Barespace raises funding to expand AI-driven salon and barbershop tech across Europe.
Dublin-based software company Barespace has secured €2.9m in seed funding to accelerate the rollout of its AI-powered operating system for salons and barbershops across the UK and continental Europe.
The round was led by Elkstone Ventures, with participation from Dogpatch Labs, Enterprise Ireland, and several angel investors including: Barry Napier, chief executive of Cubic Telecom; Rick Kelley, former managing director of Meta Ireland; Patrick Walsh, chief executive of Dogpatch Labs; and Tom Kennedy, co-founder of Hostelworld.
“At Barespace, we have reimagined the salon experience with one seamless, AI-driven system for bookings, payments, marketing and more”
The latest investment brings Barespace’s total external funding to €4.68m.
A beauty of a deal
Barespace was founded in 2022 by Moules and Glenn McGoldrick, both of whom began their careers in the beauty industry.
Moules started as a teenage apprentice in a Dublin salon, while McGoldrick spent over a decade scaling a men’s hairdressing brand across seven countries. Their experience led them to develop a platform designed to help salons grow sustainably by streamlining operations and improving profitability.
Barespace provides an integrated software platform for the beauty industry, combining scheduling, payments, resource planning, marketing and analytics. The company says its system saves salon owners approximately 10 hours of manual work per week and eliminates third-party transaction fees through built-in payment processing.
The platform is currently used by more than 260 salons and barbershops across Ireland, the UK, France and Spain, including Buff Day Spa, Boom-Bae and The Laser Club UK. Barespace plans to expand into two additional European markets by 2026 and will create new roles in engineering, sales and customer success to support its growth.
Brian Caulfield, a venture capitalist and former partner at Molten Ventures, has joined Barespace as chairperson. He brings experience in fintech and scaling technology businesses.
Conor Moules, co-founder and chief executive of Barespace, said the company was founded to address the operational challenges faced by salon owners.
“Today, salons face a world of fragmented tools, unseen fees and technology that distracts from what truly matters – creativity and connection,” he said. “At Barespace, we have reimagined the salon experience with one seamless, AI-driven system for bookings, payments, marketing and more.”
Niall McEvoy, head of venture at Elkstone, said Barespace’s platform has the potential to transform the salon industry.
“This is a great example of a purpose-built AI and mobile-first technology product developed by a founding team who have deep industry sector expertise at their core,” he said. “They truly understand their customers and the challenges they face in building successful businesses.”
Patrick Walsh of Dogpatch Labs said the founders’ background in the salon industry was key to the product’s development.
“They’ve taken that lived experience and combined it with what’s possible today in AI to create something entirely new,” he said. “It means salon owners can spend less time on administration and more time doing what they love – serving their clients.”
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