio co-founder and CEO, David Litwak.
Other episodes: on PhocusWire and Mozio.