ECompany · Travel & Hospitality
Essentialist
Essentialist is a private-membership bespoke travel-planning service founded in 2016 by former Travel + Leisure editor-in-chief Nancy Novogrod and travel-industry executive Joan Roca. It combines a network of in-destination travel writers and expert "travel designers" with a proprietary digital platform to design curated, ultra-local itineraries across nearly 1,000 destinations for an annual membership fee; HQ is Palma de Mallorca, Spain, with offices in New York and Mexico City. Raised a $10M Series A in July 2024 led by Iris Ventures, bringing total funding to roughly $12.3M.
Founded
2016
Founders
2
News
5
Rounds
2
Investors
4
SectorsLuxury Travel, Travel Tech, Membership Services
Start-up MapTravel & Hospitality › Packaged trips & tour operators
Profile updated 4 Aug 2026
Founders
J
Joan Roca
Founder & CEO
N
Nancy Novogrod
Co-Founder
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Global models
No comparables on record yet.
Investors 4
BBstartup Banco Sabadell
bstartup.bancsabadell.com/en
IIris Ventures
P
Palladium Corporate Ventures
SSabadell Venture Capital
Funding rounds 2
News & media 5
| Published | Article |
|---|---|
| 2024-12-30 |
How Luxury Travel Company Essentialist Redefines The Art of Trip Planning ↗
PaperCity Magazine
|
| 2024-11-24 |
How This Agency Gets Clients to Pay a $2,600 Annual Fee ↗
TravelAge West
|
| 2024-07-15 |
Iris Ventures Leads $10 Million Funding Round Into Luxury Travel Expert Essentialist ↗
WWD
|
| 2024-02-20 |
Discover Japan Off The Beaten Path, From Osaka To Okinawa ↗
Forbes
|
| 2023-12-02 |
Ultimate Travel: Essentialist Now Puts Bespoke Travel at Your Fingertips ↗
WWD
|