Prominent venture capitalist Tim Draper has invested US$3.5 million in Tribe Theory, an entrepreneur-focused hostel chain with a presence in multiple locations in the world.
With the strategic investment, the Singapore-headquartered hostel chain will rebrand to Draper Startup House and form the international division of the business, said a press note.
Katie Russel and Daniel Wiegand have jointly founded the parent company Draper Startup House in the US, which will operate the US business activities and oversee its minority stake in the international partnership.
These two operations will collaborate to expand hostel locations globally.
“Tim and his team immediately understood our vision and made an offer to invest in us and work with us to build out this concept globally under the brand Draper Startup House. This was the differentiator we were seeking,” said Tribe Theory Founder Vikram Bharati.
(In Photos) Tribe Theory’s venture hostel for entrepreneurs and startups in Singapore
“This rebrand will put us on the course of building what we had set out to — hospitality as the foundation of an entrepreneurship ecosystem. It will propel our mission much further because we are now part of a larger ecosystem,” Bharati added.
Tribe Theory is present in eight international locations, including Bali, Singapore, Yangon, Estonia, Manila, Lisbon, as well as two locations in Bangalore. They all will be rebranded to Draper Startup House.
The first US location will open in March 2020 in Austin, TX at SXSW, with additional locations following the investment.
In addition to the short- and long-term accommodations offered by Draper Startup House, entrepreneurs will get a co-working space, custom programming focused on entrepreneurship, and access to VC funding. They will also be able to submit their pitch decks to the Draper Venture Network, which has 23 global funds.
“Draper Startup House provides global live/workspaces for entrepreneurs where they can connect, be inspired, and build a community,” said Draper. “Draper Startup House community members join a powerful global network of innovators and influencers. It provides resources and activities to help them succeed in their missions.”
Draper Startup House is an expansion of Tim Draper’s global brand which includes Draper Venture Network, Draper Associates and Draper University.
Since 1985, Tim Draper has been focused on supporting and accelerating entrepreneurial work through his Draper Ecosystem. He has been an early investor in more than 30 unicorns including Hotmail, Skype, Tesla, SpaceX, Baidu and Bitcoin.
In March last year, Tribe Theory raised about US$740,000 in seed funding from Superangel, Aurum Investments, and REAPRA.
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