Good morning! Sarah Palin loses libel suit again, tension between 60 Minutes and Shari Redstone's Paramount reaches a head, and travel doesn't have to suffer during a recession. - Travel plans. During an economic downturn, people are likely to pull back on expensive travel plans. But during the travel platform Fora's recent Series C fundraise, new investor Thrive Capital liked that Fora was a two-sided marketplace—with users poised to not just spend on vacations, but monetize their love for travel.
"We're positioned to engage with travelers in a different way," says Fora cofounder and CEO Henley Vazquez.
Fora has raised $60 million across Series B and C rounds, Fortune is the first to report. Josh Kushner's Thrive co-led the $40 million Series C round, which closed earlier this year; the startup never announced a $20 million Series B it raised in 2023. Insight Partners returned to co-lead the round; investors Forerunner and Heartcore Capital also came back.
The gig economy platform sets up individuals to work as travel agents, booking trips and planning itineraries for people based on their own areas of expertise, from luxury travel to travel with kids to trips to Southeast Asia or Montana. Within the past four years, Fora has facilitated $1 billion in bookings. Most of the travel advisors on Fora are women and 97% are new to the industry; Vazquez positions the job as a new part-time gig for women getting back into the workforce—or "the new real estate."
Henley Vazquez, cofounder of ForaIf the economy enters a recession, Vazquez expects to see travel spending dip—although she says ultra-luxury travel will remain strong. Like during the pandemic, domestic travel will likely see a boom—and Fora is trying to retrain travelers to use advisors for lower-key trips, too. "A travel agent isn't just there for your safaris and your Amalfi Coast vacations," Vazquez says. And people who love travel, but can't afford it, might try to satisfy their passion by working as advisors, she argues. "Someone might actually look for another way to earn money. They may decide to monetize their passion for travel by starting to do this job as well," she says.
Fora plans to use this funding to build tech tools for travel advisors in a traditionally analog industry; a recent example is a "price drop" feature that monitors prices for already-booked travel and gives the advisor the chance to try to rebook at a lower price or get a client an upgrade. Thrive Capital investor Kareem Zaki says he was attracted to Fora's ability to give advisors "the tools to build scalable businesses and provide tailored travel experiences to each customer."
Emma Hinchliffeemma.hinchliffe@fortune.com
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This story was originally featured on Fortune.com
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