Ski Operator Heidi Goes from Strength to Strength
29th June 2024
Last modified on July 3rd, 2024
It is ranked 63rd in the 2024 edition of the The Sunday Times 100 ranking Britain’s fastest-growing companies & secures £5.6m in additional funding.
Heidi is now the UK’s third-largest ski holiday operator, carrying over 34,000 passengers in the most recent season (22/23).
Heidi’s technology allows customers complete flexibility to create their own bespoke package.
They can choose from over 6,000 accommodation options in over 400 resorts, select the date of departure and length of stay and sort by features such as quantity of snow or proximity to slope.
Customers can also book group holidays that allow members to fly from different locations, and extras such as lift passes and ski hire.
Heidi was founded in 2018 by brothers Marcus and Alexander Blunt, keen skiers who had both spent a decade working in the travel industry.
This year businesses had to achieve a minimum average annual sales growth rate of 62% to make the Sunday Times list.
There are over 5m registered UK companies, and around 61,000 meet the requirements which must be met to feature on the league table.
Heidi came 63rd- it’s based on compound annual growth over 3 three years and due to when their financial year finishes, they’ve looked at winter 2022/23 as the last year.
It doesn’t include the 23/24 season that Heidi claims “was actually a whopper!’
Chamonix, France. Image © PlanetSKI
It has also raised £5.6m in a funding round led by Mercia Ventures with participation from Active Partners and private investors.
Heidi is based in Bristol and PlanetSKI has reported on its focus on the short-break market:
Innsbruck airport, Austria. Image © PlanetSKI
With most operators only offering Saturday departures, Heidi spotted a gap in the market for an online operator that could offer greater flexibility.
Initially Heidi raised money from family and friends to launch the platform.
“The launch of Heidi was borne out of our own frustrations as keen skiers who wanted to get away to the slopes but at a time and date to suit our own schedules,” said the CEO of Heidi, Marcus Blunt.
“Having launched the company with limited investment and built it to its current size, we are now all set to take it to the next level.
“Our aim is to more than double in size in the next few years and become one of the top two ski travel operators.”
Image c/o Heidi
The business currently employs 44 staff and revenue has grown from £8.8 million in the year to April 2022 to £37 million in 2024.
“Marcus and Alexander have built a great business with strong values and a fantastic culture,” said Jan Oosthuizen from Mercia Ventures said: .
“Heidi offers a unique proposition that appeals to both the package holiday customers, who can benefit from greater flexibility, and independent travellers who can book everything in one place.”
“With its unique approach to ski holiday bookings and in-house technology, Marcus and Alexander have found product-market fit in a large, poorly served market,” said Billy Fox, Early-stage Investor at Active Partners.
Heidi says the funding will enable the company to further enhance its platform, expand its customer service teams and create over 20 jobs in the year ahead.
