Evaluating only Holidu’s profile at its peak — without knowing the outcome — the model ranked Competition as the #1 likely cause. That’s exactly how it died.
Key Events Timeline
FOUNDING
MILESTONE
CRISIS
SHUTDOWN
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Documented cause
Holidu built a search engine aggregating vacation rentals from VRBO, HomeAway, and smaller platforms across Europe. The model was profitable during peak seasons but Airbnb and Booking.com absorbed the long tail inventory directly. When both platforms restricted metasearch partnerships in 2022, Holidu lost most of its supply and wound down.
Lesson
“Travel metasearch requires proprietary inventory or exclusive contracts before OTAs absorb the market.”