Apartool raises €5.5M with Lionel Messi among investors

Apartool, a corporate accommodation platform in the B2B market, has closed a Series A funding round of €5.5 million. 

The investment was led by Roch Ventures and Spanish fund Barlon Capital while Finaves, Telegraph Hill Capital and Iberis Capital were also involved.

Soccer legend Lionel Messi was also involved in the funding via early stage investment fund Barlon Capital.

This is the second investment for Roch Ventures, a fund set up last year targeting European startups, which unveiled its first investment in March.

The funding for Barcelona-based Apartool, which enables travel management companies and businesses to access long-term accommodation, will go towards technology development and geographic expansion.

Aleix de Castellar, co-founder of Apartool, said the company is seeking to “hotelize” corporate housing by making reservations as easy as booking a hotel.

“The serviced apartments sector is growing a lot, people are requesting it but the main problem is that it is still working in a real-estate mode, so we want to bring the hotel technology to serviced apartments.”

He also said the company, which recently opened an office in Dubai, will continue working with large travel agencies and corporate customers.

“What we have seen is that you need to have a local presence in each country. You need to have business developers and deep local knowledge.”

Apartool is already established in Spain, Portugal and France and has just expanded into Italy with additional plans to bring the platform to the United Kingdom.

The company said it has doubled turnover every year since 2019 and expects to hit turnover of €15 million this year.

Bobby Demri, founder and managing partner at Roch Ventures: "We're excited to partner with renowned investors to back Apartool, at the forefront of transforming corporate global mobility through digital innovation. With a strong track record in Southwest Europe and rapid expansion into markets like Germany, the Middle East and the U.K., Apartool has a clear global vision and the capabilities to match.”

The investment in Apartool fits Roch Ventures’ strategy of targeting companies working in and around the trends of digital nomadism, sustainability and corporate travel.

Apartool recently secured contracts to house teams involved in next year's America's Cup in Barcelona and is also involved in the Olympics in Paris next year.