Wahanda has secured a further US$46m (€40.9m, £30.2m) from existing investor Recruit Holdings – making Recruit the sole investor to hold a majority stake in the company.

Wahanda’s management team will continue to own a significant stake in the business – which has seen 300 per cent year-on-year growth – however the extra funding from Recruit will be used to further build and accelerate Wahanda’s position as Europe’s largest hair and beauty marketplace.

The company expects to be in eight countries by the end of June this year, with further expansion plans in the months ahead. The investment will also be used to support a major recruitment drive to build up its 210-strong workforce, as well as funding further product developments and ramping up customer acquisition and retention strategies in the UK and Europe.

Lopo Champalimaud, CEO and founder of Wahanda, said: “Recruit originally invested in July 2014 and has been a very active investor. We are extremely excited to continue growing the business with them.

“With its Hot Pepper Beauty business in Japan, Recruit has a wealth of experience in this space and understands how to scale our business,” added Champalimaud. “Our ambitions are aligned and the capital investment, expertise and knowledge that Recruit provides will enable us to continue on our growth trajectory, truly cementing our position as the leader in our field.”

As part of its European expansion strategy, Wahanda acquired Germany’s Salonmeister in October 2014 and recently acquired Austria’s Beautycheck. In January, Lithuanian mobile app development agency LemonLabs joined the team.

The company also recently announced it will launch a UK-based academy that will offer sales and marketing advice to salons. The institution will be called the Wahanda Academy.

Klaus Nyengaard, the former CEO of Just-Eat, will continue to sit on Wahanda’s board as co-chair, having been chair of the firm since 2013.