Fresha in London achieves unicorn status with an $80M funding round led by KKR.

      The beauty and wellness booking platform based in London has entered the UK unicorn club with a valuation exceeding $1 billion, amidst ongoing discussions in the broader SaaS landscape about its future. Fresha, a London-based booking and payments platform tailored for salons and spas, announced on Thursday that it has raised $80 million from KKR-managed funds, pushing its valuation beyond the $1 billion mark.

      This funding round, categorized as primary growth capital, elevates Fresha to unicorn status and increases the total amount raised since 2015 to $285 million. The investment comes from KKR's Next Generation Technology Growth fund, which focuses on companies that have moved past the product-market-fit stage and are seeking scaling capital rather than just funding for survival.

      The figures released by Fresha alongside the announcement highlight the demand for its services. The platform serves over 130,000 beauty and wellness establishments in the UK, Australasia, the Gulf, North America, and parts of Southeast Asia, processing more than 35 million appointments monthly, which translates to roughly 420 million appointments annually, with an annual gross merchandise value of $15 billion.

      The annual revenue run-rate exceeds $140 million and is growing at over 60% annually, while the business maintains profitability. In its last disclosed valuation during a Series C extension in late 2021, Fresha was valued at $640 million.

      Founded in 2015 by William Zeqiri and Nick Miller, Fresha has spent the last five years gradually replacing older booking systems in its primary markets while expanding into payments, capital, and more recently, AI-driven scheduling and marketing tools. Zeqiri described reaching unicorn status as “a proud milestone” and mentioned that the funding would support further global expansion and AI investments. Miller, the chief product officer, regarded the funding round as a testament to customer validation, stating that many were already using the platform as their main operational system.

      KKR’s diligence process lasted over a year and involved surveys of more than 1,000 beauty and wellness businesses across the US, UK, Ireland, the EU, and Australia, along with interviews with customers, former employees, and competitors. KKR reported that Fresha ranked first in terms of software quality, ease of use, support, setup, and marketplace strength, achieving an average score of 8.1 out of 10 compared to a competitor average of 6.7.

      Patrick Devine, a partner on KKR’s Tech Growth team, noted that Fresha had developed “a differentiated platform combining software, financial services, and marketplace capabilities with embedded AI.” Marta Szczerba, a director on the same team, shared that she had closely followed the founders over the years and was “highly impressed with their consistent performance.”

      The deal comes at a challenging time for the SaaS sector Fresha operates in. Salesforce has experienced a drop of approximately 30% year-to-date, and the broader software industry is grappling with the debate that per-seat pricing may not be suitable for the AI era. However, a vertical platform that generates revenue from payments, marketplace fees, and subscriptions appears to be less affected by these concerns, which likely influenced KKR's conclusion during their diligence.

      Fresha indicated that the new funding will be allocated for expansion in the US, continental Europe, Africa, and Southeast Asia, as well as for enhancing AI features related to booking automation, marketing, accounting, and workforce management. The company did not provide details about a proposed timeline for an IPO or any future fundraising efforts.