Booksy, Inc.
Private
Industry
FoundedJuly 8, 2014 (age 12) in Warsaw, Poland
Founder
  • Stefan Batory
  • Konrad Howard
  • Agnieszka Zembrzycka
  • Tomasz Zembrzycki
Hq location cityChicago, Illinois
Hq location countryU.S.
Area servedUnited States · United Kingdom · Poland · Spain · France · Mexico · Brazil · South Africa[1][2]
Key people
Products
  • Booksy
  • Booksy Biz
  • Booksy Med
  • Booksy Marketplace
  • Booksy Payments
  • Booksy Store
Services
Num employees (2024)700[4]
Websitebooksy.com

Booksy is a software-as-a-service and marketplace platform company operating in the beauty and wellness industry, founded in Warsaw, Poland in 2014,[5] headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.[4][6][2] Its namesake platform provides appointment scheduling software, client management tools, and payment processing services for hair salons, barbershops, beauty salons, and wellness service providers.[7]

As of 2020, Booksy was available in 25 countries[8] including the United States, United Kingdom, Poland, Spain, Mexico, Brazil, South Africa.[2] and France.[9] In 2024, the platform served over 40 million consumers and 140,000 businesses globally,[10] facilitating 260 million appointments annually worth over $10 billion in transaction value.[11]

History

Founding and early years (2014–2017)

Booksy was founded in July 2014[12] by Polish entrepreneurs Stefan Batory and Konrad Howard who adopted a global-first strategy from inception, with their first client based in the United States.[13][14] Batory, a mathematician and ultramarathoner who had previously founded a taxi-hailing app iTaxi,[15] relocated to California to focus on the American market.[1] In the 2000s, he founded a web portal Ahoj.pl, and software company Eo Networks.[16] Howard, a software engineer and user experience designer, had managed e-commerce sites in the United States, United Kingdom, and South Africa.[1] Additional co-founders included Agnieszka and Tomasz Zembrzycki, who had earlier developed a beauty portal Wizaz.pl.[1][16]

The concept for Booksy emerged from Batory's personal frustration as a marathon runner who struggled to schedule appointments with massage therapists while working a full-time job and raising two children.[10] Batory partnered with Howard to develop a solution to eliminate the need for real-time phone coordination.[17] The founders considered multiple service categories, but ultimately focused on beauty and wellness after determining those services offered the best product-market fit.[18]

In September 2015, Booksy secured seed funding of PLN 3 million, achieving a valuation of PLN 20 million.[19] By January 2016, the company employed 80 people and served 5,000 salons with over 20,000 users.[19] The platform recorded 339,000 appointments by November 2015, with 42% of bookings occurring outside business hours.[19] By December 2015, the total financing amounted to PLN 12 million.[19]

In March 2017, Booksy raised a $4.2 million Series A round.[7][20] At the time, the platform was processing 1 million monthly reservations and was valued at $35 million, with over 100 employees.[21] In June 2019, Batory claimed Booksy was used by 15% of Wrocław residents and 10% of Warsaw residents,[22] while its U.S. monthly user base had reached 20% of Uber's reach and 25% of Airbnb's.[22]

Expansion and partnerships (2018–2020)

In July 2018, Booksy completed a $13.2 million Series B funding round (PLN 49.3 million) led by Piton Capital, with investments including Sebastian Kulczyk's Manta Ray Ventures.[23][24][25] The same month, Booksy acquired its Polish competitor Lavito, which had 400,000 users, and 2,500 salons.[26][27] The combined entity processed 2.5 million global appointments monthly.[26]

In 2019, the platform's client base included high-profile users including Barack Obama's personal barber, Beyoncé's stylist Kimberly Kimble, Neymar's barber, and Nergal's barbershop chain.[28][29] The same year, Booksy partnered with L'Oréal, integrating approximately 900 expert salons in Poland[8][30] and achieving monthly transaction values of 300 million PLN in Poland.[30] At the time, Booksy was facilitating over 2 million appointments monthly with an annualized value of $620 million and serving 4.2 million users globally.[22]

In September 2019, Booksy raised another $28.5 million round (PLN 115 million), which amounted to PLN 200 million in total.[14] The company was valued at $710 million, processing 2.6 million monthly appointments with 5 million users and 300,000 service providers.[14]

During 2020, Booksy expanded into non-beauty sectors, partnering with financial institutions including BNP Paribas,[31][32] Alior Bank,[33] and Crédit Agricole,[25] as well as an electronics retailer X-Kom,[34] and telecom provider Play.[25] In August 2020, Booksy acquired U.S.-based competitor GoPanache, which served 500,000 users.[35][36] By September 2020, Booksy had grown to 7 million users across 25 countries,[8] processing 60-70% more appointments than traditional booking methods.[8]

Consolidation and pandemic response (2020–2021)

In December 2020, Booksy merged with its largest Polish competitor, Versum (which operated a reservation portal Moment.pl), creating a combined entity with 13 million active consumers and 500 employees.[37][38][39] Versum founders Sebastian Maśka and Paweł Kantyka joined Booksy's management team,[25] with the merger projected to generate 100 million visits valued at 10 billion PLN in 2021.[25]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, in March 2020, Booksy experienced revenue declines of up to 70% in some markets as beauty salons closed,[40] forcing workforce reductions from 350 employees to 180.[39][40] Following the easing of restrictions, the company experienced record demand, with June, July, and August 2020 becoming the company's most profitable months to date.[40] On May 13, 2020, the platform received 500,000 reservation requests within 24 hours of salon reopening announcements.[40] The workforce subsequently grew to 230 employees by mid-2020, expanding to 500 following the Versum merger.[38][40][41]

In January 2021, Booksy completed a $70 million Series C funding round.[40][42][43][44][45] This brought total fundraising to $120 million (PLN 450 million).[46][47] In September 2021, Booksy acquired Genbook, a Sydney-headquartered competitor with U.S. operations serving 22,000 businesses.[40][48] In November 2021, the company acquired French competitor Kiute, which served 10,000 salons and was described as "one of the largest Polish acquisitions abroad."[43][9][49] By the end of 2021, Booksy had reached 20 million users globally[47][9] and employed 1,200 people at its peak.[50]

Growth (2022–present)

In July 2022, Booksy underwent restructuring to achieve profitability in 2023,[4][50] operating with 700 employees as of 2024.[50] In 2024, Booksy reported revenue of $65.9 million (PLN 260 million), generating over $10 billion in annual platform transaction volume while processing more than 260 million appointments.[11] The company serves over 40 million consumers and over 140,000 businesses globally,[10] with operations focused on five core markets: United States, United Kingdom, Poland, Spain, and France.[2]

In May 2024, Booksy acquired a Polish medical and physiotherapy platform Znajdź Gabinet [Find a Salon], expanding beyond the beauty sector into healthcare services.[51]

Products and services

Booksy is a software suite that provides appointment-based businesses with a customer relationship management, marketing automation, inventory management, point-of-sale management, financial reporting, the management of commission for employees, and in-app payments.[7][52][53]

Booksy Biz
ScreenshotBooksy-biz-dashboard.jpg
DeveloperBooksy International
Released2014 (age 12)
EngineAppointment scheduling software
PlatformWeb platform · Android · iOS
Genre
LicenseProprietary
Websitebiz.booksy.com

Platform integrations

Booksy integrates with major social platforms including Google Reserve (appointment booking through Google Search and Google Maps), Instagram, and Yelp.[23][30][59] In May 2019, Booksy was selected as one of four companies to integrate globally with Facebook's Appointments feature, enabling businesses to manage bookings directly through their Facebook pages.[22][28] In November 2025, Booksy integrated their appointment management systems with AI agents[61] including Google Search AI-powered results AI Overviews.[62]

Recognition and awards

In September 2018, Booksy was named one of the five fastest-growing marketplaces globally by Andreessen Horowitz.[13]

In January 2026, co-founders Batory and Howard received a Wektory award from Pracodawcy RP (Employers of Poland), recognized as "creators of a global platform that revolutionized the services market."[63] In 2024, Booksy was selected to join Endeavor, an global network supporting high-impact entrepreneurs.[55]

References

  1. ^ Prewęcka, Karolina (2016-01-27). "Fryzjer umawiany bladym świtem" [Hairdresser appointment at the crack of dawn] (in Polish). My Company Polska. Retrieved 2026-03-02.
  2. ^ Duszczyk, Michał (2021-11-28). "Stefan Batory: Będziemy rosnąć przez akwizycje, chcemy kupować mniejszych graczy" [Stefan Batory: We will grow through acquisitions, we want to buy smaller players] (in Polish). Rzeczpospolita. Retrieved 2026-03-02.
  3. ^ Gonzalez, Natalia (2024-04-08). "Booksy Bolsters Its Executive Team with Key Hires from Tech Giants". Booksy blog. Retrieved 2026-03-02.
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