Leading boat rental yacht charter marketplace launches fundraise with Seedrs.
The UK’s leading boat rental and yacht charter marketplace, Borrow A Boat, today launches a £750k crowdfunding round with London-based investment crowdfunding platform Seedrs. The raise follows accelerating growth and revenues in 2022, expansion into several new countries and three acquisitions in the last 12 months of competitors Helm, Barqo and Beds on Board.
Dubbed the ‘Airbnb of boats’, Borrow A Boat is part of the vanguard of companies digitising the large and maturing global charter market, set to be worth $30bn annually by 2027. One of the pioneers of peer-to-peer charter since 2017, Borrow A Boat is on a mission to make boating more accessible, affordable, flexible, and inclusive for all, to help drive participation, and make chartering a boat simpler.
In 2021, following a year where venture capital investment in the travel industry dropped by 55%, Borrow A Boat successfully raised £1.5 million enabling them to expand into the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and acquire key competitors Helm, Barqo and Beds on Board. The business is currently planning to IPO in 2023 – which would be a world first for a boat charter marketplace.
Matt Ovenden, CEO & Founder of Borrow A Boat says: “We are living through a revolution in marketplaces, and believe this should extend to the boating world. Renting a boat should be as easy as booking a hotel, flight or train.
“We, as a business, have made huge strides forward in the last six months – continually smashing our all-time sales records month-on-month towards the end of 2021 and we’re now, in 2022, consistently clearing one million a month in revenue.
“This Seedrs fundraise will help fuel our continued growth, with expansion into new countries – Italy, France, Germany and Spain – which we hope to complete by the end of the year. We will also be investing in tech enhancements – substantial UI, UX and automation operator plans in order to keep up with our fast-growing business revenues.
“Borrow A Boat is the modern marketplace solution that the charter industry needs. We hope that this crowdfunding round will see us welcome onboard savvy investors, and boating enthusiasts who are keen to be a part of building the world’s leading boat charter marketplace, whilst making boating more accessible, affordable, flexible and inclusive for all.”
For more information on Borrow A Boat, visit www.borrowaboat.com.
For more information on Borrow A Boat’s Seedrs raise, visit www.seedrs.com/borrow-a-boat2.
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Notes to Editors:
- Please ensure all links are to the UK Borrow A Boat website: www.borrowaboat.com
- Borrow A Boat CEO, Matt Ovenden, is available for interview or comment upon request.
For further press information, please contact:
Rosie Crass | Olivia Hazelden-Kingdon | Elsa Findlay
Rooster PR
T: +44 (0) 20 3440 8930
E: [email protected]
About Borrow A Boat:
Launched by boating enthusiasts in 2017, Borrow A Boat is on a mission to make boating more accessible, affordable, flexible, and inclusive for all through both traditional yacht charter companies and peer-to-peer yacht charter. Peer-to-peer charter enabling boat owners to offset the high costs of boat ownership by reducing maintenance costs and marina fees, whilst offering consumers more affordable and flexible boating experiences.
With over 45,000 boat rentals and yacht charters available in 65+ countries including the UK, the Mediterranean, the Caribbean, North America, and South East Asia, Borrow A Boat is the leading yacht charter marketplace.
Borrow A Boat facilitates boat rental from just £40 per day, sailing yachts from £1,000 per week and luxury motorboats and superyachts, under Borrow A Boat Plus, from approximately £10,000 per week.
Boats of all types are available for rental, including sailboats, motorboats, riverboats, RIBs, catamarans, gulets, superyachts and luxury yacht charters. Customers can choose a boat with or without a skipper, depending on their sailing experience.
All boats meet the stringent safety and insurance codes, standards, and regulations for yacht chartering in their respective locations.
For more information, or to make a booking, visit the website www.borrowaboat.com
