Deskbookers

Deskbookers B.V. operated as an online marketplace for booking flexible work and meeting spaces, targeting the inefficiencies within the commercial real estate market. Founded in 2013 by Frank Derks and Jeroen Arts, the Amsterdam-based company aimed to be a comprehensive platform for professionals and businesses seeking to rent office spaces, meeting rooms, or individual desks by the hour, day, or month. The platform was designed to provide a transparent and streamlined process, allowing users to find, book, and pay for workspaces without complex contracts.

The business model centered on functioning as a 'Booking.com for professional meeting spaces', facilitating transactions between space providers and users. It addressed key market problems such as the lack of transparency, the complexity of lease agreements often driven by brokers, and the closed nature of the real estate network. Deskbookers served a range of clients from freelancers and SMEs to large corporations like T-Mobile and Uber, primarily operating in the Netherlands, Germany, and Belgium. The company processed over 7,000 bookings per month at its peak.

The company successfully raised €1.61 million in funding. A significant seed round of €1.5 million in December 2015 was led by Berlin's Point Nine Capital, with participation from angel investors including Arthur Kosten, the former CMO of Booking.com. This capital was intended to fuel international expansion, with plans to enter five new countries, including the UK. In 2017, Deepti Sahi joined the company as CEO to lead its growth phase. In February 2020, just before the global pandemic significantly impacted the flexible office industry, Deskbookers was acquired by its Berlin-based competitor, Spacebase, in an equity deal described by the CEO as a merger to achieve pan-European dominance. The acquisition aimed to combine Deskbookers' tech expertise and Dutch market knowledge with Spacebase's global portfolio.

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