Western Australian venue rentals startup SpacetoCo has raised $2 million from Purpose Ventures, as the booking platform look to take its international ambitions to the UK.
SpaceToCo simplifies the venue hire process for owners such as local government and community centres. Its enterprise-level software streamline the booking process and reduces repetitive administration tasks as well as improving access to under-utilised spaces.
The Perth startup was founded by Daniel McCullen, Jeremy Hurst and Daniel Franco in 2017 as an Airbnb-style marketplace for short-term function space hire.
McCullen, SpacetoCo’s CEO, said the real power of the platform is its ability to provide hirers with a marketplace filled with community venues to locate the right venue for an event.
The startup’s focus on spaces and venues run by local councils and community centres has seen it win over 42% of WA metro local governments and 10% of councils Australia-wide.
In 2018, SpacetoCo expanded to New Zealand under NZ managing director, Elle Bell and the funds from this raise will be used to launch a UK presence in 2025, having already been accepted into the UK government’s Global Entrepreneurs Program.
They also appeared on Shark Tank a few years ago seeking $210,000 for a 14% equity stake. The sharks would be ruing not taking their chance now.
McCullen said they pleased to have a local backer for their global plans.
“We are looking forward to having the Purpose Ventures team on board and working with them as we take SpacetoCo’s growth to the next level,” he said.
“We are proud of the impact that we have had in Australia and NZ, unlocking access to under-utilised spaces and look forward to continuing our expansion into the UK in 2025.”
SpaceToCo was previously part of the Plus Eight Accelerator and scored investment from RAC’s $23 million Betterlabs fund.
Purpose Ventures is a $50 million fund based in Perth, and SpaceToCo is their sixth investment since launching 18 months ago.
Managing director Derek Gerrard said they’ve known the SpacetoCo team since the company’s inception and have closely followed their progress.
“We are excited to have the opportunity to support this fast-growing WA company as it continues to scale,” he said.
“The talented founding team have created a strong foothold in the Australian market, and we look forward to being part of their journey as they expand internationally.”
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