Boat and rental startup, Flotespace, has been strengthened by support from an array of highly prolific investors, with the Australian business receiving over $600,000 to close out their first seed round, valuing the company at $4,000,000 in only 2 years in business.
Having seen 675% growth over the past months, it’s no surprise that Flotespace is a lucrative investment, as the trend of domestic tourism continues to grow for many Australians.
The online boat hire platform is thriving in a difficult year for many event-based businesses.
Its innovative model provides boat owners with the opportunity to rent out their yachts or catamarans, making it easy for consumers to find Australia’s best boats for hire.
By enabling surveyed boats and yachts to be listed on the platform, Flotespace has created a way for vessel owners to utilise their assets and generate an additional revenue stream.
It’s a much welcome option for many charter boat owners during a time where the tourism industry has been especially quiet.
This has led to a number of owners reporting a rise in revenue by 80% in recent months since signing up to the platform, which is only expected to increase as Aussies look to spend their vacations locally with international travel still looking unavailable for the foreseeable future.
The growth and impressive reaction to the pandemic has sparked interest from several successful members of the business industry, resulting in a total investment of $600,000.
Key investors for the Sydney-based business are:
Investor and adviser Rolf Hansen, co-founder of Australia’s largest mobile virtual network operator, Amaysim and serial entrepreneur, Bardia Housman, founder of Australia’s first free email service.
Rolf Hansen commented: “Introducing a startup to the market is one thing, but successfully dominating the industry is something else.”
“With visions to continue to innovate not only its own service but the boating community, Flotespace has the potential to lead the charge in bolstering domestic tourism for Australians.”
Bardia Housman added: “Supporting Australian businesses which continue to strive for innovation that champions user experience is incredibly important to me, particularly a startup business that showcases its adaptability and hunger.”
Other notable investors include Tim Fung, CEO of Airtasker, Manfred Hasseler, the first investor of Airtasker, Oliver Heine and Stefan Feldman.
Hugh Treseder, Founder and CEO of Flotespace, says, “While we know Flotespace is a business that deserves to continue this tremendous growth, we are extremely proud and grateful of the investments we have achieved.”
“This boost will support many of the projects we are working on that will transform the boating industry and provide a platform that supports charter boat owners and consumers alike.”
Flotespace is developing a sophisticated new booking system using cutting-edge technology that will enable users to see every available slot so they can book a boat, in real-time.
The platform will be the first to adopt the technology in Australia. No other boating hire platform in Australia, with no other boating hire platform in the country offering this feature.
