Press

bookingkit receives Millions in additional Strategic Investment Capital

September 8, 2020

bookingkit, Europe’s leading Software-as-a-Service company for providers of tours, attractions and activities, emerges strengthened from the Covid-19 crisis: The industry-wide dip in tourism-related revenue after the Europe-wide contact restrictions in spring is now facing a strongly accelerated sales development. In order to make strategic use of this momentum and further expand its position in various European markets, the Berlin-based company is receiving additional capital in the millions from existing investors.

The Corona crisis has proven to be a catalyst for the digitalization of the Tours & Activities market – the third largest tourism sector after air travel and hotels. bookingkit, with its platform-agnostic administration and booking system, is now benefiting from this impulse to an impressive extent, reaching even a new all-time high in booking figures, following the slump in sales during the contact restrictions. This is largely due to the increase in online sales from
existing customers, the expansion of existing corporations and the acquisition of new customers.

The existing investors Intermedia Vermögensverwaltung, the Müller Medien family of companies, High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF), business angel Robert Kabs and another business angel are therefore now investing again in the software company.

Equipped with the additional capital, we will further accelerate the modernization of Tours & Activities sector (which is currently estimated to be only 30 percent digitized); further develop our sales organization, the software product as well as the underlying infrastructure and API; and still in 2020 we will penetrate further business areas with various sales initiative. We are thus providing the experience industry with the right and absolutely necessary tools to adapt to and eventually thrive in the new situation.

Lukas C. C. Hempel, one of the two founders and managing directors of bookingkit

Since the last financing round in March 2019, bookingkit has grown significantly and has been one of the “high performers” in the experience sector ever since. Despite the tourism industry being particularly affected by the Corona crisis, bookingkit was able to lead both the company itself and the team through the crisis and, at the same time, further develop its products & services through decisive action and a targeted package of measures.

Pictures for media information can be found in the corresponding download folder .

About bookingkit
bookingkit is Europe’s leading SaaS solution for the recreation and experience industry, providing travel and activity operators with standardized and scalable technology designed to help them promote bookable activities and drive sales. Tours, activities and attractions make up the third largest tourism sector worldwide. bookingkit’s integrated sales system serves as a two-way digital infrastructure, connecting travel agencies and other sales channels to an extensive library of experiences which are updated in real time.

bookingkit has won multiple awards, including 3rd Place in the 2019 German Tourism Awards (Deutscher Tourismuspreis), the 2019 Deloitte Technology Fast 50 Award, the “EMEA Travel Innovator” award from PhocusWright Europe, the Travel Industry Club’s “Startup of the Year” award, the “Trophée d’innovation 2019” from French tourism magazine L’Echo touristique, as well as being named one of the 100 most innovative startups in Germany by internationally renowned startup magazine The Hundert, as reported by Forbes Magazine.

bookingkit also bears the “Top Service” seal of approval from the German Institute for Quality Standards and Testing for its outstanding customer service and is ranked third in employee satisfaction by FOCUS Business and kununu among Berlin-based SMEs in the category “Internet”. Founded in 2014 by Christoph Kruse and Lukas C. C. Hempel, bookingkit is headquartered in Berlin and currently employs around 100 employees. For more information visit www.bookingkit.net

Press Contact
Frank Scheibe
T: +49 30 555796818 | +49 1577 2588917
pr-germany@bookingkit.net

About High-Tech Gründerfonds
High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF) is a seed investor that finances high-potential, tech-driven start-ups. With around EUR 900 million in total investment volume across three funds and an international network of partners, HTGF has already helped forge almost 600 start-ups since 2005. Driven by their expertise, entrepreneurial spirit and passion, its team of experienced investment managers and startup experts help guide the development of young companies. HTGF’s focus is on high-tech start-ups in the fields of digital tech, industrial technology, life sciences, chemistry and related business areas. To date, external investors have injected over EUR 2.6 billion into the HTGF portfolio via more than 1,600 follow-on financing rounds. HTGF has also successfully sold interests in more than 100 companies.

Investors in this public-private partnership include the Federal Ministry For Economic Affairs and Energy, KfW Capital, and Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft e.V., as well as the companies ALTANA, BASF, BAYER, B.Braun, Boehringer Ingelheim, Robert Bosch, BÜFA, CEWE, Deutsche Post DHL, Dräger, Drillisch AG, EVONIK, EWE AG, FOND OF, Haniel, Hettich, Knauf, Körber, LANXESS, media + more venture Beteiligungs GmbH & Co. KG, PHOENIX CONTACT, Postbank, QIAGEN, RWE Generation SE, SAP, Schufa, Schwarz Gruppe, STIHL, Thüga, Vector Informatik, WACKER and Wilh. Werhahn KG.

www.htgf.de/en

Contact
High-Tech Gründerfonds Management GmbH
Dr. Tanja Emmerling, Partner
Standort Berlin
T.: +49 30
t.emmerling@htgf.de

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