Sherlocked

What Sherlocked does

Sherlocked is a privately-held Amsterdam-based escape room operator, incorporated as Sherlocked International BV (KvK: 68179545, VAT: NL857334414B02), and founded in 2013 by co-founder Victor van Doorn. The company designs and operates immersive adventure experiences inside the Beurs van Berlage, a 1903 national monument on Damrak 247 that historically housed the Amsterdam Stock Exchange. Its core products are three physically built escape rooms — The Architect (60 min, €29+/person), The Vault (80 min, €35+/person, set in a real 120-year-old vault complex), and The Alchemist (90 min, €41+/person, featuring 'techno-magic' effects) — augmented by outdoor smartphone-based city games (Atlantis Protocol, Secret Sender, Operation 45), a mobile-native format (Ada's Study), a large-group corporate experience (Time Crimes for up to 100 players at base €975 excl. VAT per event), and a tabletop game sub-brand (Home Mysteries, with The Vandermist Dossier and The Medusa Report).

The underlying technology is craft-based rather than digital: handcrafted physical props, theatrical set design, atmospheric lighting, bespoke puzzle mechanics, and a real-time game-master audio/video monitoring system that delivers hints without breaking immersion. Revenue is generated via per-person tickets (€29–€41), per-event corporate pricing, gift cards (digital and physical, 2–5 year validity), and direct retail sales of tabletop games. Distribution is exclusively direct-to-consumer through the company's own website (sherlocked.nl) using the QuinBook (Woizzer AG) booking platform, with no third-party resellers or OTAs.

Sherlocked serves three primary customer segments: tourists and leisure visitors to Amsterdam (the majority), corporate groups (Apple, Netflix, NVIDIA, ASML, Uber, Atlassian, Heineken, Philips, Porsche, and others have booked team-building events), and families with teens aged 12+. The company claims to serve 25,000+ customers annually, has maintained a 12-year run of TripAdvisor Traveller's Choice Awards (2014–2025), and claims a #2 global escape-room ranking alongside Golden Lock, Dutch Game Award, and Audience Favorite recognitions. Headcount is reported at 11–50 employees; no revenue, funding, or investor information is disclosed.

Name

Sherlocked

Legal name

Sherlocked International BV

Website

https://sherlocked.nl

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Sherlocked is a privately-held Amsterdam-based escape room business operating three immersive physical experiences inside the 1903 Beurs van Berlage monument. It serves tourists, corporate groups, and families through direct per-person ticket sales, large-group team-building events, and Home Mysteries tabletop puzzle products.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Escape Room and Immersive Entertainment Experiences

NAICS

Amusement Parks and Arcades (7131)

SIC

Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Family Entertainment Centers & Indoor Amusement (Arcades, Trampoline Parks, Indoor Play) (THAAAAAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Escape Room Games & Mystery Puzzle Boxes Retail (CRALALAM)

Keywords

• Escape room experiences
• Immersive live entertainment
• Corporate team building
• City exploration games
• Tabletop puzzle games

Headquarters

HQ city

Amsterdam

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Per-Person Escape Room Tickets: Individual and group tickets sold on a per-person basis for three escape room experiences (The Architect, The Vault, The Alchemist). Pricing varies by room, group size, day, and time. Booking is mandatory and paid in advance via the website.
2. Corporate Team-Building Events: Time Crimes is a bespoke team-building escape game for groups of 20-100+ players, priced at a base rate per event (€975 excl. VAT for up to 25 players) with surcharges for multiple simultaneous games, out-of-hours bookings, and off-site locations.
3. City Games: Outdoor city exploration games (Atlantis Protocol, Operation 45, Secret Sender) sold as tickets per person, involving self-guided smartphone-based missions through Amsterdam.
4. Gift Cards and Vouchers: Digital gift cards sold in two forms: Escape Room Gift Cards (specific room/experience, 2-year validity) and General Gift Vouchers (monetary value, 5-year validity, minimum €25). Physical gift cards available for an additional €10 plus shipping.
5. Home Mystery Games: Cooperative tabletop puzzle games (The Vandermist Dossier, The Medusa Report) sold as physical products through the Home Mysteries brand (homemysteries.com).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Sherlocked designs and operates immersive escape room experiences and related live entertainment games from the historic Beurs van Berlage building in Amsterdam. Its core offerings include three themed physical escape rooms (The Architect, The Vault, The Alchemist), outdoor city exploration games, large-group corporate team-building events (Time Crimes), and tabletop/at-home mystery puzzles sold under the Home Mysteries sub-brand. Customers book time-limited themed experiences or purchase physical game products through the company's own websites.

Product overview

Sherlocked is an escape room company operating three physical escape rooms in Amsterdam—The Architect, The Vault, and The Alchemist—each with distinct themes, durations (60-90 minutes), player counts (2-7), and difficulty levels. The company expands its offerings with city games (Atlantis Protocol, Secret Sender, Operation 45) for outdoor exploration, and home mysteries (The Vandermist Dossier, The Medusa Report, Ada's Study) for at-home play. For corporate clients, Sherlocked offers Time Crimes (up to 100 players) and The Takeover conference games. All physical experiences are located in the historic Beurs van Berlage building, a national monument from 1903. The portfolio includes products ranging from €28-41 per person for escape rooms to €975 for large group team-building events.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Home Mysteries: Tabletop puzzle games and at-home mystery experiences including The Vandermist Dossier and The Medusa Report.
• Time Crimes
• Ada's Study

Quantifiable outcome

• 25,000+ customers served annually
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers20 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Mystery CityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMystery City delivers the Operation 45 and Secret Sender city games on behalf of Sherlocked. Sherlocked refers customers to Mystery City for these outdoor city adventure games. Sherlocked shares customer data (name, group size, and necessary details) with Mystery City strictly for booking and operational purposes.
• QuinBook (Woizzer AG)coreTechnology or IntegrationQuinBook, a service of Woizzer AG (Osakaallee 2, 20457 Hamburg, Germany), processes all bookings securely and efficiently. QuinBook handles personal data including name, email address, address, telephone number, and payment information for booking processing, authentication, payment transactions, and booking experience optimization. Personal data is stored for a legal period of 10 years.
• Time Crimes PartnerminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTime Crimes is offered in collaboration with a partner. The game is played at Sherlocked's Vijzelgracht 2A location or at a location of the customer's choice (at additional cost). Sherlocked shares personal data collected during booking with the partner solely for processing the booking and game-related communication.
• Home Mysteries (homemysteries.com)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHome Mysteries is a related brand owned by Sherlocked International BV, producing cooperative tabletop puzzle games (The Vandermist Dossier, The Medusa Report) that extend the Sherlocked universe into home play. The third game in the series (The Nightingale Pact) is in development.
• Bistro BerlageminorOthersBistro Berlage is located in the same building as Sherlocked's escape rooms. Customers waiting for teammates between games or after completing a session are directed to enjoy a drink at Bistro Berlage. Entry to The Alchemist can optionally be made through the bistro.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• The Escape Game: Largest U.S.-headquartered escape room chain with multiple themed rooms in flagship cities. Direct competitor in the premium immersive escape room category, sharing Sherlocked's model of high-production sets and broad customer segmentation including corporate groups.
• ClueQuest: London-based premium escape room operator recognized as one of the best in Europe, with strong TripAdvisor reputation and corporate clientele. Highly comparable as a European city-based escape room business targeting tourists and corporate groups with theatrical set design.
• Fox in a Box: Chicago-originated escape room operator with international locations, offering immersive themed rooms and corporate team-building. Comparable as a premium escape room brand with both tourist and corporate customer segments.
• 60out Escape Rooms: Los Angeles-based escape room operator with multiple themed rooms and corporate offerings. Direct comparable as a multi-room premium escape room business serving both tourists and corporate team-building clients.
• Breakout Games: Multi-location U.S. escape room operator with a portfolio of themed rooms and corporate team-building offerings. Direct comparable in product breadth and customer segmentation, though operating at a different scale and geography.

Broad incumbents

• Escape Hunt: UK-founded escape room franchisor with locations across multiple countries. Comparable as a scaled escape room operator, though its franchise model and broader geographic footprint make it a larger, more distributed peer rather than a direct boutique competitor.
• Escapology: Global escape room franchise with locations across multiple continents. Comparable as a scaled escape room brand, though its franchise-led model and broader geographic mix place it as a larger, less curated peer.

Regional players

• Mazeaze Amsterdam: Amsterdam-based local escape room competitor. Directly comparable because it operates in the same city and competes for the same tourist and corporate segments, although at a smaller scale and without Sherlocked's historic venue differentiation.
• Hint Hunt: Long-established London escape room operator with strong theatrical set design. Comparable as a European city-based premium escape room business targeting tourist and corporate groups, although geographically separate.

Others

• Mystery City: Outdoor city game provider that partners with Sherlocked to deliver Secret Sender and Operation 45. Listed because it is an existing operating partner and a partial competitor in the outdoor Amsterdam city-game category.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• TikToktiktok.com/@sherlocked
• Facebookfacebook.com/getsherlocked
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sherlocked

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sherlocked