VenueKonnex

VenueKonnex is a marketplace that connects venues, service providers, and event planners with companies and individuals looking to host corporate events, team offsites, pop-ups, private parties, and more. We are building the “Airbnb for event venues”—a platform where users can search, compare, and book unique spaces and services in a few clicks.

Problem:

Booking a venue or event service is still an outdated and fragmented process. Customers often rely on Google searches, cold calls, and disjointed communication across email and phone to find and book venues. On the supply side, venues and service providers lack a centralized platform to showcase their offerings and manage bookings effectively. There’s no efficient marketplace that handles event space discovery, services, and transaction in one place.

Solution:

VenueKonnex offers a streamlined platform where:

• Hosts (venues) list their properties for free and only pay a referral fee upon successful bookings.

• Service Providers (caterers, photographers, decorators, AV technicians) can list their offerings alongside venues.

• Customers (primarily corporate HR, event planners, and office admins) can find and book complete event packages—venue plus services—in one go.

We’ve created an MVP using WordPress and HivePress, modeled after the Airbnb user experience. Our AI-powered tools will soon help automate outreach to venue owners and dynamically suggest pricing based on demand. We’re also developing concierge-style booking support and negotiation services to help clients secure the best deals, even for unlisted venues.

Business Model:

• Referral Fee: We collect a referral fee from venues upon successful bookings. A portion of that fee is given back to the customer as a rebate to incentivize usage.

• Subscription (optional): Venues and service providers can opt into a $30/month subscription that reduces their referral fee—presented as a no-risk marketing option.

• Premium Listings & Ads: In the future, we will offer promoted placements and featured listings for increased visibility.

Traction:

We have over 1,500 venue listings across the U.S. and are expanding weekly. Our early growth has been bootstrapped with a team of part-timers helping to source listings, and we’re now shifting focus to customer acquisition.

Team:

• Jose Bulatao (Founder & CEO): Tech veteran with experience at Apple, HP, and Adobe. Holds an IT degree, MBA, and certifications in PMP, MCSE, CCNA, and AI/ML.

• Supported by a small remote team handling listing generation, outreach, and platform management.

Vision:

We’re not just creating a venue marketplace—we’re building an ecosystem. Our long-term vision is to incorporate AI for matchmaking, personalized event planning, dynamic pricing, and integrate token-based incentives for referrals and engagement. Think of VenueKonnex as the central hub for all things related to in-person corporate and private events.