One of the next companies to enact the transition from privately-held to publicly-traded is HotelPlanner, the West Palm Beach, Florida-based travel technology company that provides online services in the global group hotel marketplace.
Last August, the HotelPlanner announced it would be part of a three-way merger involving another online travel-focused company, Reservations.com, and Astrea Acquisition Units (NASDAQ: ASAXU), a publicly-traded special purpose acquisition company (SPAC).
When the merger is completed, the combined entity will operate under the HotelPlanner name and will be listed on NASDAQ under the ticker “HOTP.”
Benzinga recently spoke with Tim Hentschel, co-founder and CEO of HotelPlanner, about the next chapter for his company.
See Also: HotelPlanner.com, Reservations.com Going Public Via SPAC: What Investors Should Know
BZ: HotelPlanner has been around since 2004. Why did you decide at this time to go public?
Tim Hentschel: Going public was always an aspiration of ours. And as the market warmed up and as we recovered from COVID, we felt that the timing was right.
This is an interesting transaction because you're working with Astrea as well as Reservations.com. Why did you decide to bring Reservations.com into this transaction?
Hentschel: We've known them for decades and they are an entrepreneur-led company just like ourselves. They have extensive experience in this industry, just like us, and we knew the synergies are there.
Two years ago, we started the first-of-its-kind gig economy reservation system, and 40% of Reservations.com bookings are done over the phone. So, ...
Related tickers: CSCO, FOXA, ASAXU, ASAX.
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