Bristol-based ski holiday company raises £5.6m in funding round, plans to create 20 jobs Heidi was founded in 2018 by brothers Marcus and Alexander Brandt, who developed a platform to design bespoke trips.
The pair had worked in the travel industry for 10 years and saw a gap in the market for more flexible online operators, so they started the business with funding from family and friends.
Heidi is now the UK's third largest ski holiday operator, carrying more than 34,000 passengers in the most recent season. The company, which employs 44 staff, has quadrupled its revenue in the past two years, rising from £8.8m in the year to April 2022 to £37m by 2024.
The funding was led by Mercia Ventures, with participation from Active Partners and private investors.
As part of the deal, Mercia appointed Sarah Doyle, who has held senior roles at a number of consumer brands, as chair, while Miles Hill and Michael Revis, the former chief executive and chief technology officer of Sykes Cottages, have also joined as non-executive directors.
Heidi CEO Marcus Brandt said: “The launch of Heidi was born out of our frustration as avid skiers who wanted to get to the slopes but wanted to go at times and dates that suited their schedules. Having started the company with limited investment and grown it to its current size, we are now ready to take it to the next level. Our goal is to more than double our size over the next few years and become one of the top two ski travel companies.”
The Marcia Ventures team included Jan Oosthuizen and Adam Watts. Oosthuizen said: “Marcus and Alexander have built a fantastic business with strong values and a great culture. Heidi offers a unique proposition that appeals to both package holiday customers who benefit from flexibility and independent travellers who can book everything in one place. This investment will enable the team to pursue their ambitious growth plans and capture further market share.”
Billy Fox, an early stage investor at Active Partners, added: “Marcus and Alexander have achieved product market fit in a large, underserved market with their unique approach to ski holiday bookings and in-house technology. Their impressive growth to date demonstrates Heidi's ability to delight consumers with a truly flexible, best-in-class service and we're delighted to be partnering with them to reach even more mountain enthusiasts in the UK and abroad.”
Mercia's due diligence providers were PKF Francis Clark (financial), Data Shigoto (data), Ten Tenths Consulting (technical) and The Continuum (management), while Philip Hare and Associates provided advice on VCT compliance.
Muckle provided legal advice to Mercia, CMS advised Active Partners and Shoesmiths advised Heidi. Birmingham-based Cattaneo Corporate Finance and Claritas Tax also provided legal advice to Heidi.
Scott Peters, from Cattaneo Corporate Finance, said: “We are extremely pleased to have secured this transaction. Heidi's team is extremely reliable and it has been a very competitive process. We have done a number of transactions in the leisure tech sector and Heidi is one of the best operators in the sector. Heidi is a fantastic company with a very exciting future and we look forward to seeing what they can achieve with Marcia's support.”