WHAT'S IN MY PORTFOLIO

What's In My Portfolio: Ethan Lin

Photography by Chino Sardea
04 Nov 2022

Ethan Lin is the CEO & Co-Founder of Klook.

“Growing up in the US, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and mainland China, you could say that I have been a globetrotter from a young age.

The idea of Klook started back in 2013 when my co-founder Eric and I were on a trip to Nepal. We faced various challenges and frustrations comparing tour activities, prices, and even having enough local currency to pay for local experiences. Since then, we’ve become the go-to platform for travel and experiences in Asia.

The travel industry was one of the hardest hit by the pandemic over the last couple of years and we experienced our most challenging time at the pandemic’s peak. However, we saw this as a moment to be agile and shift gears. We made quick pivots to adjust our corporate structure and capitalize on new opportunities, particularly domestic tourism – introducing new products like staycations, car rentals, and cruises.

We also built a wider range and variety of experiences and new product categories. These efforts have paid off as international travel returned and travel restrictions loosened. By growing the variety of experiences that locals would want, this in turn deepened the variety of experiences that international tourists could enjoy, which are more connected to the local culture. We also recently celebrated our 8th anniversary, with one of our strongest quarters yet. It’s so important to be flexible and adaptable in today’s environment and you cannot afford to sit idle!

To be honest, there’s a buzz in the air and we haven’t felt this amount of excitement across the industry in a long time. The resurgence of travel has been amazing and almost surreal when we consider how the pandemic first shuttered everything. With Japan, Hong Kong, and Taiwan loosening travel restrictions as well, we see the light at the end of the tunnel. The desire to travel is stronger than ever and as the category leader for experiences, we are doubling down on bringing the best experiences and even marquee events to our customers.”