Every traveler dreams of a free flight upgrade, but there is no official method to guarantee entrance into the land of extra space, legroom, and better food. Free, spontaneous upgrades are typically given to loyal customers, who have collected an impressive number of flyers miles and points. Upgrade Pack seeks to fix that through its app that connects travelers with flight and hotel upgrades. Upgrade Pack partners with corporate clients (banks, credit card issuers, etc.) to help them reward loyal customers and employees through travel upgrades. Upgrade Pack’s platform is structured so all entities benefit – including the airlines who profit from upgrades that otherwise would’ve gone unsold.
London TechWatch interviewed founder Craig Unsworth to learn more about Upgrade Pack’s traction and plans for expansion as well as its latest round of funding, which brings its total funding to £3.4M across three rounds.
Who were your investors and how much did you raise?
Our latest investment totals £1.3M. It was led by UK investment group Havisham Group. As part of the funding Havisham’s cofounder David Brownlow has joined our Board as Chairman. This latest financing completes our seed round and brings total investment in the company (all private) to £3.4M, valuing Upgrade Pack at £15M.
Tell us about the product or service Upgrade Pack offers.
Upgrade Pack is the ultimate travel-based loyalty mechanic.
Our technology connects airlines and hotels (with unsold premium seats and rooms available) with people who want an upgrade and have the discretionary income to buy an upgrade.
It’s delivered as a closed marketplace app that our clients can provide to their most valued customers and employees as a loyalty benefit.
How has the business changed since we spoke earlier in the year after Upgrade Pack’s pre-seed round earlier in this year?
We’re on the cusp of taking our app platform live with our launch airline partner and are in dialogue with over 30 airlines around the world about joining Upgrade Pack, in addition to the number of flagship hotels.
This new financing gives a clear runway to launching our app, onboarding clients and partners and making progress on our ambitious product roadmap in the months ahead.
What was the funding process like?
We were in the enviable position of being oversubscribed in just five days during our Seed financing earlier this year, thus contributing to increased anticipation and excitement around Upgrade Pack. This led to a number of interesting propositions for our next round of funding, including venture capital; however, we were determined to pursue our funding strategy of private investment over VC.
Upon meeting with David and Havisham group, he shared our ambitions to launch a revelatory product in the customer loyalty and employee benefits space, in addition to helping airlines and hotels generate added revenue. We were delighted to accept their investment and welcome David to our board as Chairman. His experience will be invaluable to us in the short and long term.
What are the biggest challenges that you faced while raising capital?
The biggest challenge was making sure we brought on the right partners, who understood our vision, and shared our values and objectives to bring a truly innovative product to market.
What factors about your business led your investors to write the check?
There are many factors which demonstrate the belief in and potential of Upgrade Pack. In a little over 12 months, we’ve assembled an exceptional board, grown to a talented 26-strong team, raised significant private investment, and received extremely positive feedback from potential partners and clients as a product that offers a real differentiator. Ultimately, any startup/scaleup lives and dies by their product. Our feedback from partners, clients, and beta users all point to Upgrade Pack being a transformative reward that will be deliver real value.
What are the milestones you plan to achieve in the next six months?
We have two big milestones to hit in the immediate future. The first is opening our new offices in Toronto and Singapore as part of our expansion into North America and Asia Pacific. The second milestone to hit is launching our app with our inaugural airline in the weeks ahead.
We have two big milestones to hit in the immediate future. The first is opening our new offices in Toronto and Singapore as part of our expansion into North America and Asia Pacific. The second milestone to hit is launching our app with our inaugural airline in the weeks ahead.
What advice can you offer companies in London that do not have a fresh injection of capital in the bank?
Focus on product.
Where do you see the company going now over the near term?
The near term promises to be a very exciting time for the company.
We will also be embarking on a sustained period of bringing more airline and hotel partners on to our platform. We are currently in dialogue with over 30 airlines and plan to streamline our onboarding process with each new partner to provide our users with access to more upgrades around the world as soon as we can.
