Popular hiking app AllTrails has reportedly raised fresh capital of USD 150 million through private equity company Permira. Spectrum Equity, another growth equity firm, which purchased a majority stake in AllTrails for USD 75 million in 2018, will still remain a majority owner.
AllTrails plans to use the investment for hiring employees and expanding in international markets, according to the Chief Executive Officer of AllTrails, Ron Schneidermann. He added that the company will focus on personalization to enhance the experience of search and discovery.
There has been a significant demand for apps like AllTrails during the COVID-19 pandemic with people working from their homes seeking safe outdoor activities like hiking.
The company stated that it has more than 30 million users worldwide since witnessing triple-digit growth last year and it covers trails across 190 countries.
According to credible reports, the AllTrails app was installed by around 8.7 million users around the world which is a growth of 89% from the previous year. The average monthly active users of AllTrails grew by around 36% Y-o-Y (year-over-year) in the most recent quarter.
The AllTrails app can be used for free but it charges a yearly cost of USD 29.99 for the pro version. This version includes additional features like offline map downloads. A majority of the company’s revenues are generated from the 1 million paid users.
Bruce Chizen, Permira’s senior advisor and the deal initiator expressed that the pandemic encouraged people to go outdoors and this trend will continue into the future.
For the record, Permira is a private equity company that was established in Europe in 1985 and the firm operated under the name of Schroder Ventures. Permira has over 360 employees across 15 offices in Europe.
Permira also took part in an investment round of USD 450 million in Zwift, an online fitness platform for runners and cyclists, in September 2020.
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