Both startups offer online booking platforms for tourism companies.
Victoria-based Checkfront, which offers booking software for the tourism industry, is merging with Rezdy, an Australian company that operates in the same space.
The merger deal closed in June for an undisclosed amount on the final day of the Arival conference in Bangkok, an event for businesses in the “in-destination” travel industry, which refers to travel and experiences within destination countries.
“We decided that to serve our [customers] better, we wanted to join forces.”
Arival, a website that compiles resources for events and content dedicated to in-destination experiences, first reported on the merger this week. It called Checkfront and Rezdy’s merger “the largest and most significant deal” in the travel and tourism sector since 2018, when Booking.com acquired FareHarbor for $250 million USD, and TripAdvisor acquired Bokun for an undisclosed amount.
Checkfront and Rezdy plan to continue operating as their own individual brands, Arival reported, and there are no plans to combine the brands in the future.
Co-founded by Jason Morehouse and Grant Jurgeneit in 2008, Checkfront’s platform allows tour and activity operators to accept reservations, process payments, track customers, sign waivers and documents, as well as simplify pricing, seasonality, and inventory requirements.
Since launching in 2010, Checkfront has grown to become one of the largest independent global booking platforms. It claims a workforce of over 100 employees and more than 5,000 clients.
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Checkfront is venture-backed, raising $10.6 million CAD in funding. It previously raised a $1.3-million seed round in 2015 and a $9.3-million Series A round in 2020.
Though Checkfront has pursued its growth independently since inception, Morehouse said in a statement that it “didn’t make sense” for the startup to build similar solutions for the same customers as Rezdy, which he called Checkfront’s “strongest peer.”
“We decided that to serve our [customers] better, we wanted to join forces,” Morehouse added.
Featured image courtesy Checkfront.
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