Most founder interviews in the travel eSIM industry follow a familiar script: more destinations, better prices, faster growth and a promise to make connectivity simpler. This one does not.

Our conversation with LJ Walkey, founder of trvllr, was direct, opinionated and genuinely different from standard founder interviews. He does not simply argue that trvllr offers another way to buy mobile data. He questions the commercial model on which much of the travel eSIM market has been built.

His central criticism is breakage: travellers purchase fixed amounts of data for fixed periods, use only part of what they bought and then start again before their next trip. Providers compete through larger bundles, temporary discounts and increasingly complicated versions of “unlimited”, while the customer repeatedly makes the same decisions.

trvllr is betting on a different relationship. Its persistent global eSIM is connected to a pay-as-you-go wallet that remains available across trips. Customers do not need to predict whether they will use 3 GB or 10 GB, and their connectivity does not disappear simply because one journey has ended.

The proposition extends beyond consumers. Powered by TelliSIM, trvllr is also developing a white-label platform through which airlines, hotels, membership organisations and other travel brands can offer connectivity as part of their own customer experience.

Walkey’s claims are deliberately provocative, and some will undoubtedly be challenged by competitors. But that is precisely what makes the conversation valuable. It raises a more important question than which provider currently sells the cheapest gigabyte: is the travel eSIM industry making connectivity simpler, or has it merely digitised the old bundle model?

So, let’s go!

1. Most travel eSIM providers still sell connectivity around a destination and a fixed bundle. trvllr is pushing a persistent eSIM and wallet model instead. What problem did you see in the traditional travel eSIM journey that convinced you it needed to be redesigned?

I have been selling cellular connectivity for 28 years. It always struck me that connectivity is approached with a fixed-term contractual mindset. When I looked specifically at the travel eSIM space, this had been reduced to a single-use level: one day, three days, seven days.

The marketing was always about “your next trip” or “when you next travel”. There was nothing that said, “Our product solves your international connectivity needs forever.” I have always wanted to build long-term relationships with my clients, so I knew that I needed to change the traveller mindset. To do that, I needed to change the model itself.

2. “One eSIM across trips” is an attractive message, but trvllr is not the only provider moving towards persistent global connectivity. Where do you believe trvllr is genuinely different from other global PAYG eSIM products?

I agree, and eventually I believe that all eSIM vendors will have no choice but to operate on this model. The data-bundle model is a race to the bottom. We all know this, yet the industry continues trying to win it. I find that suicidal for any business.

This race is also driving vendors to become very creative with their differentiation and marketing, which is causing immense confusion: discounts, promotions, special offers, hidden or unclear fair-usage policies and misleading terms such as “unlimited”.

I built trvllr around one simple concept: simplicity. There is no easier way to connect internationally. You have an account, load it with a balance of your choice, know the price per gigabyte at your destination and consume data as you need it.

We removed everything that was confusing—every decision and every element of guesswork about how much data a traveller would need or for how long. In fact, we even removed all the unnecessary letters from the trvllr brand.

3. trvllr effectively asks travellers to think about connectivity as an account they keep rather than a product they buy before every trip. Is changing that customer behaviour harder than building the technology itself?

Absolutely. But remember, we have not changed the technology. Our eSIMs work in the same way as everyone else’s. We do not profess to be better or faster than anyone else—why would we? We all use largely the same infrastructure.

Consumers have always assumed that buying anything in a bundle or multipack represents better value. We have been conditioned this way in every aspect of our lives, so why would anyone contemplate that a data bundle could be different? Clearly, buying 5 GB of data would offer better value than buying 1 GB at a time, right? That only works if you use all of it, and most travellers do not.

“Buying 5 GB of data would offer better value than buying 1 GB at a time, right? That only works if you use all of it—and most travellers do not.”

They either overestimate or underestimate their needs; either way, it skews the value proposition. Even when travellers consume exactly the amount of data they purchased, our flat-rate pricing is often cheaper than many vendors’ bundles when broken down to a per-gigabyte cost.

Trying to educate a traveller that a time-restricted, fixed data bundle may not offer the best value is difficult—especially when we have about three seconds of their attention in which to do it. But we are doing our best.

4. Your PAYG model removes the familiar question of whether someone should buy 3 GB, 5 GB or 10 GB before travelling. Bundles can, however, offer very aggressive pricing. For which type of trip or traveller does trvllr clearly offer a better proposition, and when might a traditional bundle still make more sense?

This is where the numbers matter. No eSIM vendor actively publishes its breakage data. Why would it publicise how much data its customers pay for but never use? We therefore have to work with averages.

The industry assumes that most average travellers use 3–5 GB on a seven-day trip and travel internationally two or three times per year. If we compare average prices from the top ten eSIM vendors for bundles of up to and including 10 GB, our PAYG flat rates are nearly always better value—even on a per-gigabyte basis.

If you go further, factor in breakage, calculate the wastage and adjust the effective per-gigabyte cost of a package for the data actually consumed, our value advantage can extend towards the 20 GB mark. Across two or three trips per year, and compared with bundles of up to 20 GB, trvllr wins nearly every time. Above that level, we begin to lose our advantage.

That is fine with us. We cannot and should not profess to be suitable for every traveller—just the vast majority.

5. One of the more interesting elements is the ability for multiple eSIMs to draw from the same wallet. How do you see that evolving beyond families into business travel, teams or other managed-connectivity use cases?

Why should it not? We have already shown that this is the simplest and fairest way to connect for most travellers. If you look at larger enterprise use cases, they are often simply super-breakage business models: annual pricing, monthly terabyte packages and domestic enterprise accounts with international data-bundle add-ons.

The problem is not with the user; it is with the breakage model itself. You can apply the trvllr wallet system at any scale or to any use case, and it will offer better value for the vast majority of them. I challenge any enterprise to show me otherwise.

Remember, I spent 28 years selling IoT and enterprise connectivity packages and bundles. I know very well how the dark side of this industry works. I was part of the problem, and I was very good at it.

“I spent 28 years selling IoT and enterprise connectivity packages and bundles. I was part of the problem—and I was very good at it.”

Enterprise customers want peace of mind and the ability to forecast and budget every month. That is their pain point, but it does not necessarily mean a fixed package is the best financial solution. Put me in front of a CEO, and I will walk out of that room with a trvllr contract. The breakage-model maths never stacks up in hindsight. Enterprise connectivity, however, is rarely sold on cost; it is sold on security, convenience and peace of mind.

6. Shared connectivity sounds simple from the customer’s side, but businesses will eventually want controls: limits per user, alerts, permissions, cost centres and detailed usage visibility. How far can trvllr already go in that direction?

With consumers, education is essential to demonstrating value. Enterprise is a different animal: what businesses need and what they want are often miles apart.

The PAYG wallet system scales up or down to any level, but convincing an enterprise that it does not need a fixed monthly fee to ensure international connectivity for its staff is extremely difficult for the reasons already mentioned. These packages are often sold with large terabyte allowances on a use-it-or-lose-it model, followed by out-of-bundle charges. In my opinion, that is criminal—especially when charging per gigabyte or terabyte, with no out-of-bundle fees and a simple pay-for-what-you-use approach, can be more cost-effective for the same reasons it is for consumers.

“No eSIM vendor actively publishes its breakage data. Why would it publicise how much data its customers pay for but never use?”

The issue is that this flexible approach is alien to many enterprise decision-makers. They want security, control and peace of mind. They may accept paying more than necessary as long as they can account for and justify the expense. I believe there is a better alternative, but enterprises have to let go of their bundle bias.

Control remains with the enterprise when using trvllr. The business tops up an account and consumes the balance as it goes instead of paying a fixed monthly fee. Consumption data, individual usage, monitoring and alerts are still available. We are developing a roadmap that covers all these enterprise needs; we simply do not expect businesses to pay for data they do not use.

7. Many eSIM providers compete on country count, headline prices and unlimited-data claims. Those are increasingly difficult ways to differentiate. What metric do you think travellers should actually use when comparing eSIM providers?

There is a reason these metrics are used: partly because they are difficult to prove or disprove. Returning to the industry averages, most travellers visit common, well-covered destinations. They consume the average amount of data, travel the average number of times and expect to pay as little as possible.

They have little understanding of the factors that can affect the travel eSIM experience—latency, breakout, handoff and permanent roaming—and nor should they need to. In my opinion, if a vendor says it covers 220 countries when there are fewer than 200 sovereign states, that is a marketing red flag. “Destinations” is not the same as “countries”, so the industry should get the terminology right.

“Travel brands should not treat eSIM primarily as a revenue-generation concept. The greater opportunity is to make the customer journey as convenient as possible.”

It should also stop using the term “unlimited”. Within the industry, we may understand that fair-usage policies or conditions sit behind the term, but consumers often do not. In my view, that makes the claim misleading.

The best metric available to consumers is to examine a provider’s reviews—all of them—and ask people they know and trust which services they have used. Marketing alone is not enough. This is one reason every trvllr member automatically receives their own affiliate feature, although they can choose whether or not to use and share it. We do not plan to rely on heavy social-media advertising. Instead, customers can share their unique QR codes with people they know and receive a reward for doing so.

There is no stronger testimony to a product’s effectiveness than organic word-of-mouth growth. We will live or die by what we deliver, not by what our marketing budget can achieve.

8. Pricing transparency remains a weak point across the travel eSIM market. With PAYG particularly, customers need to understand exactly what a gigabyte will cost before they travel. How do you ensure trvllr’s pricing remains predictable when underlying wholesale connectivity costs can vary significantly by market?

We are not particularly interested in following every rise and fall in the wholesale market. We set our pricing at a level we believe is fair. Because we are not pushing a breakage model, the value we offer is not limited to the cost per gigabyte; it lies in the total cost of the data a customer consumes over a longer period.

The longer you remain a trvllr customer, the more value you derive. We have to ensure our customers remain loyal, or our model fails. We are not chasing the next download with special offers and discounts. We want customers to see the value, download trvllr and forget it. Just travel and connect. Chasing price serves no one.

9. trvllr is powered by TelliSIM. Where does trvllr end and TelliSIM begin, and what does that relationship allow you to control that a typical eSIM reseller may not be able to control?

trvllr is a brand and a concept built around fair value. I developed it after seeing what I believed was wrong with the travel eSIM space.

When I started down this road, I did not want to build the service myself. I wanted to become a reseller for an existing eSIM business, but I wanted to sell connectivity in the same way as IoT—on a wholesale basis. I approached 18 of the leading eSIM vendors and asked whether they would allow me to do this. Not one agreed. “It’s not what we do” was the main explanation.

I believed the real reason was that breakage is a healthy commercial model, even if it is not necessarily the fairest one for travellers. So I used my network and spoke to TelliSIM. I explained my concerns, vision and ambition for the industry. I told them we would be swimming against the tide for a long time. I needed a partner that could build and provide what I wanted but also believed in what I was trying to achieve.

TelliSIM’s capabilities and willingness to pursue this with us for the customer’s benefit set it apart. I wanted a platform partner that would allow us to change direction quickly, onboard new affiliates and white-label the platform when needed—all in support of simplicity and fair value. TelliSIM is the backbone of everything we do.

10. That raises an important industry question. A polished storefront is easy to build; the difficult part is what happens underneath it. When you assess another travel eSIM provider, what tells you whether it has genuine connectivity infrastructure and operational capability behind the brand?

This industry is full of polished storefronts. When a company sells a short-term product acquired for a single trip, and assumes it may lose that customer to a competitor on the next journey, is it really motivated to care if that customer is unhappy? I would go as far as saying that the vast majority of vendors are built largely on smoke and mirrors.

I spend my evenings reading eSIM reviews and social-media comments. They are full of complaints: “It never worked”, “I couldn’t connect”, “My speed was slow”, “It was permanently buffering” or “I couldn’t reach anyone for help.” In my view, the reason the industry does not care enough is that it assumes each customer will leave after the trip anyway.

With trvllr, we need customers to stay. It is the only way our model works. If we deliver a poor or ineffective product, we will not succeed. Our entire success depends on word-of-mouth referrals and organic growth; in short, we have to deliver.

Until someone has purchased an eSIM, travelled, connected and returned home, it can be difficult to know how well the service will perform. This is one reason large vendors spend millions on customer acquisition and why, in our market assessment, the average customer-acquisition cost can reach around $40. Providers may advertise millions of users, but those numbers are frequently based on downloads rather than retention. They rarely disclose how many customers later leave for a competitor.

11. Coverage figures can be misleading because two providers may advertise the same country while delivering very different networks, routing, latency or fallback options. How does trvllr approach network selection, and what can you offer customers beyond simply saying, “We cover this destination”?

We give customers control. The price remains the same regardless of which available network they choose within a country. Nearly all our destinations have at least two networks available. If one is not working well, customers can try another.

We do not lock networks down. Our eSIM does have preferred networks that it will select when available, but that selection is based on performance rather than cost. Customers remain free to change the network if they wish.

12. The real test of an eSIM service often comes when something goes wrong: a customer deletes the profile, changes phone, loses a device or arrives somewhere and cannot connect. How does trvllr handle recovery, and do you think recovery time should become a standard industry metric?

Because trvllr’s value sits in the wallet and that wallet never expires, the account value remains intact if a customer has a problem or accidentally loses the eSIM. We simply allow the customer to download a new eSIM and continue using the existing balance. Our model is almost eSIM-independent; it is the wallet and account that hold the value.

I am not sure recovery time can easily become a public metric because much of it may be user-driven, but response time certainly could. We offer AI-assisted WhatsApp integration for enterprises to help report incidents and contact support, as well as 24/7 email support.

13. trvllr is increasingly presenting itself as a white-label platform for travel, hospitality and membership brands. Why should a hotel group, airline, loyalty programme or travel company launch its own connectivity proposition instead of simply joining an eSIM affiliate programme?

These businesses are not telcos, and offering a telecom service is not the primary reason they should consider eSIM. For most, it should be about customer loyalty, brand recognition, retention and the wider customer experience. These brands need to own the whole customer journey.

When an airline sells a Saily eSIM, the connectivity provider—not necessarily the airline—may receive much of the credit for a good experience. Most travellers, however, care little about the brand behind their eSIM. As I mentioned earlier, trvllr has been specifically built to be forgotten. When people travel, they remember the hotel, the airline and the experience.

“trvllr has been specifically built to be forgotten. When people travel, they remember the hotel, the airline and the experience.”

If these businesses can distinguish themselves by adding a branded value-added service such as an eSIM, it enhances the customer experience and can strengthen recognition, retention and, ultimately, loyalty. Think of Revolut and its 1GLOBAL-powered eSIM. It is a strong product, but most users do not know that 1GLOBAL powers it. They simply see another useful Revolut feature—one that may help retain their loyalty when they compare it with competing services.

Travel brands should not treat eSIM primarily as a revenue-generation concept; compared with their core products, the direct revenue may be relatively small. The greater opportunity is to make the customer journey as convenient as possible.

14. White-label eSIM is becoming a crowded category. If a travel brand is comparing trvllr with several other API and white-label providers, in which two or three areas would you expect trvllr to win that comparison?

PAYG wallet, speed to market and support.

Although we are seeing a slight increase in PAYG wallet systems or variations of them, they remain relatively rare. By offering both a wallet system and prepaid bundles, trvllr lets clients choose their preferred model from the beginning.

Speed to market is also essential. Depending on a client’s needs, we can have a fully white-labelled solution running in weeks rather than months. As for support, we manage it all: customer support, technical response and onboarding. Our clients only need to promote the service.

15. Looking three years ahead, do you expect travellers to continue actively shopping for “an eSIM” before each journey, or will connectivity eventually disappear inside airline apps, hotel memberships, financial products and other travel services? Where do you want trvllr to sit in that ecosystem?

Unfortunately, I do expect travellers to continue actively shopping for eSIMs. I hope that changes, but I cannot see the market changing the consumer mindset while it continues to promote the existing model. As long as companies such as Airalo and Holafly use multimillion-dollar marketing budgets to promote bundles, this will remain the norm for many years.

I do expect mobile network operators eventually to make a more concerted effort to offer international eSIMs instead of daily roaming charges. Even then, I do not believe those offers will be as competitive as a dedicated travel eSIM platform built with the customer in mind. Operators will be competing largely on convenience.

Here is the trvllr concept: we want users always to have a positive balance, which is why it never expires. If you already have money available on an existing eSIM, why would you abandon it, download a new one and start again—especially if the service has worked well?

Conclusion: The real bet is retention

The most important distinction in this interview is not simply PAYG versus prepaid bundles. It is the difference between a business model built around repeatedly acquiring transactions and one that depends on keeping the same customer connected across multiple journeys.

That changes the commercial incentives. A destination-bundle provider can win another sale through price, promotion or advertising. A persistent-wallet provider has to give customers a reason not to shop again. As the trvllr founder puts it, the company must “live or die by what we deliver, not by what our marketing budget can achieve.”

There are still important questions for trvllr to answer. Heavy data users may continue to find better value in large bundles. Enterprise customers will expect sophisticated controls, reporting and governance before abandoning familiar contracts. And the company’s strongest claims about breakage and comparative value will ultimately need to be demonstrated with real usage and retention data.

Yet trvllr’s most interesting opportunity may be on the B2B side. Airlines, hotels and financial or membership platforms do not necessarily need to become eSIM retailers. They need connectivity to make their own customer journey work better. In that context, trvllr’s description of itself as “built to be forgotten” is not a weakness. It may be the clearest articulation of what embedded connectivity is supposed to become: useful at the exact moment it is needed, but invisible as a separate telecom purchase.

If trvllr’s model works, its most meaningful metrics will not be destination count, app downloads or the size of its advertised bundles. They will be repeat usage, wallet longevity, customer retention and the amount of paid-for data travellers no longer waste.

That is a more difficult proposition to prove than “10 GB for €9.99”. It is also a much more interesting market position.