• Greek travel technology startup Welcome Pickups has secured an investment worth €5.3 million.
• Existing investors Market One Capital, Flashpoint and Venture Friends participated in the round.
• The company plans to expand to over 200 destinations worldwide.
The solution from Athens-based travel transportation startup Welcome Pickups offers travelers the ability to easily access and manage their transfer details, by contacting drivers or headquarters from their mobile phone or tablet.
According to Welcome Pickups CEO Alex Trimis, the last The funding will help accelerate the company’s geographic reach, with the aim of double its network of destinations, as well as launching new destinations in North and South America.
“Regarding the region, Market One Capital and Flashpoint invest in Central and Eastern Europe. We are significantly expanding the team and most hiring will take place here in Athens or remotely with a focus on CEE candidates,” Trimis told The Recursive.
Trimis also added that “a portion of the funds will also be used to further enhance the customer experience and develop new products to support the company’s mission to create a comprehensive, personalized and inclusive destination travel experience for all “.
According to Venture Friends, Welcome Pickups’ strong turnaround impressed its investors and also enabled this funding round.
“During the difficult Corona period, the company worked hard on product and expansion processes and started as soon as the travel market reopened. This work allowed the company to easily exceed 2019 numbers, achieve profitability, and lay the foundation for a very strong 2023,” Venture Friends told The Recursive in a statement.
Presentation of new trends in the transportation industry
In 2022, the Greek company managed to achieve a growth rate of 50% and launch more than 30 new destinations, bringing the company’s total number of locations to 100 in 50 countries and serving more than 1 million travelers in popular destinations such as France, Spain, Italy and Greece.
“We are extremely pleased to further support Welcome Pickups with additional capital in its growth journey. The company demonstrated the ultimate level of resilience during the COVID shutdown period and further improved its business model which allowed it to bounce back, once lockdowns were lifted, with even greater success. We look forward to Welcome Pickups using this new capital to continue its international expansion and offer its services in even more destinations,” said Donatella Callegaris, Managing Partner at Flashpoint.
Welcome Pickups also focused on streamlining processes and increasing product-driven automation across its operations, resulting in an 8-fold reduction in human contact per booking.
According to Trimis, Welcome Pickups will now focus on introducing new trends to the industry.
“Regarding trends, we still bet that people will focus on experiential travel as mentioned in the last Expedia and other reports. Welcome Pickups takes that very commoditized transfer from point A to point B that happens during travel and turns it into your first destination experience that can transform your entire trip,” Trimis told The Recursive .