The Portuguese platform Merytu, which connects independent professionals with companies in the hotel, restaurant and events sectors, is preparing its internationalisation process by the end of this year. With five years in existence, the company closed a 1.5 million euro investment round in partnership with Banco Português de Fomento and the Spanish group Hotusa.
The company is studying two markets for this expansion: Spain and Belgium. Although it is analysing several geographies, the platform is more inclined to start internationalisation with Belgium, due to the market's greater openness to temporary and flexible work. The entry into both countries will not be simultaneous, and the goal for 2027 is to already have two or three players in the Belgian market.
CEO João Santos Silva states that the entry of the new shareholders validated the work developed and brought solidity in terms of resources, allowing the company to have the capacity to grow consistently. After internationalisation, the company is preparing to diversify its offering and enter the retail sector, an area it is already studying and where it identified similarities with the sectors where it already operates.
The platform already works with a major reference player in the retail area, but still needs to adapt its structure to this new reality, which is more complex than the hotel sector. The goal is to establish relevant partnerships by the end of the year to have a solid understanding of the sector and start growing in 2027, with an initial focus on Lisbon and Porto.
