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PrivateFly.com Seeks £1.5M Second Round Investment Funding to Accelerate Growth

Dépèche transmise le 22 juin 2011 par Business Wire

PrivateFly.com Seeks £1.5M Second Round Investment Funding to Accelerate Growth

ST ALBANS, England--(BUSINESS WIRE)--PrivateFly.com, Europe’s leading online aggregator for private jet charter, today announces it is seeking second round investment funding to accelerate its expansion into international markets. The business was recently voted Website Of The Year by Flight International, which described it as the “iTunes of aviation”, recognising its unique, purpose-built technology for the private charter market.

“The business already has traction in the UK and a highly-skilled senior management team. The additional funding now sought will drive a well-considered growth strategy through accelerated expansion, marketing and translation into new markets. Further software developments will also allow greater operational efficiencies”

PrivateFly, which has relationships with over 2,700 accredited private jet operators globally, raised £510,000 in first round fundraising in June 2010, allowing development of its UK proposition and entry into other English-language markets. The company is now seeking a further £1.5 million, with EIS relief available to investors.

The second fundraising round comes as PrivateFly announced another year of sales growth. It reported a 50 per cent increase to its year end 31 May 2011, its third consecutive year of growth – outstripping overall market trends. PrivateFly was also ranked as the fastest growing company in the UK aircraft charter industry by Plimsoll Business Intelligence, 2011.

PrivateFly’s chairman, Richard Carrick, comments: “This represents an exciting opportunity for new investors. PrivateFly is a proven online business model with three years of trading and fulfils a significant market need. The private aviation industry is growing again, yet it is still highly fragmented and dominated by legacy business practices - it has yet to see the major online shift experienced by other travel sectors. The adhoc charter segment also holds strong appeal post-recession, rather than the upfront commitment and price premium of fractional ownership or jet card schemes.

“PrivateFly is poised to take superb advantage with a disruptive business model that mirrors the online success stories of other travel products. It is far more scalable than the traditional brokerage, giving transparent pricing and greater response speeds to the customer – combined with expert VIP service offline. The online platform is also a highly attractive free marketing opportunity for aircraft operators and facilitates distribution partnerships with the broader travel trade.

“The business already has traction in the UK and a highly-skilled senior management team. The additional funding now sought will drive a well-considered growth strategy through accelerated expansion, marketing and translation into new markets. Further software developments will also allow greater operational efficiencies”.

Those seeking further information on the second round investment fundraising should contact Adam Twidell, CEO of PrivateFly on +44 (0)1747 642 777.

-Ends-

Notes to editors:

About PrivateFly.com:

PrivateFly is an online booking network that makes it quicker, easier and more cost effective to arrange private jet charter.

With over 2700 operators registered worldwide, PrivateFly is the only online aggregator for private jet charter in Europe. PrivateFly combines online efficiency and transparency with offline expertise to offer a full-service VIP charter service to direct customers and b2b partners.

In 2010 PrivateFly launched the world’s first iPhone application to provide instant private jet pricing on a mobile phone.

PrivateFly has won several awards for business innovation. In 2011, it was awarded Website of The Year by Flight International - the judges describing it as “the iTunes” of aviation.

Founded in 2007, PrivateFly is based in St Albans, Hertfordshire.