Trippiece

Trippiece is a Japan-based online travel platform centered on a social, user-generated experience. The company was established in March 2011 by Ian Ishida. The founding concept for Trippiece reportedly originated from a casual tweet by Ishida about a desire to visit Bangladesh, which garnered significant interest and resulted in him traveling there with 18 strangers. Before founding the company, while still a university student, Ishida managed a non-profit organization focused on sharing firsthand experiences from developing countries. This background in community building and international travel directly influenced the startup's direction.

The platform operates as a social network for travel, allowing users to create, share, and join group trip plans. It targets travelers looking to connect with like-minded individuals, moving away from traditional, pre-defined package tours. There are two main user roles: "planners," who propose a trip idea, and "participants," who join and help refine the itinerary. This model enables the creation of niche and unconventional tours, such as visiting the Uyuni Salt Flats or experiencing the world of Aladdin in the UAE. For certain trips, Trippiece acts as an intermediary, partnering with major travel agencies to handle the official tour arrangements once a plan is finalized by the user group.

Trippiece secured its initial seed funding of $35,000 in May 2011, followed by an additional $50,000 in January 2012. A significant Series A funding round in August 2013 brought in $2 million, led by Draper Nexus Venture Partners, aimed at developing smartphone applications and expanding operations. The company also operates RETRIP, a large travel and outing media platform in Japan, which serves to discover and promote regional attractions. In January 2014, Trippiece established a branch office in Singapore and launched an English version of its site to cater to a global audience.

Keywords: social travel, group trip planning, user-generated travel, travel community, collaborative travel, peer-to-peer travel, Japan travel startup, Ian Ishida, adventure travel, custom tours, travel matchmaking, online travel agent, social travel network, RETRIP, Draper Nexus Venture Partners, themed travel, travel planning platform, community-based travel, trip sharing, travel experience marketplace