Startup Stage: TripPromoter uses AI to help creators make their travel content bookable

tripPromoter

TripPromoter aims to "redefine" the travel booking process by working with travel content creators it calls "Promoters." The company uses artificial intelligence (AI) to allow creators to turn their content into bookable trips to be sold independently.

Founded in 2023 by CEO Federico Rozado, chief operations officer (COO) Walter Barquin and chief product officer (CPO) Juan Ignacio Saucedo, the company employs a team of eight and is based out of Miami, Florida, and Buenos Aires, Argentina.

What is your 30-second pitch to investors? 

TripPromoter is redefining how people book experiences. 

We’re an AI-powered platform that empowers travel creators to become Promoters—enabling them to convert their content into bookable trips, sold under their brand, through their own channels and for their communities.

In a market where content creators have high visibility with the ability to raise interest in fabulous destinations, fun side trips and exotic dining among millions of people—but lack the actual tools to sell those ideas—tripPromoter bridges the gap. By giving content creators full ownership to offer and recommend their travel excursions, tripPromoter unlocks a scalable distribution model the travel industry has long overlooked. 

Describe both the business and technology aspects of your startup.

At its core, tripPromoter is a B2B2C travel platform. Designed for creators but built to grow and adapt to the travel industry, tripPromoter unlocks a new distribution channel for travelers by enabling content creators to package, price and promote trips and excursions under their personal brand. Instead of pushing traffic to online travel sites, influencers become the point of sale—ultimately, monetizing their content.   

Our proprietary tool reel2trip uses AI to turn creator content like Instagram Reels or TikToks into structured, bookable itineraries in minutes. The platform can manage trip curation, checkout, supplier integration and compliance. So, creators can focus on storytelling. We take care of the rest. 

TripPromoter is a vertically integrated model. We combine creator driven demand with supplier-side fulfillment, powered by automation and scalable infrastructure.

Give us your SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) analysis of the company.

Strengths 

• First mover advantage in enabling creators to directly sell bookable trips at scale
• Proprietary technology (reel2trip) that transforms social content into itemized travel products
• Strong founder-market fit with deep expertise in travel, community building and tech
• A model that aligns incentives among creators, suppliers and the platform—creates a win-win ecosystem. 

Weaknesses

• Requires initial creator education and onboarding to build supply
• Supplier integration can vary by region, adding complexity, as we scale
• As an emerging category, there’s a need to define and own the “Promoter” identity across the industry.

Opportunities 

• Massive untapped market of around 28 million travel and lifestyle creators worldwide
• Growing demand for authentic, community-led travel over commoditized online travel listings
• Ability to position tripPromoter as the infrastructure layer for creator-led travel commerce 

Threats  

• Educating the market: Positioning creator-led travel as a serious vertical in an industry slow to adopt new distribution models
• Staying ahead on innovation: As more players enter the space, differentiation through product and community becomes key.
• Global scalability: Adapting to different regulatory, tax and payment frameworks across various countries require careful execution. But it’s a challenge we’re already tackling!

What are the travel pain points you are trying to alleviate from both the customer and the industry perspective? 

From the customer perspective, travelers are overwhelmed by choice and underwhelmed by relevance. Most booking platforms feel transactional and impersonal. It’s a sea of generic listings with no real connection to who is making the recommendations. At the same time, they trust creators they follow daily, but they are unable to duplicate the trips those creators inspire. TripPromoter closes that gap. We make trusted content shoppable, turning inspiration into action. 

From the industry side, there’s an overreliance on centralized platforms with rising acquisition costs and decreasing loyalty. Travel suppliers struggle to stand out, and creators who drive massive intent have no real stake in the commerce they generate. We solve both problems by creating a new, distributed sales layer; one in which creators become promoters, suppliers get a niche distribution and customers get curated, community-based travel. 

So you've got the product. Now, how will you get lots of customers?

Our go-to-market is based on direct creator acquisition. We started by working one-on-one with travel creators by helping them launch trips and measuring performance. That hands-on approach gave us insight into what they needed, what converts successfully and what doesn’t—and that led to real bookings.

Today, we’re scaling that through a mix of targeted outreach, referrals and creator partnerships. We offer a clear value. Creators don’t pay to use tripPromoter. They set their own fees, and we handle the operational heavy lifting. That makes the conversation simple and the conversion rate high.

Every Promoter becomes a distribution channel. Their communities become customers. That’s how we grow—one creator at a time, with real demand behind each individual and their brand.

Tell us what process you've gone through to establish a genuine need for your company and the size of the addressable market.

The company started from lived experiences, not from a whiteboard. I (Federico Rozado) was organizing trips for my dive community and driving bookings through my content, but there was no scalable way to own or monetize that influence. My co-founder (Walter Barquin) who ran a boutique agency in Patagonia had the opposite problem—amazing trips, no direct access to demand.

We began testing manually by turning creators’ trips into products and observing how their audiences responded. We sold out group trips with zero ad spend. It was clear that the demand existed, and the pain point was shared by dozens of creators we talked to. They were driving real intent but had no infrastructure to sell.

In terms of market size, we’re focused on travel creators and community leaders who influence booking decisions. It’s a fast-growing segment that’s still underserved by existing platforms. As this space continues to professionalize, we see a clear opportunity to become the go-to infrastructure powering creator led experiences.

How and when will you make money?

Our revenue model is straightforward. We take a commission on each booking. The provider sets the base price, the Promoter (creator) adds their margin and tripPromoter applies a platform fee. On average, we capture around 15% of the gross booking value. 

Since we don’t charge creators upfront or require minimum volumes, the model scales with usage. Revenue comes in as experiences and circuits are booked—and that’s already happening. We’ve seen early traction with creators actively promoting curated trips, and as we expand into new markets and build retention, monetization grows organically.

We’re also exploring additional revenue streams such as fintech integrations, upsells and premium features for Promoters, but the core business is already generating revenue and proving product-market fit.

What are the backgrounds and previous achievements of the founding team?

The founding team brings together deep expertise in travel, technology and community building.

Federico Rozado (CEO) led one of Latin America’s most active dive travel communities and was part of the founding team at TravelX, a travel tech startup that raised $10 million and launched the world’s first NFTicket from the Eiffel Tower. He combines hands-on experience in adventure tourism with a strong background in business, marketing and team leadership.

Walter Barquin (COO) founded a boutique travel agency in Patagonia focused on curated, high-end experiences. He brings operational depth and firsthand knowledge of the supplier side—from crafting trips to managing logistics across Latin America.

Juan Ignacio Saucedo (CPO) has more than 15 years of experience in software and product leadership, most recently as TravelX product manager. He leads the development of our proprietary tech, including reel2trip, the AI engine that powers the platform.

How have you addressed diversity and inclusion within your business?

Diversity is part of how we operate, it’s not just something we talk about. Our team is built with people from different backgrounds, regions and perspectives, and we see that as a strength. 

We’re also building a platform for creators around the world, so inclusion is part of the product mindset from day one. Internally, we promote a flexible, remote-first culture that values collaboration and openness across borders.

What's been the most difficult part of founding the business so far?

The hardest part has been balancing speed with depth. In an early-stage startup, there’s constant pressure to move fast; to launch, iterate and grow. But in travel, building trust takes time. The experiences we help creators sell involve real people, real money and real expectations. 

We’ve had to build infrastructure and credibility while staying lean and moving quickly. That tension is constant, but it’s also what keeps us sharp.

Generally, travel startups face a fairly tough time making an impact—so, why are you going to be one of lucky ones?

We’re not betting on luck. We’re betting on a structural shift. Travelers are moving away from generic platforms and turning to people they trust. That’s not a trend, that’s a behavioral change. And we’re building the infrastructure behind it.

What makes us different is our focus. We’re not trying to replace online travel sites or build a marketplace for everyone. We’re building for a specific type of creator, with a specific type of community and putting tools into their hands that never existed before.

And we’re executing. We’ve already launched. We’re already seeing bookings, and we’re growing. The need is clear; the model is working and our timing is right.

A year from now, what state do you think your startup will be in?

A year from now, tripPromoter will be a go-to platform for travel creators looking to sell curated experiences and circuits under their own brand. We expect to have thousands of active Promoters, strong engagement from their communities and clear revenue streams across multiple regions.

Our priorities are scaling creator acquisition, strengthening supplier relationships and continuing to evolve our AI tools to simplify content-to-product conversion. We’ll also be focused on optimizing the booking flow and expanding geographically across Latin America, the United States and throughout Europe.

What is your end-game? (Going public, acquisition, growing and staying private, etc.)

Right now, we’re focused on building a real business—one that solves a clear problem and creates value for creators, travelers, and suppliers. That’s the foundation.

Long term, we see multiple paths: becoming the leading infrastructure for creator-led travel could mean growing privately, expanding globally or eventually partnering with a strategic player in the industry.

We’re not optimizing for exit. We’re optimizing for impact. If we build something truly valuable, the right outcome will follow.