Holidu raises $45M after growing profitably amidst the corona crisis
Munich, May 12th, 2021
We are very proud to announce that we have secured another financing round with $45M in capital. The Series D funding round is led by 83North with participation from existing investors; Prime Ventures, EQT Ventures, Coparion, Senovo, Kees Koolen, Lios Ventures, Venture Stars and Chris Hitchen. Claret Capital (formerly Harbert European Growth Capital) also participated with both equity and debt. The new investment brings the company’s total funding to more than $120M since its foundation.
Michael and Johannes Siebers
The company’s mission is to make the search and booking of vacation rentals easy. Holidu is active in 21 countries with its search engine that combines more than 15 million vacation rental offers from over a thousand travel sites and property managers. Under the Bookiply brand, the company also helps vacation rental owners to get more bookings with less effort through a software-and-service solution.
Despite the COVID-19 pandemic hitting the travel industry especially hard, in 2020 Holidu’s revenues grew substantially compared to 2019. Moreover, its search business became operationally profitable. In July 2020 alone, more than 27 million travelers used the Holidu website, making it one of the largest platforms for vacation rentals worldwide. Also, Bookiply significantly expanded its customer base of vacation rental owners and has become the largest supplier of vacation rentals in important leisure destinations such as the Balearic Islands, Canary Islands and Sardinia.
Holidu in numbers
The new funding will enable Holidu to further accelerate both, the profitable growth of its vacation rental search engine and the expansion of its vacation rental software business with Bookiply. The company plans to double its technology organization and to invest in new partnerships for supply acquisition to best meet the increased demand of travelers for private accommodation. To offer the best possible service for regional vacation rental owners, the company is opening further Bookiply offices across Europe.
Johannes Siebers
Johannes Siebers, CEO and Co-founder of Holidu, says: “The desire to travel again is huge and holiday rentals are perfectly suited to serve the rebound. Despite ongoing lock-downs, our bookings in 2021 are already significantly higher than pre-pandemic levels of 2019 and we expect demand to soar this summer.”
He furthermore adds: “With Bookiply we have become the number one supplier of vacation rentals in several regions. Thanks to our regional approach and our technologically optimized processes, we are able to economically acquire new vacation rentals. This round of financing is a testament to how far we’ve come in that regard, and how much opportunity is still ahead of us.”
Michael Siebers
Co-founder and Holidu CTO Michael Siebers adds: “We have been quick to build new features that users want in the current situation, for example flexible cancellation and payment solutions. With this funding, we will invest further in product development and will double our technology organization.”
Laurel Bowden, 83North
Laurel Bowden, Partner at 83North comments: “Vacation rentals are a very competitive market and Holidu’s growth throughout the pandemic has been highly impressive. We are attracted by their strong operating efficiency and proven ability to grow market by market. As early backers of global category leaders like Wolt, Mirakl and JustEat we believe Holidu and Bookiply can build a similar position in the vacation rental market. We look forward to the road ahead and I’m glad to be on their board.”
About Holidu
Holidu’s mission is to finally make the search and booking of vacation rentals easy. Its search engine for vacation rentals allows travelers to book the ideal accommodation for the lowest price. The company also helps vacation rental owners multiply their bookings with less work through its software and service solution under the Bookiply brand. Brothers Johannes and Michael Siebers founded Holidu in 2014. The high-growth startup is headquartered in Munich and has local offices in the most attractive travel destinations in Europe and the US. For more information, see www.holidu.com and www.bookiply.com.
About 83North
83North is a global venture capital firm. The firm invests across all stages, in exceptional entrepreneurs focusing on building global category leading companies. For more information visit www.83north.com and follow @83NorthVC on Twitter.