Wander raises $20M Series A led by QED Investors, opens booking access to all, empowering everyone to work and roam freely
AUSTIN, Feb. 9, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Wander, the only network of smart homes built for the future of life and work, today announced that it's opened up booking for all properties to the general public and raised a $20 million Series A led by QED Investors with participation from Redpoint Ventures, Authentic Ventures, Fifthwall, Susa Ventures, Kevin Durant and Rich Kleiman's Thirty Five Ventures, Packy McCormick, Sahil Bloom, Todd & Rahul's Angel Fund, Alumni Ventures, Vibe Capital, a16z and others. Chuckie Reddy of QED and Alex Bard of Redpoint will join the Board. Nine months since the company's founding and six months after raising its seed round, this brings Wander's total funding to $27 million. The company will use this new injection of capital to expand its portfolio of beautiful properties in inspiring locations, grow its remote-first team and continue building the travel experience of the future.
More than 20 million professional jobs in the United States are projected to become fully remote by the end of 2022 and at least 50% of American workers prioritize remote flexibility over healthcare coverage, salary and company culture. A survey of existing Wander customers showed 89% work at least partially remote and 93% travel two or more weeks per year. While the number of people who can work anywhere continues to expand, the infrastructure to explore the world in this new way hasn't caught up with this new reality. Existing travel options for digital nomads and remote knowledge workers tend to be unreliable, uncomfortable and unsuitable for work, forcing them to take a leap of faith every time they book a stay.
Wander is different because it owns 100% of the homes on its platform –– which means it can deliver high quality, smart technology and inspiring locations with every guest experience. Sixty-seven percent of customers surveyed said the certainty of a consistent, high-quality travel experience is the primary reason they're choosing Wander over traditional travel options. Each Wander home comes with state-of-the-art home automation technology that enables guests to control every aspect of the experience from their smartphones in the Wander app –– from unlocking the door to turning on the lights, and even accessing the Tesla that comes with each Wander home. Wander is also able to provide complete price transparency upfront, with no hidden fees, and taxes included in one out-the-door nightly rate that can be split with family or friends.
"Our goal is to build the infrastructure to experience the world," said John Andrew Entwistle, founder and CEO of Wander. "We're scaling rapidly to meet the demand of our more than 30,000 community members, with dozens more properties coming soon. We're already seeing our vision for the future take shape."
Wander currently offers stays at its California properties in Joshua Tree, Lake Tahoe and Mendocino County and Oregon properties in Port Orford and Bandon Dunes, with dozens more coming across the United States this year. In addition to it's growing waitlist, the company also has the support of more than 2,000+ Founding Members, many of whom participated in the latest funding round as angel investors.
"While we hopefully return to 'normal' in 2022, flexibility and remote work seems to be a common theme," said QED Partner Chuckie Reddy. "After two years of being restricted from travel and exploring new places, it has become clear how important it is to have a change of scenery from time to time. Blending those two things together in one extraordinary experience is exactly what Wander is all about. People are living busier lives than ever -- when they spend time to travel, it should be perfect."
"John Andrew and his team want to deliver a world-class experience where guests can seamlessly work remotely while enjoying the best destinations. The offering has been incredibly well received with tens of thousands of app downloads and an incredible demand for bookings. QED believes this is only the beginning of a revolutionized future of work, and Wander is paving the way. QED is thrilled to be a part of the company's journey as it quickly adds many more amazing destinations to provide Wander customers as many choices as possible," said Reddy.
"The amount of momentum Wander has experienced in just the past few months since their seed funding is phenomenal", said Alex Bard, Managing Director at Redpoint. "The product, the team, the technology—everything is growing exceptionally well and we couldn't be more excited to be a part of this new revolution that Wander is carving out at the cross section of work and living well."
Future Wanderers can book a stay at any property for their next workcation, vacation or anything in between by going to wander.com and downloading the app (available on iOS and Android). Wander will also soon be rolling out its employee benefit product, and employers who want to add Wander access to their benefits package can sign up here.
Wander is a fully remote company, and is actively hiring across a variety of key areas and roles across marketing, product, finance and home operations. Those interested in joining the mission to help people find their happy place can check out opportunities here!
About Wander:
Wander's mission is to help people find their happy place. Their network of smart homes in inspiring places empowers users with the freedom to live and work where they want — and control the entire experience from their smartphone. Wander is different because they own 100% of the homes on the platform, which means they can deliver high quality, smart technology and inspiring locations with every guest experience. Wander is also partnering with companies interested in offering the experience as a benefit to remote employees. If you're interested in learning more or partnering with Wander, visit wander.com, or you can email the team at [email protected] and follow @wander on Twitter and Instagram for updates.
CONTACT:
Ali Moore
[email protected]
949-648-0324
SOURCE Wander
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