Emilian Popa likes to get around. This French entrepreneur has lived and worked all over the world, and has recently landed in Beijing. His latest project, Wimdu, takes the concept of couch surfing and adds to it Chinese characteristics, allowing travelers more options, and giving landlords a secure way to earn additional income off their spare rooms. Curious to learn more about it, we met with Popa who shared the company’s vision for the Chinese market, as well as his favorite spots around the world.

Tell us a bit about yourself. I love traveling. I can count on my two hands the countries where I haven’t been yet. I love building things from scratch and seeing the growing “babies” taking shape. I have a clear affinity towards entrepreneurship, a deep curiosity about personal well being, and a renewed intention about my responsibility to activate my experience, expertise, and perspectives in work, play, and life. I’m French by nationality and culture, Romanian by blood, South African by home, I lived in New York, Moscow, Luanda, Paris, London… and many other places, sometime too many to create a stable life where I live. I’m now based in Beijing. I’m thrilled by the city, and by our growing Wimdu.

What about this project? How did you come up with it? Long story short, Rocket Internet wanted a truly global startup. Something even more global than Groupon. We loved the peer-to-peer short rentals/community business model, proven already in the US. We did it with the same rocket speed we applied already to our other startups. It’s only been two months since we started with a few people stuffed in a meeting room in Berlin, and few hundred people scattered across the world and building teams.

What about the name? Where did that come from? We didn’t want a name that includes words related to travel, rentals, and accommodation. We also wanted a global name. After a few nights brainstorming in Berlin, we came up with Wimdu. A simple and easyto- pronounce name that works in many languages, including Chinese.

How did you come up with the model? We currently target three markets. First, families who prefer to stay in apartments during their travels. During peak travel seasons, Chinese families usually travel in groups and prefer to wash their own clothes and cook their own meals. This mode of travel drastically decreases the cost of longer stays. Second, we find that international students generally prefer to use our service in their travels. Many of them are tired of run down hostels and want to immerse themselves in local culture by staying with a host. Third, large events and conventions are frequently held in China. Many apartment owners rented out their space during the Olympics to help travelers find reasonably priced and convenient accommodations. This type of rental property is becoming a popular choice amongst cost-conscious business travelers.

We presently reach these markets through various forms of online and offline marketing. In fact, one of our Facebook campaigns is doing quite well, garnering thousands of fans over the last couple of days. Granted, it helps when we reward devout Facebook fans with vouchers of considerable value.

How do you ensure the safety of people participating? Similar to eBay and Couch Surfing, Wimdu builds trust through a system of peer evaluation. In addition, a great deal of Wimdu properties and hosts are visited by our staff to ensure their overall quality and safety. Wimdu is also pioneering a transaction system that only transfers the rent to the host after the guest successfully checks in at the booked property. This system allows guests to receive a full refund of their money if there is any issue. Lastly, Wimdu has an enthusiastic multilingual staff ready to answer any questions from the host or guest, adding a comforting human touch to the cutting-edge digital platform.

What are the top ten places you’d recommend to people who come to Beijing and use your service? When Wimdu guests come to Beijing, we often recommend they stray off the beaten bath. After all, Wimdu is all about straying off the beaten path of hotels and hostels. One of my personal favorites is a beautifully renovated traditional courtyard located in a hutong just ten minutes from the popular Sanlitun Village area.

For travelers looking for more contemporary housing, we have a stellar apartment a mere tenminute walk from the Bird’s Nest with a bird’s eye view of the Olympic Park. This apartment also has a gym attached to it, which makes or a perfect get away for athletes. Besides Nanluoguoxiang, Sanlitun Village, Olympic Park, I would also recommend that our Beijing guests join a tour with 90 Percent Travel or Trekiz.com.

Where do you like to hang out? Running a start-up at Rocket speed of growth leaves me very little time to hang out. But when I do have the time, I like to take my colleagues out for a drink at the Brick or Grinders.