[ad_1]
Each week we round up travel startups that have recently received or announced funding. Please email Senior Travel Tech Editor Sean O’Neill at so@skift.com if you have funding news.
This week, travel startups announced more than $5 million in funding.
>>Holidu, a travel tech startup, raised more than $4.6 million (€4 million) from former Booking.com CEO Kees Koolen out of his personal fund as part of a $5.8 million (€5 million) extension to its Series C round.
Holidu’s signature business is a price-comparison search tool for vacation homes. The Munich-based company has raised more than $55 million to date, according to Crunchbase.
More than 27 million users visited the Holidu website in July, resulting in more than two-and-a-half times as many reservations year-over-year. That growth translated to more than $150 million in gross bookings for July. The company said it is profitable on an earnings before interest and taxes basis.
Holidu’s subsidiary Bookiply provides channel management software to help property managers with online distribution and digital marketing.
Brothers Johannes and Michael Siebers founded the company in 2014. Across all its businesses, Holidu has more than 200 workers.
>>Holibob, a service that connects tours-and-activities operators with resellers, has raised an undisclosed amount of seed investment.
Holibob’s product portfolio includes 75,000 products, said chief financial officer Angus Hardy. Its board members include Michel Taride, former group president of Hertz International. The London-based startup is a winter 2020 class member of the Plug and Play accelerator.
Nathan Adams, chief commercial officer, has extensive experience at major travel brands, and Graeme Bryce, chief technology officer has worked for UBS and JP Morgan.
>>Note: Earlier this week, Skift reported that venture capital firm Howzat Partners expects to raise up to $120 million (€100 million) for a new fund that will invest in travel startups and other digital businesses.
Skift Cheat Sheet:
We define a startup as a company formed to test and build a repeatable and scalable business model. Few companies meet that definition. The rare ones that do often attract venture capital. Their funding rounds come in waves.
Seed capital is money used to start a business, often led by angel investors and friends or family.
Series A financing is typically drawn from venture capitalists. The round aims to help a startup’s founders make sure that their product is something that customers truly want to buy.
Series B financing is mainly about venture capitalist firms helping a company grow faster. These fundraising rounds can assist in recruiting skilled workers and developing cost-effective marketing.
Series C financing is ordinarily about helping a company expand, such as through acquisitions. In addition to VCs, hedge funds, investment banks, and private equity firms often participate.
Series D, E and beyond These mainly mature businesses and the funding round may help a company prepare to go public or be acquired. A variety of types of private investors might participate.
Photo Credit: From left, Holidu’s co-founder and chief technology officer Michael Siebers and Johannes Siebers, co-founder and CEO, at their Munich office. The Munich-based booking service for vacation rentals has raised more than $55 million in funding from venture capital investors. Holidu
[ad_2]
Source link