The startup Winahost, with its headquarters at TecnoCampus, has just successfully closed its first round of financing. This online platform dedicated to the online intermediation and reservation of tourist accommodation for owners and based on BigData, raised a total of 475,000 euros from private investors that are complemented by participatory loans from ENISA/EU Next Generation Funds.
In this way, this online agency co-founded by its current CEO, Pol Aracil, and by Albert Pérez and Jordi Aracil is already considering making the leap to the international market in 2024.
Thanks to the funds raised in the financing round, the company will be able to carry out its expansion and technological deployment plan, which will also mean an increase in its marketing and sales teams.
"Our short-term objective is to expand the coastal market to markets in cities such as Malaga and Madrid, triple the portfolio of exclusive properties, increase the team of technology, marketing and sales professionals and, facing the fourth quarter of 2024 , open a first international market, which could be in the Caribbean or the European Mediterranean Coast, either in France, Italy or Greece,” explains the company's CEO, Pol Aracil.
In just two years, Winahost has burst into the home sharing and vacation rental market, thanks in part to its innovative system based on BigData, which allows for multiposting management with reservation channels, monitoring the offer and prices from all markets and manage a single centralized calendar with the objective of positioning and reaching the highest level of potential guests, maximizing the occupancy and income of our clients.
It offers the owners of tourist houses and apartments a service that saves them, for example, from having to deal with issues such as cleaning and laundry of the residence, arranging check-in and check-out. The target customer includes not only private owners of tourist homes, but also investors who have purchased properties to exploit them for the purpose of tourist rental.
“Winahost was born based on a real need,” explains Pol Aracil, which is why they work in the tourist rental market “with remunerations for the owners much higher than those of a traditional rental and which, among others, are the reason for the existence of many platforms such as Airbnb, Booking, Holidu, Expedia or Locasun.”
At the close of the summer high season, Winahost can boast of the results achieved during the summer. In the last three months it has filled more than 90% of the nights available to its owners. The company has accumulated more than 21,450 overnight stays and has hosted more than 3,770 guests throughout Spain in its vacation accommodations.
“This year we plan to close the year with 2.3 million euros of gross business volume and cash managed in reserves, and for next year we hope to project it up to 6 million euros. From here our net turnover as Winahost is derived, which will be half a million euros by 2023,” explains Pol Aracil.
As a result of this rapid development, Winahost has aroused the interest of the IESE Family Office Network and individual entrepreneurs from Miami (USA), as well as the firm Open Learning Spain.
