OYO Rooms Founder and CEO, Ritesh Agarwal, took to Twitter recently to express his views on the year gone by as well as plans for the company going forward.
OYO has faced a difficult year, with hoards of customers complaining on social media about unconfirmed bookings, poor customer service, and slow, or sometimes ineffective refund procedures. Moreover, the company seems to have lost its standing in the hospitality industry, with over 200 hotels allegedly breaking ties with the chain.
2019 taught us the importance of staying true to our core values – building trust, being respectful & being resilient. 2020 is about optimizing @oyorooms for sustainable long-term accretive growth for #OYOpreneurs, partners & customers through accelerated developments in tech 1/5
— Ritesh Agarwal (@riteshagar) February 4, 2020
The founder and CEO expressed his aim of “optimizing” the company for “sustainable long-term, accretive growth”. He stressed on the focus on technology and innovation in 2020 in order to better serve customers and shareholders.
Our restructuring has been approached with specific consideration to the well-being of all #OYOpreneurs. We are doing everything in our power to ensure that. I have nothing but gratitude for their support as we transition into 2020, preparing for strong and sustainable growth 3/5
— Ritesh Agarwal (@riteshagar) February 4, 2020
Mr. Agarwal also took the opportunity to thank the Oyo faithfuls and apologize to those who faced grievances while interacting with Company. Response to the statement was largely positive, with comments supporting the Company’s positive view of the future, though many expressed doubts regarding Oyo’s ability to rectify lingering issues.
I am thankful to everyone who has been a part of this journey and humbly apologise to those impacted. We wouldn't be where we are without your support. I am truly grateful. #StillDay0 5/5https://t.co/WUEbzyZK8G
— Ritesh Agarwal (@riteshagar) February 4, 2020
Oyo’s expansion into Japan too, was touched upon by Mr. Agarwal, who proudly announced the brand’s presence in 73 cities, with 200+ hotels. Since its entry into the Japanese market, the company has become the “#1 most widely present hotel brand”. The CEO further expands his view for the brand going forward, namely, sustainable growth and operational excellence, to the core goals of the company’s ventures in Japan
For the region, we will largely focus on three of our key strategic objectives – sustainable growth, operational excellence, and customer experience. And as we continue to #DreamBigThinkBig, it’s still #Day0 for us as we grow. 3/3 https://t.co/k3e4IqmXl1
— Ritesh Agarwal (@riteshagar) February 6, 2020
