Youth Hostel Brand goSTOPS Secures Rs 35 Cr in Series A Funding Led by Blume Ventures to Scale Across 100 Locations

• Funding to fuel 4X expansion, tech upgrades & enhanced experiences for young travellers
• The funding round also saw participation from 1Crowd along with other existing investors

goSTOPS, India’s leading youth travel hostel brand, has raised INR 35 Crore ($4.2 million) in its Series A funding led by Blume Ventures with continued support from co-lead investor 1Crowd. Other existing investors, including Mumbai Angels, Chennai Angels, Indian Angel Network, Lead Angels, and Yuj Ventures, also participated in the round, reaffirming their confidence in goSTOPS' vision and its strong growth trajectory.

With this fresh infusion of equity capital, goSTOPS is set to expand its capacity from 2,500 to 10,000 beds across 100 locations in the next 24 months, achieving 4X growth. The funding will be used to strengthen operations, enhance technology, and elevate the social and experiential aspects of its existing properties, reinforcing goSTOPS as the preferred travel and lifestyle brand for India’s youth. In addition, the company is also finalising debt partnerships to expand its war chest for the brand’s expansion.

Founded by Pallavi Agarwal and Pankaj Parwanda, goSTOPS has redefined travel for India’s youth. Over the past few years, the company has demonstrated remarkable resilience, scaling rapidly despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Today, as travel surges and young travellers increasingly choose hostels over hotels, goSTOPS is leading this shift with its vibrant, community-driven spaces.

Pallavi Agarwal, Founder & CEO at goSTOPS

Pankaj Parwanda, Co-Founder, goSTOPS

Commenting on the fundraise, Pallavi Agarwal, Founder & CEO at goSTOPS, said, "At goSTOPS, we are redefining how young travellers experience India—offering vibrant, social, and design-led spaces for the new generation. This investment reflects the trust our investors have in our vision and the category we are building. With their continued support, we are set to scale goSTOPS into India’s most preferred youth travel brand—by expanding our footprint while staying true to our promise of making the transformative power of travel accessible to young Indians.

Talking about the investment, Ashish Fafadia, Partner at Blume Ventures said, “goSTOPS has built a category-defining brand by combining deep operational expertise, smart asset management, and tech-driven efficiencies. Their ability to optimise unit economics while scaling rapidly is a testament to the team’s tenacity and strategic vision. We are excited to back their journey as they continue to expand and transform the youth travel experience in India.”

Anil Gudibande, co-founder of 1Crowd, who has co-lead the funding, said, “As an early backer of goSTOPS, we always believed that the brand was more than just a hostel chain — it’s a youth brand with the potential to shape travel and lifestyle choices. The founders’ ingenuity, and deep understanding of their audience have been key to their success. Their team isn’t just about asset utilisation; it’s about creating experiences that resonate with young travellers. This belief has been central to us leading the company's multiple rounds of equity financing, and we are now excited to see the next phase of their growth.”

According to market research, 70% of young travellers now prefer hostels over traditional hotels, underscoring the growing demand for the category. goSTOPS is leading this shift with its company-managed hostels, ensuring full control over service quality and customer experience. Designed for digital-native travellers, the brand creates dynamic spaces where guests can connect, grow, and explore new destinations together.

About goSTOPS:

goSTOPS is a leading youth travel hostel brand, redefining travel for youth with its vibrant, design-led social spaces.

Founded in 2014 by Pallavi Agarwal and Pankaj Parwanda, goSTOPS has rapidly expanded to 30+ locations, offering 2500+ beds designed for the new-age traveller.

More than just a place to stay, goSTOPS is a community-led, tech-first brand that creates immersive experiences for digital-native young travellers.

With bold aesthetics, dynamic social spaces, and seamless technology, it’s where exploration meets connection.

With the ethos of “goMORE. beMORE.”, goSTOPS empowers young adventurers to explore freely, connect deeply, and experience travel as a way of life

Rental Accommodation Platform Colive Announces 'Stay Scholarship' for Afghan Students in India

Suresh Rangarajan, Founder and CEO - Colive

Colive, India’s leading prop-tech platform for rental accommodation, launched #CoLiveAndLetLive to offer 100 stay scholarships for Afghan students stranded in India. These students need to complete an online application form, submit a 30-second video, along with all KYC documents, including FRRO registration and a bonafide college certificate, to apply for this scholarship. Students can stay rent free in any of the Colive properties spread across 4 cities (Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai & Pune) for the current semester or until December 31st, 2021. Colive has already received 15 applications, and five Afghan students have moved into Colive’s property in Bengaluru.

With the threat of bank accounts being frozen and limited contact with family back home, the mental stress that the students are going through is agonising. The initiative by Colive has been welcomed by Afghan students and their friends in the student community.

Suresh Rangarajan, Founder & CEO, Colive, said, “Attithi Devo Bhava” is a true Indian spirit and we wanted to do something in our control to offer comfort for the Afghan students who have come here to pursue their higher education. It is our small way of helping these deserving students to avail themselves of a stay scholarship that has been rolled out now!”

Abdullah Masoudi, an Afghan student, studying at Jain University said “This gesture from Colive shows the real heart of Indians and Indian startup ecosystem. We have only heard about their hunger for growth & valuation, but with this stay scholarship, shows the human side of business. Long live Colive!”

Anyone can spread the message by posting on social media handles about the stay scholarship with #CoLiveAndLetLive so that deserving Afghan students can apply.

In an earlier announcement, Colive offered stay scholarship for deserving Indian students pursuing higher education in urban markets across the country. Students need to fill in basic details online and share along with a 30 second video reel online. Upon selection, the entire semester stay will be free for these students. Only food and consumables need to be paid for every month, while the stay will be completely free.

What Facilities The Students Can Get In Accommodation?

Every student should cherish high aspiration to shine in their career. If you are a student and wish to aspire in your life, you need to go for a good college or a good university. But always it is not possible to get a good educational institution nearby your house. You may have to go elsewhere in order to pursue higher studies. Many a times you do not get good hostel facility in the places you are going to study. Even if you get a good college also, it may happen that the amenities available there do not match your taste. If you are going through such a phase in your life, you can opt for the services provided by the Amber students, who takes complete care of the private student accommodation Edinburgh. You as a student will be greatly facilitated by the exclusive services provided by this organization. Here by going through this article, you will be able to have an overview of the facilities provided by the Amber students.

Quality accommodation is provided -This renowned organization has gained their name and fame by arranging for good quality accommodation for the students. They take care of the fact that every facility is provided to the students who come to stay in a distant place leaving their homes. They take the details of the requirements by the students and accordingly arrange for an accommodation. They take care of the fact that the place where the students are getting accommodated are not over crowded.


No hassles while settling for the rent-The Amber students gives you a completely hassle free rent settlement. You are all well aware of the amount of hassles you have to face while settling for a rent in the place you want to get an accommodation. A lots of paper works and running here and there in order to settle things perfectly is really a matter of pain for many of you. But through the excellent services provided by the Amber students, you will be able to get all these work done without any delay and without really facing any such hassles. All the legal works are completed online which save both your energy and precious time.


Comfortable accommodation is of prior importance -The Amber students have been able to attain a good name in the field of arranging students accommodation for various reasons. One of the main and important reasons behind this is, they give prior importance in taking care of the level of comfort being received by the students. This reputed organization is aware that the students are coming all the way from their homes leaving their families behind so a good amount of care and comfort is badly required to make them feel ad ease. The Amber students arranges for good quality accommodation for the students. If the students are placed in a place which is overcrowded, they face a lot of difficulties in concentrating in their studies. Staying in an overcrowded place also creates difficulty in adjusting with the other room mates which is again a big issue. With the excellent services provided by this organization, you will not have any difficulty regarding this at all.


Safety is taken good care of- Sending the children to a distant place for studying and making them stay in altogether a different place, make you feel too worried as parents. You are always eager to know about their safety and security. To know about the safety of a certain place sitting far away from that place is next to impossible. But the Amber students takes entire care about the safety and security of the place where the students are accommodated. So you can remain assured of your children’s being safe if you have availed services from the Amber students.

Convenient accommodation is provided – The Amber students always look after the fact that your place of staying is in a proper lucrative area, where every facility regarding the conveyance is available. They provide the students with an accommodation in such an area from where they will not have any problem in reaching their educational institutions. Often it is seen that if the accommodation is far away from the colleges or universities, the students face a lot of problems in reaching there. In this way their valuable time also gets wasted and hence they become tired and are left with very little time to study.


They provide budget friendly accommodation- This well known organization has gained its popularity in the field of arranging students accommodation also because of their budget friendly nature. They offer their services in a number of packages. You can choose the package which you feel is the most convenient for you. You will find the packages to be very much pocket friendly which will allure you to avail services from them.

Online documentation of everything is done- This organization takes care of the documentation of everything online. They offer their best of their services to you online. So in order to get the best online advantages of students accommodation, you do not need to run from one place to the other anymore, you can now easily rely on the Amber students for their excellence in offering their services to you online. Even after the process of accommodation is completed, they retain their bonding with the parents as well as the students and keep every track of their problems online.


Helpline is available – Since the students are staying alone in the place of their accommodation, they may face certain difficulties during their stay. The Amber students’ helpline number is open twenty four hours in order to listen to and solve your issues. So in case you are facing any problem while you are staying some where, you will not have to worry anymore or hesitate in telling it to anyone. You can just dial the helpline number and register your problems over there. Soon it will be sorted out by the organization.