Convious, an all-in-one platform for the leisure industry, successfully raised $12M in 2021 using a concise 12-slide deck. The presentation highlights a massive $8.8TN global market for 'Out Of Home Experiences' and positions the company as a necessary modernizer for a sector 'stuck in 2002.' Key strengths of the deck include clear traction metrics—such as 120 leading venues and 8 million bookings in 2020—and a highly experienced leadership team with over 100 years of combined industry expertise. While the deck uses redacted placeholders for some financial forecasts, the narrative of 7x YoY g…
Key takeaways
- The global Out Of Home Experiences (OOHE) market is valued at $8.8TN, representing 10.4% of world GDP (Slide 2).
- The leisure industry is significantly under-digitized, with only 17% of revenue booked online in 2020 (Slide 2).
- Convious reports a +201% increase in revenue and +86% increase in conversion for its venue partners (Slide 4).
- The business model is based on a percentage take-rate of every transaction, including tickets, food, and lockers (Slide 6).
- Traction is strong with 120 venues, 30 million visitors in 2020, and an NPS of 42.7 as of April 2021 (Slide 7).
- The company achieved 7x YoY growth despite COVID-19 and claims profitability for two consecutive years (Slide 8).
- The leadership team features founders with 15-25+ years of experience each from companies like Booking.com and Bwin (Slide 10).
- The deck omits a specific 'Ask' slide detailing the exact use of the $12M raised.
Introduction
The Convious pitch deck is a masterclass in vertical SaaS positioning. In just 12 slides, the company manages to define a massive, underserved market, demonstrate product-market fit through aggressive growth metrics, and showcase a team capable of executing on a global scale. Raising $12M in a Series A during 2021, Convious leaned heavily into the 'reopening' narrative as the world emerged from pandemic restrictions.
Slide 1: Title Slide
The deck opens with a bold, high-contrast design. The tagline, "Connecting venues to visitors" and "E-commerce for the experience economy," immediately tells the investor what the company does and which sector it serves. It avoids jargon, focusing on the core value proposition of connectivity and commerce.
Slide 2: The $8.8TN Market Opportunity
Slide 2 establishes the scale. By defining "Out Of Home Experiences" (OOHE) to include everything from theme parks and museums to zoos and indoor playgrounds, Convious claims a total global market size of $8.8TN . Crucially, they highlight the 'Underpenetrated market' stat: only 17% of revenue was booked online in 2020 . This indicates a massive tailwind for digital transformation. Other key figures include 500k+ venues and a 22.6% CAGR from 2021 to 2027.
Slide 3: The Problem - Stuck in 2002
The problem slide is visceral. It contrasts the $8.8TN spent on 'creating memories' with a technology stack that is "stuck in 2002." They list four specific pain points: legacy vendors with no AI, no eCommerce or data play, no cloud APIs, and a 'mobile last' approach. This slide successfully frames the industry as a laggard ripe for disruption.
Slide 4: The Solution - D2C for Leisure
Convious positions itself as the platform that enables leisure operators to manage sales, marketing, and operations in one place. They emphasize "Going D2C," allowing venues to bypass high-commission resellers. The slide includes impressive performance claims: a +201% increase in revenue and an +86% increase in conversion for their partners. Visualizing the solution with mobile app mockups for a zoo and an adventure park makes the product feel tangible.
Slide 5: Vertical SaaS Architecture
This slide is a feature-dense grid that proves Convious is a true 'all-in-one' platform. It categorizes features into five pillars: Marketing, Commerce, POS, Mobile App, and Loyalty & Support . By listing everything from Dynamic pricing and Payment terminals to Kitchens integration and Business Intelligence , they demonstrate the depth of their vertical integration. This suggests high switching costs and a 'sticky' product.
Slide 6: The Business Model
The business model is simple and aligned: "We take a % of every ticket, ride, reservation, ice cream, ski pass, locker, burger..." This transaction-based model is attractive to investors because it scales directly with the customer's success and captures a slice of the entire on-site wallet, not just the initial entry ticket.
Slide 7: Traction - 120 Venues and Counting
Traction is presented through a mix of volume and quality. They cite 120 leading venues with <1% churn . The 2020 numbers— 30m+ visitors and 8m bookings —are particularly impressive given the global lockdowns that occurred that year. An NPS of 42.7 as of April 2021 provides a qualitative proof point that customers are satisfied.
Slide 8: Market Leadership and Growth
Slide 8 doubles down on growth metrics. They claim to be "Growing 7x YoY despite COVID" and "Profitable for the second year in a row." A key highlight for SaaS investors is the +184% expansion revenue in 2020, suggesting that once a venue joins, they rapidly adopt more of the Convious stack. Note: The GMV chart uses "xx" and "$xxxM" placeholders, which were likely unredacted in the live pitch but are hidden in this public version.
Slide 9: Customer Logos
A standard but effective logo wall. It shows the diversity of their client base, featuring brands like Sea Life, Legoland Discovery Centre, SnowWorld, and Pleasurewood Hills . This validates their claim of serving 16 different countries and multiple sub-sectors of the leisure industry.
Slide 10: The Team
The team slide is a major strength. The five featured leaders have a combined 100+ years of experience . CEO Camiel Kraan and COO Adriaan van der Hek both boast 25+ years of experience, with backgrounds at Bwin, Squla, and Shoppingminds . The bottom of the slide features a 'pedigree' row of logos including Booking.com, TravelBird, and Infor , signaling that the team has experience scaling high-growth tech companies.
Slide 11: The Closing Vision
The deck ends on an emotional and timely note: "The world is about to reopen its doors." This slide, featuring a joyful child in the rain, connects the technology back to the human experience of the 'experience economy.' It provides a clear call to action with the CEO's contact information.
Slide 12: Appendix/Source
The final slide is a promotional slide for the source library and does not contain company-specific information.
What Works in This Deck
The 'Why Now' Narrative: By highlighting the low digital penetration (17%) and the post-COVID reopening, Convious creates a sense of urgency. · Alignment of Interests: The business model slide (Slide 6) clearly explains how the company wins when its customers win, which is a powerful narrative for vertical SaaS. · Proven Resilience: Growing 7x and remaining profitable during 2020—the worst year in history for the leisure industry—is a massive de-risking signal for investors. · Comprehensive Solution: Slide 5 effectively communicates that Convious isn't just a ticketing tool, but an operating system for the entire venue.
What Is Missing
The Ask: There is no slide detailing how much money they are raising or how they plan to spend it (e.g., hiring, geographic expansion, R&D). · Competition: The deck ignores competitors. While they claim to replace 'legacy vendors,' they don't name them or provide a feature-by-feature comparison. · Unit Economics: While they mention an 'xx LTC to CAC ratio' on Slide 8, the actual numbers are redacted. Investors would want to see the specific CAC and LTV figures to judge the efficiency of the 7x growth. · Roadmap: The deck shows what the product does now, but not where it is going next.
What Founders Should Copy
The Problem Framing: Using a specific year (e.g., "stuck in 2002") is a great way to make legacy competition feel obsolete without naming every individual competitor. · The Feature Grid: Slide 5 is an excellent way to show product breadth without overwhelming the reader with screenshots. It demonstrates that you understand the full complexity of your customer's business. · Expansion Revenue: If you have high net dollar retention or expansion revenue (like Convious's 184%), make it a headline. It is the strongest indicator of product-market fit. · Experience Logos: Don't just list your team's names; show the logos of the successful companies they've worked for. It builds instant credibility.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the primary problem Convious is solving?
- Convious addresses the 'stuck in 2002' technology stack of the leisure industry. According to Slide 3, legacy vendors are broken, lack AI, and offer no cloud APIs or data insights. This results in a 'mobile last' experience with no seamless transactions for venues like theme parks and museums.
- How does Convious make money?
- The company utilizes a transaction-based business model. As shown on Slide 6, they take a percentage of every ticket, ride, reservation, and even ancillary sales like ice cream, burgers, and locker rentals. This aligns their success directly with the revenue growth of their venue customers.
- What kind of traction did Convious have at the time of this deck?
- By 2021, Convious had secured 120 leading venues across 16 active countries. Slide 7 notes they handled 8 million bookings and 30 million visitors in 2020. Furthermore, Slide 8 highlights 7x YoY growth and two years of profitability, indicating a highly efficient and scalable business model.
- Who are the key people behind Convious?
- The team is led by CEO Camiel Kraan (former CCO of Bwin) and COO Adriaan van der Hek (former CEO of Shoppingminds), both with 25+ years of experience. The broader leadership includes a CTO, VP Sales, and CMO with backgrounds at Booking.com, TravelBird, and Talpa (Slide 10).
- What is missing from the Convious pitch deck?
- The deck lacks a formal 'Ask' slide specifying the round size or how the funds will be allocated. It also omits a detailed competitor landscape or a granular roadmap of future product features, focusing instead on the breadth of their current vertical SaaS offering.
