Swiss-based deskbird bags €5M, becomes most valuable European SaaS startup for workplace management

Switzerland-based deskbird, a workplace management app for hybrid companies, announced on Monday, August 22, that it has raised $5M (approximately €5M) in a pre-Series A round of funding. 

The company has now raised a total of $6.5M (approximately €6.5M) in funding since its inception in 2020, making it the most valuable European SaaS startup for workplace management.

The investment also comes after the company’s “outstanding performance” since its inception, earning a total contract volume (TCV) of $2M just one year after its product debut with a +50 per cent monthly growth.

Investors in this round

The round was co-led by Fortyone, Rivus Capital and existing investor session.vc.

Martin Altorfer and Philippe Bubb created session.vc in 2020 after over two decades of co-investing in and growing businesses. They were the initial investors in businesses like Bexio and On, where they actively served as chairman for many years. In addition to their own funds, entrepreneurs and company owners in the tech and non-tech sectors have invested in session.vc.

Rivus Capital supports established but especially young companies with equity, network and know-how. The firm has offices in Munich and Berlin. It invests capital from entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs. “We want to work together with visionary and strong personalities to build and grow sustainably successful companies,” says the firm.

Simon Math, Partner at Rivus Capital, says, “We strongly believe in a hybrid working world. This allows companies not only to use the workspace more efficiently but also to create a modern working environment. It will only succeed with the ideal tech solution. In addition to deskbird’s strong growth and the excellent team that Ivan and Jonas have built, we were particularly convinced by the strong product and the broader vision for investment.”

Funds to expand in Europe

The company says that the proceeds from this round will help accelerate its expansion throughout European regions and enable the business to broaden its product line to better serve the evolving demands of its enterprise and mid-market clients. 

The company already assists over 500 workplaces in 20 countries in managing their operations through its workplace software. It counts Schaeffler, Heineken, KFC, Knauf, and Volksbank, among its clients. 

Jonas Hess, co-founder and CPO of deskbird, says, “We are grateful for the exceptionally close collaboration with our clients, which allowed us to build a B2B product that is loved by both employees and managers. Thanks to this financing round, we will further push user engagement, functionality and integrations in existing workflows. As we are growing to over 100 people in the near future, one big challenge will be to find the very best talent in line with our culture.”

A people-centric solution for your hybrid workplace

Founded in 2020 by Ivan Cossu, Jonas Hess and Dominik Ehrsam, deskbird provides hybrid businesses with a people-focused solution. In just two clicks, employees can book desks, arrange work-from-home and office days, and discover who else is in the building.

Office managers get a bird’s-eye view of data like office occupancy and consumption at their fingertips, which helps them design a flexible work environment that workers appreciate.

The company claims to have a high user adoption rate because of its user interface and connections with Microsoft Teams and Outlook, Google Calendar, Slack, and other services. Companies may optimise their office expenses by using the data produced on office space utilisation and occupancy. 

deskbird reports that it has become a go-to option for contemporary businesses with flexible workplaces because of its ability to customise its product and meet with the complicated IT security, legal, and data privacy needs of corporate clients.