Victor, the real-time booking platform for business jet customers, is seeking to raise £1.5 million ($2.3 million) to fund the next phase of its expansion programme.
The London-headquartered company launched operations in August last year with a line-up of 22 partner operators and a fleet of 120 aircraft. This tally more than doubled by the end of 2011 to nearly 50 operators and 200-plus jets, turboprops and piston twins.
Victor's membership has also climbed, the company said, from about 240 to more than 650 during the same period. The company expects to have 1,000 members by its first anniversary.
"We have built a successful business model with a proven track record," said Victor founder and chief executive Clive Jackson.
"We now want to move to the next level and expand our offering into the thriving German-speaking region. It is a popular charter market. A lot of metal is moving there at the moment." Jackson has appointed advisers to lead an initial round of fundraising, which will focus on friends and family and "angel" investors, he said.
The funds will also be used to build a mobile app and expand the partner programme with a plethora of related service companies including high-end travel agencies, property agents and concierge providers.
"After that, we plan to raise the necessary investment to allow us to launch in the US and Asia-Pacific, where there is huge potential for a smart, transparent private jet booking service like this," said Jackson. "We would like to move into these markets in parallel, probably by the first quarter of 2013."
Source: Flight International