Openplay, a service that brings sports to users’ doorstep, has recently launched an equity crowdfunding campaign on Crowdcube to raise £150,000. Within the first 24 hours, the project successfully secured over 50% of its initial goal
The company is described as a website with an average 80,000 monthly visitors which removes the hassle of finding and booking local sports facilities and activities whilst connecting people together around their sports interests. In February, the company will also launch a new mobile app, which will improve the consumer experience. It will enable consumers to find and book sports facilities, join activities and recruit other players in less than 60 seconds.
Openplay noted:
“Our current revenue streams are via a paid subscription, and commission on bookings, through the supply of an online booking and customer management system. This targets facilities and activity providers in the UK, as there are more than 90,000 venues, parks, community sites, leisure centers and open spaces.”
Funds from the Crowdcube initiative will go towards the following:
- Tech – New mobile app and complete site rebuild
- Expanding core team particularly in sales
Sam Parton, Founder of OpenPlay said:
“The sports industry has been dragging its feet when it comes to adapting to the digital revolution which is already transforming many other consumer facing businesses, like retail and personal finance. Currently, to book a game of tennis or join a football match, people have to spend hours calling around and even that often proves futile. OpenPlay revolutionises this experience by making it possible to find and book any sport taking place nearby online or via your mobile. It also helps venues and activity providers to attract and retain new customers. It’s a win-win for all stakeholders, whether the local sports player, venue or sports bodies trying to get more people playing.
“With the new funding, it will boost the customer experience by making it faster to play sports, find other players and teams and effectively create a new online, localized sports community.”
The campaign is set to close at the end of December.
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