What is the format and objective of the fund-raising announced on 12 September?
Arnaud Katz - We have just carried out a fundraising of €5 millionwith three partners: Caphorn Invest, Raise Venture and BNP Paribas Développement. This operation has enabled us to change scale. We've become a much more structured company, capable over the past year of supporting major groups. Incidentally, we don't spend our lives raising funds, as this is only our second operation of this kind.
How will this new financial windfall be used?
A. K. - There are two aspects to this: we are moving towards more complex projectsWe will also be offering a range of seminars, from full-day seminars with full catering facilities to residential seminars with hotel facilities and team-building activities such as escape games and yoga classes. At the same time, we will be pursuing our geographic deploymentWe're also going to focus our international efforts on London in particular.
How would you describe the development of the Bird Office offering since its creation?
A. K. - Bird Office was officially launched on 24 December 2013. At the time, we were often described as the "Airbnb of the office". Over the last year and a half, we've radically changed our approach, positioning ourselves as a genuine events product. As soon as an employee leaves his or her office for a business trip or an event, our mission is to help organise a meeting, training course, seminar, workshop, etc. So on the one hand, we offer a complete range of services, and on the other hand, we offer a complete range of products and services. So on the one hand we offer a booking platform, and on the other we create the whole environment so that our customers can make all their event expenses via a single point of contact, a single billing entity. Each account is also allocated a dedicated Bird Office advisor for all its events. Today, 9,000 companies are booking on Bird Office on a recurring basis, which is starting to add up to a nice range of customers. We are therefore in the process of consolidating our position asexpert in BtoB events.
the market is ripe
And the market itself: how has it evolved in recent years?
Arnaud Katz - For the first time, I have the impression that the market is ripeCompanies have now grasped the need to organise MICE expenditure. Suppliers' products and purchasing departments have matured at the same time.
Who are your contacts within the company?
A. K. - This includes purchasing departments, with whom we sign framework contracts, as well as travel managers, executive assistants and human resources departments, in other words all the departments that need events. Depending on the company, the MICE is supported by Travel Managers or by buyers. It's an integral part of our business. For air travel, things are clear: it's the role of the Travel Manager. For MICE, it's more variable, depending on the internal organisation. On the whole, buyers and Travel Managers have no real idea of how much they spend on events. Even those who are the most advanced on the issue are aware that a large proportion of their expenditure slips through the cracks. That's why, in addition to the services part of our offer, there's the reportingThis is a real plus in terms of understanding expenses and validation workflows. We are also working with American Express on the implementation of the card housedThis brings real value to these SMEs and key accounts. At the same time, all the customers who are not equipped for the smart card have access to centralised billing, which saves them a lot of time.
How does your partnership with BNP ?
A. K. - I'm delighted. In fact, the initiative is going to grow: we're going to extend access to meeting rooms in bank branches throughout France. The offer will remain free for BNP Paribas customers.
How do you fit in with market trends such as coworking?
A. K. - The one-off need for a day office is a small market. On the other hand, our agreement with Remix allows us to market the event spaces in these coworking spaces. Other partnerships of this kind are in the pipeline and should be unveiled soon. The other fundamental new trend is the demand for atypical venues. Almost all groups are now asking us for Google-style" spacesThey're looking to break out of the box to be more creative.
Airbnb for business joined forces with WeWork a few weeks ago. Could you also team up with an accommodation specialist like MagicStay?
Arnaud Katz - The initiative launched by Airbnb and WeWork is a very good idea, which makes sense because there is volume. As far as we're concerned, the demand for coworking spaces on a daily basis is too low. We have an excellent relationship with MagicStay, and we talk regularly, but I'm not sure that such a tie-up would really add anything to the market.
What is your relationship with the business travel agencies, who have all launched their own meetings & events departments?
A. K. - Unfortunately, we've had very little contact with the agencies so far, and no particular way of working together at the moment. These are big structures, and it takes time to get things moving.
