Hospitality in Mexico Inspiring Startups Analysis¶
Inspiring Startups¶
The Mexican hospitality value chain is experiencing dynamic shifts driven by innovative startups that are introducing new business models and challenging traditional operations across various steps. These emerging players are leveraging technology to enhance efficiency, improve customer experiences, and address specific industry bottlenecks.
Zatlas: This vertical SaaS platform is specifically designed for hotels, focusing on automating revenue management from Online Travel Agencies (OTAs). By automating tasks like charging for reservations, cancellations, and no-shows, and streamlining reconciliation, Zatlas helps hotels boost OTA revenue and manage commission payments more effectively. Their goal for 2025 includes significant growth and deepening their presence in the Mexican market, along with further integrating AI for improved performance and operational efficiency. Zatlas directly impacts the Accommodation step by optimizing revenue from a key distribution channel and influences the Support Services step by providing specialized technology.
Rappi: As a prominent food and on-demand delivery platform, Rappi has significantly altered the Food and Beverage Services step in Mexico, particularly in urban areas like Mexico City. It connects consumers with a wide array of restaurants, transforming how food is ordered and delivered. Rappi operates on a commission-based model, impacting restaurant profitability but also expanding their reach. [Value Chain Analysis] Beyond food, Rappi's expansion into grocery delivery (competing with platforms like Jüsto) and financial services (RappiPay, RappiCard) demonstrates a move towards a broader digital ecosystem, impacting Support Services related to logistics and payments.
Jüsto: This online platform for grocery ordering and delivery operates in Mexico City and directly impacts the Food and Beverage Services step by providing an alternative supply chain for consumers. By procuring products directly from suppliers and offering same-day delivery, Jüsto represents an innovative model in the retail and distribution of food items, influencing the traditional supply chain within the hospitality value chain, particularly for businesses that might source locally or require fresh produce efficiently. It falls under the Support Services step in terms of logistics and supply chain.
Cloudbeds: While a global company, Cloudbeds is a significant provider of hotel management software (PMS, Channel Manager) recognized for its technology in 2024 and 2025. Its platform helps hotels modernize operations, distribution, marketing, guest experience, and revenue management. For hotels operating in Mexico, adopting platforms like Cloudbeds impacts the Accommodation step by improving internal processes and the Support Services step by providing essential technology infrastructure.
Mendel: Based in Mexico City, Mendel offers a platform for business travel, payments, and expense management for large enterprises in Latin America. This startup influences the Transportation and Accommodation steps by streamlining how business travelers book and manage their trips and expenses. It falls under the Support Services step by providing a technology solution for corporate travel management, impacting businesses that cater to business travelers.
Ayenda: Described as an innovative hotel reservation platform for Latin America, Ayenda expanded its network of properties and secured significant funding. This startup directly impacts the Tourism Promotion and Intermediation step by offering an alternative booking channel and the Accommodation step by providing hotels with a platform to reach customers. Its focus on the Latin American market, including Mexico, positions it as a player influencing the distribution landscape.
Vytal: This Germany-based company, which launched in Mexico, offers a digital returnable container system for food delivery. This innovation addresses the environmental challenge of single-use plastics in the booming food delivery market, impacting the Food and Beverage Services step and the Support Services step related to sustainability and waste management. By providing a reusable packaging solution, Vytal introduces a new model for managing packaging within the delivery ecosystem.
These startups, through their specialized technology and business models, are inspiring change by: * Optimizing Revenue and Operations: Startups like Zatlas and Cloudbeds provide tools for hotels to better manage online distribution and internal operations, addressing challenges like high OTA commissions and manual processes. * Reshaping Food Delivery and Supply Chains: Rappi and Jüsto have created convenient platforms that have changed consumer habits and require restaurants and suppliers to adapt to new delivery and distribution logistics. Vytal introduces a sustainable element to this by focusing on reusable packaging. * Enhancing Business Travel Management: Mendel streamlines the process of managing corporate travel, impacting the B2B interactions within the hospitality value chain. * Providing Alternative Booking Channels: Ayenda offers hotels another avenue to connect with potential guests, diversifying the intermediation landscape.
These innovations highlight a trend towards digitalization, efficiency gains, and new service delivery models within the Mexican hospitality sector, often addressing existing bottlenecks and creating new opportunities.
Potential Impact of Inspiring Startups¶
| Startup | Primary Value Chain Step(s) Impacted | Potential Impact on Value Chain |
|---|---|---|
| Zatlas | Accommodation, Support Services | Increases hotel profitability by optimizing OTA revenue and reducing chargebacks. Streamlines back-office operations related to online bookings. |
| Rappi | Food and Beverage Services, Support Services | Expands market reach for restaurants through delivery. Creates a new revenue stream but also introduces commission costs. Influences logistics and payment systems. [2, 4, Value Chain Analysis] |
| Jüsto | Food and Beverage Services, Support Services | Provides an alternative model for grocery and food item distribution, potentially impacting traditional supply chains for restaurants and hotels. |
| Cloudbeds | Accommodation, Support Services | Modernizes hotel operations (PMS, channel management, guest experience). Improves efficiency and potentially reduces reliance on disparate systems. |
| Mendel | Transportation, Accommodation, Support Services | Simplifies and streamlines business travel booking, payment, and expense management for corporate clients, impacting hotels and transportation providers catering to this segment. |
| Ayenda | Tourism Promotion & Intermediation, Accommodation | Offers hotels an additional platform for reservations, potentially diversifying their distribution channels and reaching new customer segments. |
| Vytal | Food and Beverage Services, Support Services | Addresses environmental concerns by providing a reusable packaging solution for food delivery, influencing sustainability practices within the F&B sector and its support logistics. |
References¶
- Hot 25 Travel Startups for 2025: Zatlas | PhocusWire
- Top startups in Gig Economy in Mexico City, Mexico (Apr, 2025) - Tracxn
- Developing teams and talent at Mexico's largest hotel group - Cloudbeds
- LatAm Unicorns: The Billion-Dollar Startups of Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Argentina, and Beyond - TechNews180
- Mexico Cloud Kitchen Market 2033 - IMARC Group
- Mexico City sets new obligations for hosts offering accommodation services via digital platforms | Hospitality & Leisure Law Blog - Garrigues
- Food Delivery Boom in Mexico Drives Plastic Waste Surge
- Top 4.9K+ startups in Food Delivery in Jan, 2025 - Tracxn
- 69 Best Restaurant Startups to Watch in 2025 - Seedtable
- What are the digital trends that will shape the tourism industry in 2025? - t2ó one
- Travel Startup Funding Is Slowing: Companies that Raised in the Past 3 Weeks - Skift
- Latin America Reports' 40 Under 40 in 2025
- Top 10 Growing Tech Hubs Transforming Latin America in 2025 - Visible.vc
- Future Gastronomy Startup Forum - HIP - Horeca Professional Expo
- Smart & Sustainable Hotel Delegation in Mexico - Business Sweden
- top 5 ai trends that will transform the tourism sector in 2025
- Logistics Startups funded by Y Combinator (YC) 2025
- Mexico's Luxury Hotel Sector Investments Grew 50% in 2024
- In the fast lane: The top 8 reasons hospitality is marching fast toward automation in 2024
- Y Combinator Startups 2025
- Startup Success in Hospitality & Tourism SMEs in Emerging Economies: How Innovation and Growth Are Driven by Entrepreneurial Orientation, Networking Strategy, Leadership, and Flexibility - MDPI
- The Good, the Bad and the Ugly in the Logistics Sector in Latin America in 2025