Booker eyes new industries and mobile expansion after US$35m investment
Software company Booker has secured US$35m (€31.2m, £22.7m) in its latest funding round – welcoming four new investors.
Speaking to Spa Opportunities, CEO Josh McCarter said the funding would be used in three major areas. In line with its recent expansion and name change from SpaBooker to Booker, the company is aiming to support more service-based industries in addition to its traditional focus on health and wellness.
Continuing another recent trend, Booker is also planning to invest heavily in mobile, with McCarter citing the planned implementation of features and services specifically designed to help grow revenues. A third area of focus will be driving more sales of Booker’s software.
Among the new investors, Florida-based private equity firm Medina Capital will be the largest. McCarter highlighted the “relevant skillset” of the company, whose founders notably sold Terremark to Verizon for US$2bn (€1.78bn, £1.3bn) in 2011.
Salt Lake City-headquartered Signal Peak, a venture capital firm which invests in companies that offer technology to small and medium businesses, and Chicago-based investment firm Jump Capital have also invested in Booker.
As well as financial investment, McCarter noted that the new deal also included significant strategic investment. Payment transaction processing company First Data, the fourth and final new investor, fits into this category.
The Atlanta-based company processes US$1.5tn (€1.34tn, £973bn) worth of transactions per year, with operations in 35 countries. Its point of sale solution, Clover, is a “huge success”, according to McCarter, but is a retail rather than a service-based system. Therefore, integration with Booker’s service-based platform has the potential to “drive more value into their clients’ businesses”.
McCarter said there would be further announcements related to the funding deal in the coming weeks.
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