Cardiff- and London-based tech start-up, Lovetovisit.com, is launching a crowdfunding campaign with investment platform Seedrs, with a goal of raising £400,000.
Looking to further their work in the UK’s multi-billion-pound domestic tourism industry, the founders believe their digital platform will revolutionise the way people discover and book things to see and do.
Beginning on 17 February, the month-long campaign seeks investors large and small to join Lovetovisit.com’s mission to support the wide variety of attractions, theatres, events, and experiences on offer in the UK , both paid and free, building resilience in the sector hard-hit by the pandemic.
The tourism and culture sector in the UK is an area of growth and opportunity, and VisitBritain’s forecasting for 2022 includes large increases in domestic overnight tourism and leisure day trips. Increasing interest in ‘things to do' prompted Google to launch a Things to do Ad Unit in September 2021 in response to this demand.
However, the sector suffers from a serious lack of digitisation with only 8% of attractions having mobile optimised websites (VisitBritain 2019). It is estimated that over half of attractions and experiences have no online booking capacity.
Founder Fed Pereira explains:
“We believe Lovetovisit.com is the first of its kind in the world, thanks to the development of an algorithm that is specific to the events and tourism industry. Great tech should enable people to find the information they need, make a booking and get on with enjoying their day. Think Airbnb, Insta, Just Eat, but for tourist attractions and events. We already have the support of some heavy-weight private funders and in keeping with our commitment to inclusivity, we want to open the opportunity out to like minded investors, who share our vision and want to join us with this venture.”
Lovetovisit.com will launch in February and already has 1,600 tourism and culture venues signed up, as well as partnering with industry big hitters; London Theatre, Encore, and Tiqets. Projections for the platform estimate monthly users of between three and five million.
Founder Alice Aubrey outlines the plans for the funds raised:
“Our aim for raising funds with Seedrs is to enable us to invest more in our marketing and quickly spread the word about Lovetovisit.com far and wide. We also plan to implement an equality and diversity strategy, ensuring that inclusivity is at the heart of everything we do, from our partners to our users, to everyone involved, which is why the Seedrs campaign is perfect.”
Founder Georgia Aubrey explains further:
“Covid-19 has dramatically changed visitor behavior as they become more accustomed to booking online and in advance (even if it’s just by a few hours). While the top-tier attractions and theatres have the resources to invest in their tech, smaller attractions and cultural venues are at a massive disadvantage and visitors are missing out. Lovetovisit.com wants to remedy this issue and provide fair and inclusive opportunities for attractions of every size to showcase themselves and generate visits and bookings.”
Pre-registration is open now and the fund goes live on 17 February at www.seedrs.com/lovetovisit/coming-soon
