Search Results forcrowdfunding
Orion Span launches crowdfunding campaign for luxury space hotel
Aurora Station by Orion Span Space tourism company Orion Span has announced a crowdfunding campaign for its luxury space hotel Aurora Station, launching in 2022. Those interested in the space tourism race (including those who were captivated by news of Aurora Station's launch earlier this year) can now become investors in the project. The campaign is live on SeedInvest, an equity crowdfunding platform that has financed more than 220 highly-vetted companies across technology and consumer markets. “Making space more accessible to all” "Orion Span is looking towards a bright future of making space more accessible to all. Partnering with SeedInvest and kicking off a crowdfunding campaign is the perfect opportunity to enable everyone to invest in that bright future," said Frank Bunger, chief executive officer and founder of Orion Span. Starting at a whopping USD 9.5 million per person, Orion Span's 12-day trips to Aurora Station is projected to begin in 2022. Travellers will rocket 200 miles above the Earth's surface in Low Earth Orbit (LEO), where they will be able to experience zero gravity, gaze at the northern and southern aurora, take part in research experiments such as growing food while in orbit (which they can take home with them as the ultimate souvenir), revel in a virtual reality experience on the holodeck, and update their Instagram feed via high-speed wireless Internet access. A deposit of USD 80,000 is required for each traveller and can be placed by traditional payment methods as well as by cryptocurrency. “There is so much excitement around the prospect of space travel right now” Bunger added: "When we introduced Aurora Station earlier this year, we had an incredible, almost overwhelming response. It wasn't a surprise, as there is so much excitement around the prospect of space travel right now. We're thrilled to be opening up this project to the broader public, giving everyone a chance to chip in on the ultimate mission to colonize space, and share in this historic moment." In addition to luxury stays on Aurora Station, Orion Span is also planning to provide opportunities for space research and astronaut services. With the overall mission of building and sustaining human communities in space, Orion Span will scale dynamically to demand, ensuring its growth.
Luxury Airbnb alternative Plum Guide raises USD31 million and to disrupt homestay market
Plum Guide has announced that it has extended its Series B funding round to raise a total of USD31m. The investment, which builds on a USD9m cash injection led by Beringea late last year, strengthens the company’s position to capitalise on the ‘revenge travel’ boom. The round also incorporates USD3.5m raised through a successful crowdfunding campaign on Crowdcube, which enabled Plum Guide’s fans, guests, and hosts to invest in its future growth. The investment will allow Plum Guide to accelerate its growth as it creates the definitive list of the world’s most extraordinary holiday homes. Plum Guide’s distinctive vision, to create a world-class trust mark for travel, has been core to the company’s success to date which sees it outranking all competitors as the most recommended homestay company. Plum Guide finds and awards the best homes in each market through a unique combination of data, technology and expert ‘home critics’. By offering a curated alternative to mass-market booking platforms and selecting only the top 3% of properties in any destination, the company attracts a mature, urban, affluent consumer segment who expect an exceptional experience every time. This latest funding round signals the start of the travel boom with global travellers shunning hotels in favour of alternative and more personal accommodation with British holidaymakers planning to spend GBP800 more on a holiday this year compared to 2021. Doron Meyassed Founder and CEO Doron Meyassed says: “With British consumers spending more in 2022 than in previous years, there is no room for error and so we strive to set that global standard for quality in the travel sector that has previously been lacking. We are catering to discerning global travellers who simply expect the best; they want unique properties in exciting destinations for a homestay in comfort and style and this investment will allow us to scale up to meet that demand.” Karen McCormick, Chief Investment Officer at Beringea, commented: “As consumers start making up for lost time, there is going to be vast demand for exceptional, reliable travel experiences. The entrepreneurial experience of Doron and his remarkable team has ensured that the pandemic has simply driven the company from strength to strength, and its impressive performance as lockdowns have eased demonstrates that Plum Guide is a business strongly positioned to harness the ‘revenge’ travel boom.”
As domestic travel in UK rises, Airbnb rival Plum Guide raises $9 million in funding
Plum Guide, the London, UK-based vacation home platform, secured $9million in funding. The round, which brought total funding since launch to $57m, was led by Beringea, with participation from existing investors Talis Capital, Hearst Ventures and Latitude. The company, which is also offering its community of hosts, guests and fans a chance to participate in this round via a crowdfunding campaign with Crowdcube, intends to use the funds to accelerate its growth. Led by Founder and CEO Doron Meyassed, Plum Guide is a recommended homestay company that finds and awards the best homes in each market through a combination of data, technology and expert “home critics.” It now features properties in over 500 destinations across 29 countries.
Funding shortfall for would be newest Australian airline “Brad”
Would-be Australian airline “Brad” is struggling to gain traction. An ambitious crowdfunding campaign has fallen far short of its goals. Even the prospect of future free flights isn't enticing potential investors to part with their money. The shortfall comes as Australia's aviation industry continues to stutter from crisis to crisis. Simple Flying brought brad to the attention of our readers following reports in The Australian newspaper. Brad Coombe, a Perth-based airline entrepreneur, decided earlier this year that the time had come to launch a new airline in Australia. “I want you to rethink the way you fly,” says Mr Coombe in a clip-on his crowdfunding page. ‘After 40 years of doing business in the airline and aerospace industries, my team and I are ready to address the issues at the heart of the flyer experience.” The head of the start-up, Brad Coombe is attempting to raise AU$1 million (US$740,000) by December 31 in order to fund the start-up costs of brad, such as obtaining an air operator's certificate. Following that, Mr Coombe had his sights set on a fleet of twin-engine, narrow-body jets divided into three classes. Brad basic (economy), brad + (premium economy), and brad class were to be the names of these classes (business). Branding everything with your own name saves money on focus groups and marketing departments. Brad reappeared on “The Australian” last week. Even though an initial AU$200 investment entitles punters to four Brad basic flights (under three hours), Aussies have not been flocking to get Brad in the air. According to the newspaper, less than AU$4,000 of the $1 million goal has been raised, and Mr Coombe has gone "quiet." On Monday, only AU$3,821.40 had been raised, according to Brad's crowdfunding page. “Initially, contributions are non-refundable,” the website’s terms and conditions notes. “However, if brad fails to meet its initial target of AU$1 million by midnight December 31, 2021, you will be entitled to a refund of your contribution less the credit card commission. “Should brad reach its initial target of AU$1 million at any time prior to December 31, 2021, your contribution will remain non-refundable, and brad will begin working on its AOD contribution.” When Brad first made headlines, a few well-known airline industry names were linked to the start-up. The claims were quickly debunked by most of those industry insiders. With thousands of aircrafts available for lease at rock-bottom prices and thousands more pilots, cabin crew, and ground staff unemployed across Australia and the world, Mr Coombe argued that the time was right to launch a new airline. Potential investors are enticed by free future Brad flights. Investors willing to put up AU$50,000 or $100,000 would be entitled to hundreds of free flights as well as generous luggage allowances. However, Australians have yet to join the bandwagon. With commercial aviation in Australia in a state of paralysis, many may argue that now is not the time to launch a new airline. Perhaps all the extra money is locked up in unused credit vouchers and delayed refunds from other airlines. Not everyone believes Mr Coombe can pull this off. Other start-up airlines, however, have begun flights this year, albeit not in Australia's troubled aviation environment. Examples include Avelo, Breeze Airways, and Birgir Jónsson's PLAY. In Australia's modern flying environment, Rex's grounded Boeings are a salutary lesson in overreach. But kudos to Mr Coombe if he manages to achieve his goal. Meanwhile, Brad's crowdfunding page is still active. The clock is ticking with less than six months to reach the million-dollar goal.
Feed for Good! OYO initiates food drive for the needy across six cities
Standing together with the government and local administration efforts during these tough times, OYO is organising a food drive initiative, ‘Feed For Good’ across six cities in India to distribute over 1000 meals per day for a duration of five days. Starting from 1 June, the drive is being held in Delhi, Noida, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata and Hyderabad. The hotel chain has partnered with Jagorani, Live to Give and The United Foundation who will help ensure that hygienically-prepared and packaged, nutritious meals reach the ones in need. Jagorani Foundation in association with OYO is conducting the drive in the Sundarbans at the super-cyclone Amphan Relief Camp. The United Foundation is distributing meals to daily wage workers and Shramik passengers transiting from Bengaluru via Shramik special trains that began operations from 1 May for transportation of stranded migrant labourers. Live to Give will be serving disadvantaged, domestic and daily wage working women, widows and their families. Speaking about the ‘Feed for Good’ initiative, Ankit Gupta, chief operating officer and senior vice president of frontier businesses at OYO India and South Asia said: “As the coronavirus continues to impact livelihoods, several sections of society have been left without basic necessities. We hope that the food drive helps and supports those in need. At OYO we strive to stand together with the community and do our bit as a responsible corporate citizen. We stand by our motto that we are #InThisTogether.” Earlier OYO also initiated ‘Donate A Night’, a crowdfunding campaign across its platforms where one can voluntarily contribute to donate one night’s accommodation for migrants, daily wagers, medical first responders, policemen and other emergency services personnel.
Travel tech this week: Start-ups raised millions for expansion
For travel tech news this week, it is indeed happy holidays for some start-ups as they raised millions to fuel their expansion. TravelFlan raises USD 7 million Travelflan team TravelFlan, a Hong Kong-based travel and lifestyle AI digital solution provider, has announced a USD 7 million Series A investment led by Sogong PinPoint Kclavis AI Travel Tech Fund (SPK Fund), with the participation of Artesian Capital, Linear Venture, Construction-Radiant Tech Ventures Fund, Hong Kong Government ITVFC Fund, SOSV and its accelerator Chinaccelerator. TravelFlan provides AI chatbot and backend simultaneous auto-update data processor (SADP) services for its clients. Its core solutions include text-based/voice-enabled AI personal concierge, supply chain or inventory management system, big data analytical engine and inventory aggregator/processor. “Closing this round will put TravelFlan to a new level of commitment, and to motivate the team to strive more. Since we launched our B2B2C-focussed AI digital solutions at the beginning of 2018, we have seen an increasing demand in the region. TravelFlan aims to bring their solutions to a much broader audience and adopt in-depth local strategies to provide more high-quality service to our clients,” said Abel Zhao, CEO and co-founder of TravelFlan, in a press statement. Currently, the start-up is working with industry leaders including China Mobile, Samsung Group, SITA, Hong Kong Airlines and many more to tackle their revenue and customer experience issues. Yanolja eyes IPOs in Korea, Singapore Kpop idol Hani South Korea-based unicorn Yanolja is considering listing in Seoul and its Singapore operation abroad over the next two years. Yanolja chief Lee Su-jin was quoted saying that the listing of its Singapore unit could take place in 2021 on the back of the high growth potential in the global market. The listing could be followed by IPO of the company’s Korean headquarters. Lee said Yanolja is valued higher in the overseas market than the local market, thus the decision to list the Singapore unit first. The firm, whose name means “Hey, let’s play”, aims to generate about USD 60 million in global sales in 2020, more than twice as high as this year’s USD 26m, Lee said. Yanolja will use the proceeds from its planned IPOs to ramp up research and development in technology, such as Internet of Things and artificial intelligence. Yanolja joined the unicorn rank in June after securing USD 200m in its Series D funding round backed by Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC Pte Ltd and Booking Holdings Inc, a US firm that operates in the hotel booking space. The firm started as an online search portal for love hotels, guest house rooms, pensions, and small hotels in 2005 with just USD 42,000. Yanolja raised USD 8.5m in its venture round in 2015, led by South Korean investor Partners Investment. In 2017, the firm raised USD 51m in private equity from Sky Lake Investment, an alternative asset management firm based in Seoul. A decade later, Yanolja claimed to be the first company to offer a reservation platform for mobile phones for its own and others’ love hotels, a major shift in an industry which relied on walk-in customers. Pluto raises USD 1 million Pluto founders James Birch (left), Alex Rainey (middle) Harry Williams (right). Travel insurer Pluto has announced the launch of their mobile app after completing its beta trial with a limited customer group. Customers with an active policy will now be able to: Easily check their cover and policy online and offline Make instant changes to their policy Submit claims in minutes when something’s gone wrong Speak to a human around the clock for support and assistance. CEO Alex Rainey said: “We’re super excited to share this with our new and existing customers. The Pluto app allows our customers to manage, check and change their TravelTech Pluto, launches industry-leading mobile app 2 policy quickly straight from their phone. “Most insurance is buy and forget, and if you do want to make a change, get help or make a claim, then good luck! Insurers aren’t known for their leading mobile apps or allowing their customers to do everything in minutes from their phone. This is us starting to change that.” Pluto has closed over GBP 830,000 (USD 1 million) in investment in 2019 alone, with over GBP 660,000 coming from a recent crowdfunding campaign on Seedrs. This investment will be used to expand the London team, launch new travel services via their mobile app and to grow their customer base.
Intrepid Travel aims to be the first “climate positive” travel company
Intrepid Travel aims to be the first travel company to become climate positive by 2020. To be climate positive is to be carbon negative, which means that activity goes beyond achieving net zero carbon emissions to actually create an environmental benefit by removing additional carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Intrepid prided itself as a carbon-neutral company since 2010, buying carbon credits associated with renewable energy projects – such as a wind power scheme in India and a rainforest restoration initiative in Borneo. Its non-profit arm, Intrepid Foundation, aims to raise AUD 350,000 (USD 250,000) to fund a seaweed project that will tackle climate change. The Intrepid Foundation helps travellers give back to the places they visit. It supports life-changing projects that make places better to travel to and live in. Along with the Climate Foundation and the University of Tasmania, the Intrepid Foundation is crowdfunding for a new marine permaculture initiative that will regenerate marine ecosystems in Tasmania and draw down carbon from the atmosphere. All donations made to the project through the Intrepid Foundation will be matched dollar for dollar. https://youtu.be/aOj_R3UE10E Darrell Wade, co-founder of Intrepid Travel, said: “Climate action has to be a priority for anyone who loves travel. We believe that we have a responsibility to make a positive difference and help to preserve the planet for the next generation of travellers.” Intrepid Travel will also donate to the project 40% of all profits from family holidays booked between Earth Day and the end of June 2019.
Machu Picchu trip enabled for the disabled
Two friends, Alvaro Silberstein and Camilo Navarro, thought of ways on how to hike to Macchu Pichu. Silberstein is using a wheelchair. Machu Picchu is on everyone’s bucket list. Travel company Wheel the World has developed a wheelchair-accessible tour of the iconic site in Peru, considered one of the wonders of the world. Camilo Navarro, CEO & co-founder They were able to come up with a way for Silberstein and Navarro to hike at Patagonia's Torres de Paine National Park together, with Silberstein using a special foldable wheelchair that he paid for via an online crowdfunding campaign. After studying business in UC Berkeley, they made expanding Wheel the World their top priority. Navarro and Silberstein have since grown the business in Latin America, adding tours in Chile, Mexico and now Peru. Alvaro Silberstein, CEO & co-founder There is only one problem, special wheelchairs that can traverse some of the more challenging trails come with a hefty price tag. This price can keep many people from being able to manage the cost of their bucket list trip. Wheel the World has managed to keep the price of the tour low after they asked for partners to donate the wheelchairs and store them in the region, meaning users don't have to supply their own or handle the cost of shipping. Currently, a four-day Wheel the World trip to Machu Picchu costs USD 1,500, including overnight accommodations and excluding flights, which is comparable with what it would cost for an able-bodied person to do the same experience. The only drawback is you still need a travel buddy when hiking to Machu Picchu as this wheelchair can't be self-propelled. Navarro said that his company's work is far from over. Each disability such as the deaf and blind are lumped together despite having unique needs. Travelling is a huge feat for people with disabilities and travel agencies have limited options for them.
Packdat start-up! Disrupting the travel market with Felix Lee
Felix Lee Zheng De looks like any other Singaporean engineering student: lanky, bespectacled, wearing jeans and trainers, raring to go anywhere. What sets this twenty-something apart is that he has already gone through enough business cycles to know what sells for cohorts of his generation, who enjoy group travel on a bargain. As part of the team behind Packdat, a community platform that helps group travellers plan their trips with the help of links and emoji ratings, Felix explains to Travel Daily how mixing together a great concept, ambition, learnings, and a large dose of fun can get Singaporeans to ‘Pack My Trip’: … Packdat start-up! Disrupting the travel market with Felix LeeRead More »
Plan your group adventure with Packdat
Students and young professionals in Singapore have been hit by the travel bug, but they find their group trips bogged down by research and penny-pinching. To make trip-planning fun, social and super simple, brothers and Singapore Polytechnic engineering graduates Zheng De and Zeth Lee built a community-based travel platform cheekily named Packdat! Founded on the desire to ‘empower the world to create truly meaningful and magical moments with friends, all while travelling,’ Packdat skips both the tedious planning that goes before each adventure, and marginally less tedious review process that comes after. Just choose your destination and travel dates, then get your friends to join in the planning fun! Click ‘Pack My Trip’ to arrange your itinerary based on the best routes to and from your lodging, which saves money and time. You can even turn your itinerary into a handy PDF! There are two ways to plan your journey on Packdat. The first is by grabbing links to each attraction, while the other is through ‘Discover Community,’ where each site is rated through emoji by users who have been there. The team also promises that they will soon allow real-time photo and video hosting, where you can experience a sneak preview of your adventure through content posted by other Packdat users. Amazing stuff! The magic of Packdat is real: its vlogs (which are great for a laugh, here are some examples) and crowdfunding campaign on Thunderclap (which reached its goal just 3 hours after launch and closed with 221% hits) helped the concept take off. It’s showing no sign of slowdown either: after joining the 2017 Slingshot@SWITCH (Singapore Week of Innovation & Technology) contest, it has been shortlisted as a 2017 Accenture ConsumerTech Awards finalist for 'improving travel and hospitality experiences' as well as 'increasing choice and improving customer service.' As far as destinations go, Packdat is Asia-centric, although only standard holiday spots are mentioned. Neighbours Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia are featured, as are Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea and Japan farther east. Oddly enough, Australia is a getaway option, while Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and the Philippines aren’t. Packdat assures us that it's only a matter of time (early 2018, to be exact) until more Asia-Pacific locations become available. One point against Packdat is that it only accepts TripAdvisor links to date, making blog references a no-go for now. Another minus is that it will not let you plan a trip if you do not give it your lodging address. Still, it’s a promising start-up with much to build upon – after all, it fixes your travel plans so that you and the gang can get straight to the fun. Say goodbye to multiple tab browsing and endless spreadsheet fixing, get the Packdat app or log into the website, and have a great trip! Authors' Note: Look out for an interview with one of the Packdat founders soon!
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