What if I told you India's biggest hospitality unicorn just turned a profit?
For the first time in 11 years, OYO booked 229 crore INR in profit in FY24. It began in 2013 when 19-year-old Ritesh Agarwal built a tech platform for India's chaotic budget hooters, standardizing rooms, upgrading service and bringing affordable stays online.
All of this was possible due to the huge back end processes that led to a seamless process for the users. All tech, bookings, pricing, check-ins were managed through one app,and because it partners with hotels instead of owning them, OYO scaled super fast. Today it runs 1,75,000 storefronts across 35-plus countries and that is a feat no big Hospitality Company can boast.
Now it's going premium with Sunday hotels expanding globally. In 2024, OYO acquired G6 Hospitality in the US for over rupees 4,300 crore. That one deal alone is expected to add rupees 630 crore to its earnings by FY26.
But the ride wasn't always smooth, Oyo grew too fast. Faced quality issues, legal fights with hotel owners, massive layoffs post COVID and had to pull out of underperforming markets to survive.
From chaos to correction, Oyo is now rebuilding its reputation. But can it sustain this comeback and stay profitable?
That is something only Time can Tell
