Ticketing technology provider Red61 has secured a funding package worth more than £1m as it continues to pursue growth in new markets.
The Edinburgh-based ticketing-as-a-service (TAAS) supplier has brought in £1.4m from a group of Scottish investors. The late seed funding round was led by venture capitalists Par Equity in partnership with the Scottish Investment Bank.
Red61, which provides scalable ticketing, CRM and audience insight solutions to live entertainment brands including the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, is focused on global growth, having signed a number of deals in North America and Australia. It has also processed one million tickets in the first quarter of this year in the Asia-Pacific region.
Tony Davey, Red61’s chief executive and founder, said: “Securing any funding during a pandemic that has had a huge effect on our industry was always going to be a challenge. Completing this late seed funding round is validation of what the team at Red61 has achieved and shows the confidence that our funding partners have in what we’re doing and where we’re taking the company.”
Recent deals for Red61 include with venues and councils in Canada and Australia, while it has also partnered with fringe festivals in major markets such as Sydney, Vancouver and Montreal. It has signed with a number of Australian arts organisations following SeatGeek’s departure from the market last year.
Red61 described the latest investment as a key step in its overall growth strategy and “an encouraging precursor” to its planned Series A round.
Red61 has retained Lazarus Consulting, the boutique corporate finance advisory firm to handle its Series A funding round and investor interest has already been received.
Paul Atkinson, founding partner of Par Equity said: “We are excited about the momentum that Tony and his team have continued to push forward in 2021 and we’ve been impressed with Red61’s growth in new markets. The way in which Red61 has navigated an incredibly challenging period and has moved from strength to strength is a true testament to their ongoing potential.”