Holidu(www.holidu.de), the search engine for vacation rentals, receives €5 million in a Series A financing round for further growth and expansion of its business model. The round is led by EQT Ventures with investment partners Kees Koolen (former CEO at Booking.com) and Lars Jörnow (former VP Mobile at King.com). Other investors include venture capital funds Venture Stars and Senovo, as well as previous angel investors led by Australian entrepreneur Chris Hitchen. Holidu compares more than 3 million vacation rentals worldwide, helping users save time and up to 55% on the same accommodation during the same travel period when planning their vacation. In order to find identical vacation homes among the various providers and always show the best price, the search engine uses image recognition software developed in-house. The Munich-based start-up was founded in July 2014 by brothers Johannes and Michael Siebers together with Rasmus Porsgaard and currently employs 20 people. Johannes Siebers, CEO and founder of Holidu: "We want to enable a completely new experience when finding and booking a vacation rental. We are delighted to have found great partners who share our vision. The unique expertise and broad network of our investors with industry greats like Kees Koolen will further accelerate our international growth." Kees Koolen, Partner at EQT Ventures and former CEO and Chairman of Booking.com: "The highly fragmented vacation rental market offers huge growth potential. Holidu has developed market-leading technologies and built traction in a short period of time. We are excited to work with the excellent and highly motivated team and take advantage of the great opportunities in the market." Martin Junker, Managing Partner at Venture Stars added, "We have followed Holidu closely since its inception. We are impressed by the efficiency and speed of the team and want to contribute with our network to reach the next milestones."
Holidu GmbH , based in Munich, Germany, is a search engine for vacation rentals and vacation homes. Holidu compares more than 3 million accommodations from over 100 websites and always finds the lowest price. The consumer magazine Guter Rat awarded Holidu the certificate "very good" in May 2015 as the best search engine for vacation homes. For more information, visit www.holidu.de,www.holidu.com,www.holidu.at, www.holidu.ch,www.holidu.fr, www.holidu.es, www.holidu.nl.
Contact: Simon Meier Holidu GmbH Karlstrasse 66 80335 Munich, Germany
Tel.: +49 176 646 25 789
www.holidu.de