Zeelo has been funded a major £1.2m from Joelson

A transport technology startup, Zeelo, has raised £1.2m in funding with the assistance of long-term legal partners, Joelson.

Zeelo has developed unique software that uses AI to predict demand for coach travel. It has so far been used by more than 20,000 people since launch to help them travel between large events across the UK.

It is the brainchild of Sam Ryan and Barney Williams, two friends who met up at university, who plan to act as a disruptor to the traditional transport market.

Sam Ryan, co-founder of Zeelo, said: “Phil and his team guided us through our seed fundraising process from start to finish, always providing pragmatic advice so that we could continue growing the business whilst getting the deal done. We would highly recommend the Joelson team to any tech startup.”

In this latest deal for the firm, lead investor Jaguar Land Rover’s InMotion Ventures received support from Transport for London’s board member, Michael Leibreich, and Yo! Sushi’s co-founder, Simon Woodroffe, to bring together funding for Zeelo.

Joelson, who has previously assisted Zeelo with pre-seed funding earlier this year, handled this investment round for the company.

Phil Hails-Smith, partner in Joelson’s corporate and commercial team, who led the deal, added: “It has been a pleasure working with Sam, Barney and the rest of the team at Zeelo to help them secure the investment they require.

“Their innovative idea has the potential to revolutionise and democratise group travel and we are very proud that we have played a part in the firm’s journey – we look forward to helping Sam, Barney and the team as they accelerate their growth.

“London and the UK’s tech sector continues to thrive, and we are delighted to be involved in this space helping so many start-ups & assisting them with their growth strategies to the foundations of success for the future.”

Joelson has assisted a number of clients in this space in recent years including growth capital rounds for tech companies.