Browse Case Studies

KAYAK was a travel metasearch engine launched in 2004 by Paul English and Steve Hafner that revolutionized how users search for flights and travel deals. Rather than competing directly with Orbitz and Expedia, the company built a partnership model, charging these sites fees to send qualified users their way. The strategy worked brilliantly—KAYAK became one of the most-searched "K" words on Google and sold to Priceline for $1.8 billion in 2012.

Resy is a restaurant booking app co-founded by Ben Leventhal (who previously built Eater, an influential food media brand) to help restaurants maximize revenue through dynamic pricing. The initial business model of charging diners higher rates for premium tables failed, but after pivoting, Resy found success and was acquired by American Express for $200 million in 2019.