Spalba has been reshaping venue marketing and event planning through cutting-edge technology, including virtual tours, AI-powered solutions, and zero-commission models. Asmita Mukherjee delves into the transformative journey of Spalba with Vishal Puri, Co-Founder of the tech-forward platform.
How has Spalba’s virtual tour technology changed the way venues are marketed and booked, particularly in the hospitality industry?
At Spalba, we’ve completely transformed how venues are marketed and discovered, especially within the hospitality sector. In the past, hotels relied on brochures, static images, and in-person site visits to showcase their spaces. That process was time-consuming, inefficient, and didn’t always give the full picture.
Our virtual tours allow hotels and venues to showcase their spaces in a far more immersive and interactive way. Planners can explore layouts, understand space flows, and present options to their teams or clients without needing to travel. This has shortened sales cycles, improved lead quality, and brought greater transparency into the venue selection process.
Beyond just showcasing spaces, our technology empowers hotels to personalise the user experience at an unprecedented scale. Unlike physical personalisation methods, which are inherently limited by human resources and logistical constraints, our platform can tailor experiences for a vast number of customers simultaneously. Imagine a potential guest virtually exploring a hotel, and the tour dynamically adjusts to highlight amenities and room types based on their stated preferences or past interactions. This level of personalized engagement, delivered efficiently and effectively to a massive audience, is simply not achievable through traditional means. We enable hotels to offer a unique and relevant experience to every single customer, revolutionising how they connect and convert.
What role does AI play in enhancing the user experience for venue selection and planning on Spalba’s platform?
AI plays a very practical and helpful role on our platform. It goes beyond just showing venues based on location and capacity. Our AI helps users discover venues based on the kind of event they’re planning, the ideal layout, and even preferences like natural light or branding opportunities.
The true power of AI that we at Spalba are harnessing lies in its ability to convert unstructured data—like ideas, concepts, and subtle preferences—into structured data. Think of it this way: when a user expresses a desire for a “vibrant networking event with natural light and space for brand activations,” that’s an unstructured idea. Our AI takes these qualitative inputs and transforms them into quantifiable parameters that can then be used to initiate traditional workflows. This means our system can match those nuanced desires with specific venue features, available dates, and suitable layouts, which is a significant leap beyond simple keyword searches.
We’re also working on AI-driven suggestions for setups, pricing benchmarks, and better planning workflows. It’s like having a smart assistant that understands what you’re trying to create and helps you get there faster and more confidently, by turning your vision into a clear, actionable plan.
With a target of INR 100 crore revenue by FY26, how does Spalba plan to scale its technology and expand its reach in the hospitality and events sectors? Can you explain your business model?
We’re aiming for INR 100 crore not just as a revenue goal, but because we see clear demand and proven product-market fit across regions.
Our business model is subscription-based for hotels and venues. They pay to digitise their spaces and showcase them using our tools. Planners and agencies use the platform for mock setups, collaboration, and remote walkthroughs.
Our growth strategy includes expanding to new markets like Southeast Asia and the Middle East, investing in product development, and forming partnerships with hotel chains and agencies. We’re also building integrations with CRMs and other enterprise tools to become part of the larger planning workflow.
As sustainability becomes a critical factor in hospitality, how does Spalba integrate eco-friendly options or considerations into its venue management solutions?
Spalba is redefining sustainable event planning by significantly reducing the hospitality sector’s carbon footprint. Our virtual walkthroughs and digital mockups replace the need for physical site visits, cutting emissions, and minimizing resource use. By offering a comprehensive view of venues remotely, we reduce unnecessary travel for hotel inspections while streamlining decision-making processes.
This approach eliminates reliance on printed materials and ensures fewer last-minute changes or resource wastage in decorations or catering due to miscommunications. Additionally, Spalba’s tools allow planners to prioritize venues based on green certifications, energy efficiency, and waste management practices. By integrating sustainability into venue selection and hotel operations, Spalba enables a future of eco-conscious, efficient, and impactful event planning.
With increasing tech adoption in hospitality, how does Spalba differentiate itself from other players in the venue booking and event planning technology space?
Spalba doesn’t just stop at venue discovery; we’re the only platform in the world that completes the entire venue sourcing cycle. What truly sets us apart is the unparalleled depth of interaction we offer, guiding users from initial venue discovery to deep exploration, comprehensive planning and setup, seamless venue collaboration, and ultimately, successful final execution.
We’re not just helping planners find spaces; we’re empowering them to experience, plan, and execute within them like never before. Our digital twins are highly interactive, allowing planners to switch between different layouts, add branding elements, and understand precisely how a space works, all before ever stepping foot inside. This deep level of virtual engagement dramatically reduces guesswork and streamlines the entire process. Combined with our robust tools for remote collaboration and client presentations, Spalba stands alone as the most complete and integrated solution compared to standard listing platforms. We’ve built an end-to-end ecosystem that revolutionizes how events are planned and brought to life.
Post-pandemic, how have virtual tours and digital-first planning tools reshaped consumer and business preferences in the hospitality events industry?
The shift has been significant. During the pandemic, virtual tools became a necessity. Now, they’re an expectation. Planners want to evaluate venues quickly and confidently without always needing to travel. Clients want to be shown options visually and clearly.
Virtual walkthroughs, mock setups, and recorded tours have made the planning process faster and more collaborative. It’s no longer just about convenience. It’s become the standard way to plan events, especially for teams working across different locations.
How do you see technologies like VR, AR, and AI evolving in the next five years, and what role will Spalba play in shaping the future of hospitality and event planning?
In the next five years, we’ll see planning become far more immersive and data-driven. Technologies like VR and AR will be used not just for wow factor, but as everyday tools for reviewing and personalising event setups. AI will power insights, suggest improvements, and even automate parts of the planning process.
At Spalba, we’re already moving in that direction. Our virtual tours are compatible with VR, and our AI tools are being trained on real planning data. We want to make planning smarter, faster, and more visual, while staying grounded in what the hospitality industry actually needs.
With Spalba aiming for significant revenue growth and expansion, are there any plans for securing external funding or collaborations to accelerate technological advancements and market reach in the hospitality sector?
Yes, we are exploring funding and strategic collaborations. So far, we’ve grown with a strong focus on building the right product and delivering consistent value to our customers. But now, as we look at faster growth, we’re speaking with investors and partners who understand both the SaaS and hospitality space.
The goal is to invest in product development, expand to new markets, and build deeper partnerships with hotel groups, event companies, and regional platforms. We want to grow responsibly, but at a pace that matches the opportunity in front of us.
How is Spalba collaborating with B2B hospitality players, such as hotels and event venues, to streamline operations and enhance the overall event management experience for their clients?
We work closely with hotels and venues to improve how they sell and manage event inquiries. From digitising their spaces to providing tools for virtual familiarisation and proposals, we help their teams move faster and make a stronger impression.
Hotels use Spalba to share interactive walkthroughs, show mock setups, and reduce the time spent on physical show rounds. For sales teams, it’s a productivity win. For planners, it improves the experience. At the end of the day, we’re helping both sides speak the same visual language, which leads to faster decisions and better outcomes.
