Press Releases in 2005
Angels give travel company new wings to fly higher
Brilliant Weekends secures £200k+ investment deal with help from local business support network
Group Tour Operator, Brilliant Weekends announced today that it has raised £205K of funding from a syndicate of private investors led by the South West Angel Investor Network (SWAIN). The new funding will enable the 3 year-old company to build on its existing exclusive online distribution deals with low-cost airlines such as EasyJet and FlyBE as well as provide further investment for its in-house IT reservation system whilst accelerating staff training and development in customer service.
The business, run by Bristol based husband and wife team Richard and Liz Dennys was started in Umbria, Italy in 2002 selling summer stag and hen weekend breaks in famed beach-resort Rimini to groups arriving to local airports via the no frills airlines. Since then the company has significantly expanded its range of products and services plus its customer base to include many large corporate clients. In 2003 it moved to offices in Bristol where they now employ 20 staff.
Recognising the need for development capital to aid further growth, they enlisted the support of ICON Corporate Finance who in turn introduced SWAIN, the local network of Business Angels. Having met with several interested parties, the company struck a deal with a consortium of angel investors located in Bristol, Leicester and London. The deal was concluded on 30th September with legal advice prior to completion undertaken by solicitors, Laytons.
Richard Dennys, Managing Director of Brilliant Weekends, said "Almost since day one we have struggled to cope with the demand for our products and services. This new investment will allow the company to scale its internal systems to meet current and future sales volumes. The involvement of ICON, SWAIN & Laytons has been invaluable in helping us to bring on board new investors without distracting us too much from our core activity of developing, selling and fulfilling our holidays."
Eddie Harding of ICON Corporate Finance who advised management on the deal added "Brilliant Weekends has enjoyed significant growth in sales since it began and is now one of the premier providers of short breaks for groups in the UK. In order to manage this growth the company has invested wisely in its own in-house technology, enabling it to scale the business rapidly, thus reducing operating costs and significantly increasing the amount of bookings that can be taken each day."
Philip Telwright, of SWAIN stated, "We are always searching for investment propositions within high-profile fast moving young companies such as Brilliant Weekends. We are delighted that SWAIN has managed to introduce Angels with many years of valuable business experience alongside their financial investment. Combined with the sparkle and enthusiasm of the Brilliant Weekends management team we feel that the company has an excellent chance of long term success."
Charles Cook of solicitors Laytons who led the legal negotiations said "Our key task throughout was to keep the negotiations on track and to ensure that the agreement was concluded without difficulty or delay for our client. Negotiations can so often be both fraught and protracted for the parties -and even the lawyers - involved. We worked hard to keep matters moving at all times and stuck to a timetable that avoided us getting bogged down in unnecessary amendments and peripheral matters. This is an exciting time for our client and Laytons are extremely pleased to have been able to advise and assist with the negotiations."
