Australian event-led startup Venuemob has announced additional funding from investment group Sydney Angels, raising $530,000.
It’s the second round of funding for the startup, having already raised $450,000 in 2012, led by Optus Innov8. Venuemob will use the funding to fuel their growth in the corporate events sector along with platform improvements.
Venuemob allows users to search and filter available event, function and meeting venues from an extensive database and secure promotional offerings and discounts. The platform serves as a two-way portal, with profiled venues able to promote their offerings to Venuemob’s user base.
Sydney Angels members and the Sydney Angels Sidecar Fund provided the majority investment for this round, further backed by Optus Innov8 who led the previous fundraising round.
Since the initial launch in 2012, Venuemob has demonstrated solid growth with $5 million worth of event budget now processed through the platform each month. This positive performance inspired re-investment from the original backers to encourage further growth and expansion.
Angel investor Adrian Bunter said that Venuemob’s model was of interest to Sydney Angels due to its positioning in an unsaturated marketplace.
“The digital space for venue sourcing is relatively untapped, leaving the door wide open for a brand such as Venuemob to structure an industry-defining platform,” he said.
“Sydney Angels exists to provide funding and investor expertise to exciting Australian startups. It is clear that a number of our members strongly believe in the future prospects of Venuemob, who have already documented solid results from the first round of investment and are poised for rapid growth.”
A new version of Venuemob’s technology platform launched this month, based on extensive feedback from the events community. The upgrade incorporates industry-leading tools to enhance user experience, with a new algorithm improving the ‘matching’ mechanisms of the site along with a unique data function offering a cost comparison price guide.
Venuemob cofounder Ying Wang said the second round of funding will help the rollout of the platform’s corporate events phase, which is key to the long-term mission of the brand.
“We’re thrilled that astute investors such as the Sydney Angels team have such faith in our product. The Sydney Angels support goes well beyond the financial side of our business, with specialist advice and a powerful network to help us maximise our potential,” he said.
