Transaction Summary

  • On 2 April 2012, HomeAway Inc., the world’s largest online marketplace for vacation rentals based in Austin, Texas, USA, acquired a 100% of Toprural for an undisclosed amount in an all-cash transaction
  • The acquisition broadens HomeAway’s reach in Europe and adds inventory that appeals to a seekers of long weekend getaways to small towns or countryside destinations
  • Following the acquisition, COO Rafael Pérez-Olivares Hoepfl will serve as General Manager and replace François Derbaix, who will stay on as a consultant during the transition
  • Toprural is the 18th acquisition for HomeAway

Overview of Toprural

  • Toprural is a rural accommodation search engine focused on independently owned rental properties in rural France, Spain, Italy and Portugal
    • Clear market leadership in Spain
  • The company has ~12k paid and ~30k free listings for bed-and-breakfast properties and vacation rentals
  • The Toprural website operates in 8 languages, including English Spanish, Portuguese, French, Catalan and Dutch and features accommodations varying from farmhouses in Tuscany to fincas in Mallorca
  • The company was founded in 2000, has 46 employees and is based in Madrid

NOAH Advisors’ Role

  • NOAH Advisors has been working with Toprural and its shareholders since early 2010
  • Toprural and NOAH Advisors worked together intensively, exploring options with a number of strategic and financial investors
  • NOAH Advisors acted as financial advisor to Toprural and its selling shareholders