Ritesh Agarwal is a young Indian entrepreneur and the founder of Oyo Rooms, one of the world's largest hotel chains. He was born on November 16, 1993, in Bishama Katek, a small town in the Indian state of Orissa. Ritesh had a keen interest in technology and entrepreneurship from a young age. He dropped out of college at the age of 17 to pursue his passion for entrepreneurship.
In 2013, Ritesh started his first venture, Oravel Stays, which was an online platform that allowed travelers to book affordable accommodations in India. However, he soon realized that the quality of budget accommodations was subpar, and there was a gap in the market for affordable yet high-quality hotels. This led to the birth of Oyo Rooms in 2014.
Oyo Rooms is a budget hotel aggregator that partners with hotels and provides them with the technology, operational support, and brand name to improve their services and make them more appealing to customers. Oyo Rooms has grown exponentially over the years, expanding its operations to over 800 cities across 80 countries, with a presence in more than 23,000 hotels.
Under Ritesh's leadership, Oyo Rooms has become one of India's most successful startups, raising over $3 billion in funding from top investors such as SoftBank, Sequoia Capital, and Lightspeed Venture Partners. Ritesh has been named among Forbes' "30 Under 30" in Consumer Tech and "30 Under 30" in Asia.
Despite the success, Ritesh has had his fair share of challenges. In 2019, Oyo Rooms was faced with allegations of unethical business practices and quality issues. However, Ritesh took swift action to address these issues, and the company has since undergone significant changes to improve its operations and maintain its reputation.
Ritesh Agarwal is a true inspiration to young entrepreneurs in India and around the world. His entrepreneurial journey serves as a testament to the power of innovation, perseverance, and hard work. Despite his young age, Ritesh has shown that with the right idea and the right team, anyone can achieve success in the business world.
Fathers Death
Virender Vij, DCP East, confirmed that Ramesh Agarwal, father of Oyo
founder Ritesh Agarwal, passed away from falling off the 20th floor in
DLF The Crest, Sector 54, Gurugram. The incident was investigated with
an inquest report under Section 174 of CrPC. A team, along with SHO sec
53, visited the location of the occurrence, and the postmortem was
performed. The body has been handed over.