Nightingale HQ founders Steph Locke and Ruth Kearny wanted to help other small businesses that couldn’t otherwise afford this kind of support, and be better prepared to deal with disruption similar to that of COVID19.
“They often struggle to navigate the ecosystem of partners,” he says. “And when they do identify a potential match they must then pinpoint who to target and initiate cold outreach, a process that can take months or years.” The business was founded by former IBM executives Arden Agopyan and Ali Beklen. “We both traveled extensively for work and wanted to stay in places that reflected the local area rather than just a corporate hotel,” says Beklen. “The problem was the travel bookers weren’t finding these hotels because they weren’t online.”
And vacation-wise, businesses are facing a new wave of empty offices as everyone tries to squeeze their holidays into August and September. “Paper-based booking systems just aren’t up to scratch,” adds Arnold.