US: Apartment rental company Frontdesk has secured $6.8 million in a Series A round in a combination of debt and equity.
The financing follows the company’s $2.75 million bridge round, raised in summer 2019.
“Before the coronavirus crisis, we always felt that we had the most supportive investors imaginable,” said Kyle Weatherly, co-founder and CEO. “Now we are absolutely certain of it. Not only did they make good on their initial commitment, but they increased it by almost $3 million. This provides us the capital to not only survive the crisis but it will also allow us to accelerate our growth again when travel rebounds.”
The company has recently laid off 35 of its 241 employees due to the effects of the coronavirus, but says it already sees positive indicators of increased travel demand. It hopes to rehire those employees, in addition to new employees, this summer.
“We are opening a new chapter of Frontdesk history,” said Jesse DePinto, co-founder and chief product officer. “We may have been the underdog before, but now Frontdesk is positioned to be an industry leader. We would not be here today if it wasn’t for the dedication of our employees, the faith of our investors, and the support of our real estate partners.”
Frontdesk operates in 28 cities with more than 500 fully-serviced apartment suites and says it manages the entire guest experience from end to end, from its in-house technology stack to in-house cleaning operations. Its length of stays range from one night to six months.
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