London-based Not In The Guidebooks, a cultural and sustainable travel marketplace, has grabbed £150K in funding. The investment came from Jenson Funding Partners (which invested in ZappedSkin and Onoco) as a part of an ongoing funding round.
With the new investment, Not In The Guidebooks hopes to bring in key hires and bolster the rich travel background the team has even further, thereby enhancing the technology to create better communications between hosts and travellers. The company is in plans to expand the product inventory to provide more choices of experiences while driving brand awareness and customer acquisition.
Carol Savage, CEO and founder at Not In The Guidebooks, said: “My experience of travel, personally and professionally, has historically been like buying an album in a record store – it’s a fixed item and you get what you’re given. With Not In The Guidebooks, it’s more like Spotify and you can customise your itinerary like a playlist – you choose how much activity you want in your holiday. Having a supportive partner like Jenson backing us has been fundamental in executing our vision and we’re hopeful that more like-minded investors will join this round as we disrupt the travel landscape for the better.”
Sarah Barber, CEO at Jenson Funding Partners, added: “This is the third time we’ve invested in Not In The Guidebooks, which is really a testament to what an innovative concept Carol and the team have built. It’s truly rare to see a travel business with purpose as central to the proposition as profit and, as a business focused on inclusivity ourselves, it’s a pleasure to be a part of their journey.”
Female-led sustainable platform
Not In The Guidebooks was founded by Carol Savage in 2017. Since then, it is creating the world’s most accessible marketplace for premium, bite-size experiences, selling to both the trade and directly to consumers. The sustainable travel company wants to replace the generic offerings sold by larger tour operators, often led by people who haven’t even visited a destination before, by connecting holidaymakers with genuine local experts.
The global collective works with partners to create the very best collection of authentic local experiences and short itineraries that are sustainable and support local communities, and wildlife.
The team of dedicated experts at Not In The Guidebooks understands the real value of your holiday time. It is the time to be with friends and family, time to explore new places and experience new cultures and time to do something different.
This travel marketplace is meant for curious travellers who want to find the very best things to do when they travel, treading their own path. It finds truly unique things to do, fits authentic local experiences into your itinerary and creates amazing memories while traveling sustainably and supporting local communities. Not In The Guidebooks sources the very best in authentic, responsible travel experiences, so you can easily design and book unique experiential holidays for your clients.
