MONTREAL — There were plenty of reasons why travel startups Sonder and Hopper could have been two of the more whimsically named companies to go under because of COVID-19. After all, Sonder, a short-term-rental firm, and Hopper, a travel-booking app, offer accommodations and air travel in an era of lockdowns and idled jets.
Yet both companies are very much alive, and growing despite the travel industry’s enduring pandemic hangover. And both used a combination of strategic layoffs and timely, VC-backed cash infusions to see themselves through the worst of the pandemic.
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