Next Stop: Gen Z – How Omio Built the Fastest-Growing Student Travel Channel in Europe

The Challenge

In just twelve months, Omio set out to transform its Student Vertical from a niche initiative into Europe's fastest-growing travel-booking engine for Gen Z, embedding the brand in student culture across 24 countries and languages, a landscape marked by regulatory complexity and linguistic diversity.

The Strategy

By combining deep audience insight with a curated network of 49 campus-trusted partners, Omio offered exclusive discounts, closed-user-group benefits, and ambassador-led campaigns that resonated linguistically and culturally across the continent. A rigorous gap analysis uncovered untapped student platforms, laying the foundation for precise, localised growth.

The Work

In 2024 alone, 47 new partners were onboarded, with 15 already revenue-active. AI was used to operationally streamline partner selection alongside closed-user-group integrations. Real-time dashboards united teams around live performance data, enabling rapid optimisation on the fly. Legal compliance checks and cross-team collaboration underpinned every stage of delivery.

Results

Student bookings surged 261% year on year. Conversion rates jumped from 17% to 47%. App bookings grew 2,559% year on year, reinforcing the mobile-first strategy. The campaign also democratised mobility for students, offering cheaper, simpler access to travel at scale.

The Judges' Verdict

"A sophisticated blend of cultural relevance and data-driven precision."