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Finland: Helsinki-based pest control startup Valpas has announced that it recently raised €4 million in a seed funding round to scale its solution in Europe.
The round was led by early-stage venture capital firm Zenith VC, with participation from Icebreaker VC, Finnish Industry Investment, Canon Marketing Japan MIRAI Fund, Activum SG Ventures, Houghton Street Ventures, Rockaway Ventures and Morrow Ventures.
The startup, which provides a tech-based solution for both short-term rentals and hotels, plans to use the investment to ensure that rooms are free of bedbugs as hospitality businesses prepare for a busy summer of international travel in Europe, headlined by sporting events such as the European Championships in Germany and the Olympics and Paralympics in Paris, France.
Valpas will also utilise the funding to build key partnerships with travel booking agents and platforms so that it will be easier for travellers to identify and opt for bedbug-safe accommodation.
Founded in 2017, the company uses a tech-based solution based around ‘smart bed legs’, which capture the first few bedbugs before infestations break out. When the smart bed legs capture bedbugs inside them, hotel or property management staff are automatically notified by email and the legs can be emptied by housekeepers during the cleaning period.
In doing so, Valpas says that it can eliminate guest losses and reassure their hygiene concerns. Its solution, which is completely free of chemicals, is in contrast to the many pesticide-based products which are said to be both environmentally unfriendly and increasingly ineffective against bedbug infestations.
It comes at a time when one in every 33 hotel rooms is said to be infected by travellers unknowingly carrying bedbugs [e.g. in luggage], which costs the hospitality industry a reported €15 billion each year. Last year, hotels in Paris found themselves at the epicentre of a bedbug outbreak in the months leading up to the Olympics and Paralympics, gaining unwanted media coverage at the same time.
In the meantime, the Valpas product is now being used in more than 300 hotels managed by brands such as Bob W, Accor, The Luxury Collection, Design Hotels and ARP-Hansen.
Martim Gois, co-founder and CEO of Valpas, said: “No travel or home insurance covers the cost and pain of a bed bug infestation at home. Nearly every infestation at home comes after a night in a hotel or rental bed.
“By staying at a Valpas affiliated hotel, travellers know the room they get is clean and no matter where they go around town the hotel keeps them safe,” added Gois.
Erik Lindblad, partner and CEO at Zenith VC, said: “Valpas is addressing a significant and growing industry challenge with a seamless and effective solution. We believe it is a clear leader in this segment and has the potential to become a global category winner.”