MagicStay, a startup offering private rentals for business travellers, has raised €1.5 million in its latest round of funding.
The company (Startup pitch here) says it already provides 150,000 apartments in 90 countries since its inception four years ago.
Investment was led by existing shareholders as well as a number of new investors. Previous rounds have seen about €4 million invested in the company.
The funds will go towards the development of technology to enable travellers and travel arrangers from large companies to book apartments as easily as hotel rooms, via either existing their booking tools or through MagicStay's apartment booking tool Weezard.
The company is also planning to strengthen its presence in the French market before expanding further afield at the end of this year.
MagicStay also has plans to offer an extended stay product aimed at consultants and expatriates.
The company says it already has contracts with a number of high profile clients including Societe Generale, Quicksilver and Havas Voyages with further names to be announced. Valéry Linÿer, MagicStay CEO says:
"After the travel Managers, we managed to convince the Security, IT and legal directors of major groups of the relevant service we provide to traveling employees, and to the company guaranteeing their safety."
MagicStay is not alone in its ambitions for corporate travel and rental accommodation. BridgeStreet unveiled its online travel agency last year saying it wanted to bridge the gap between extended stay and peer-to-peer accommodation.
Airbnb unveiled its own business travel effort in mid-2015 and has been adding features catering to that market since. Booking.com also made a bid to attract more corporate travellers back in 2015 with its Booking.com for Business product.
Image Becca Tapert