Landfolk Raises €10.3M Series A to Redefine and Win Europe’s Vacation Rental Market

Landfolk, the leading tech-driven marketplace for handpicked second homes, proudly announces a significant investment of €10.3 million from EIFO alongside SEED Capital and Heartland. This investment marks a pivotal moment in Landfolk’s growth trajectory, aimed at expanding its footprint further into Europe and driving innovation within the industry.

There are more than seven million holiday homes across Europe, and on average they are empty more than 300 days a year. That’s a huge opportunity in an industry where the demand for short term rentals is only growing year over year.

A vacation brand tailored for modern travellers

Landfolk was founded by a seasoned group of co-founders in 2021, who all previously worked together at Airbnb.

We started Landfolk because we saw an opportunity to change what’s broken in the vacation rental industry. Modern travellers are looking for authentic experiences and are not willing to compromise on aesthetics. The places we stay at should be an experience in itself.

— Christian Schwarz Lausten, CEO and co-founder of Landfolk

In just three years, the Danish startup Landfolk has grown from zero to more than 3000 handpicked, premium holiday homes and expanded from Denmark into Norway, Germany and most recently Sweden. Despite their rapid growth, only half of the homes that apply are accepted onto the platform. A true testament to their dedication to quality ensuring that guests always enjoy the highest quality accommodations.

World-class tech to drive scalability across Europe

The investment will fuel Landfolk’s commitment to innovation. The company has recently expanded its proprietary marketplace to include cleaning partners, making all processes 100% automatic to both hosts, cleaning partners and internally.

We’re a seasoned founder team and we probably have one of the most experienced and skilled product teams in Europe when it comes to building marketplaces. This tech-driven approach ensures seamless experiences for both homeowners and guests, and is instrumental to our success – especially when we think ahead in terms of scaling and expanding into new markets.

— Christian Schwarz Lausten, CEO and co-founder of Landfolk

Unlocking underutilised supply and expanding to southern Europe

With a tried and tested go to market playbook, Landfolk has demonstrated a remarkable ability to tap into the vast, underutilised supply of second homes across northern Europe. Out of 1.3 million second homes, 85% are not being rented out, standing empty for an average of 300 days a year. Landfolk is changing that with 70% of their second homes that have either never been rented out before or are exclusively listed on landfolk.com.

As a natural next step and in response to rising guest demand, Landfolk now plans to expand further into Europe, offering more sunny destinations and capturing the fastest-growing vertical in tourism at the same time – short-term rentals.

Landfolk enables high utilisation of housing assets and gives more people access to some amazing places across Northern Europe. It’s an obvious way to bring more tourism and more jobs to rural areas. Landfolk is a great example of a company that can become a beacon within the tourism industry in Europe.

— Jacob Bratting, Partner and Head of Tech & Industry investments at EIFO

More than a travel brand

This new investment will not only support Landfolk’s market expansion but also bolster its product innovation and brand-building efforts. Landfolk’s potential to become a leading lifestyle brand in the vacation rental market, closely linked to the burgeoning trend of mental wellness.

Taking a break from the to-do lists and deadlines of everyday life is an essential part of the Landfolk experience. A vacation should soothe your soul and senses, and bring you closer to the people you love. Going out of the city to these rural places, where you can connect with nature is a wholesome experience to most. And it’s Landfolk’s DNA.

— Christian Schwarz Lausten, CEO and co-founder of Landfolk

For more information or further comments, please contact:

Christian Schwarz Lausten, CEO of Landfolk Mail: christian@landfolk.com Phone: +45 23 62 09 89

For more press material, please contact:

Camilla Swartz, Head of PR Mail: camilla@landfolk.com Phone: +45 30 13 52 57

Camilla Swartz Primdahl
Written by Camilla Swartz PrimdahlJuly 2024

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