recommerce solutions, startup specialisee dans la reprise, le

PRESS RELEASE
RECOMMERCE SOLUTIONS, A STARTUP SPECIALIZING IN THE COLLECTION,
RECONDITIONING AND SALE OF USED ELECTRONIC PRODUCTS, HAS RAISED €7.1 MILLION
FROM SEVENTURE PARTNERS, FSN PME MANAGED BY CDC ENTREPRISES, AND FROM 3T
CAPITAL.
Paris, February 25, 2013,
RECOMMERCE SOLUTIONS provides innovative services for well-known partners, buying back,
reconditioning and reselling used electronics products, mobile phones in particular. Now the no. 1 French
company in its sector, it has raised €7.1 million in order to speed its international expansion and increase
its technological leadership.
AN INNOVATIVE
DEVELOPMENT
COMPANY,
COMBINING
TECHNOLOGY
WITH
SUSTAINABLE
RECOMMERCE SOLUTIONS was founded in 2009 by 4 entrepreneurs with expertise in e-business, product
reuse, and telecoms, in order to support electronics industry players as they move toward more sustainable
patterns of consumption. The company provides a response to two challenges: falling purchasing power and
the need to promote reutilization and recycling. “For example, more than 20 million mobile phones are sold
annually in France. We reckon that mobile phones with a residual value of more than half a billion euros are
left lying in people’s drawers, when they buy a new phone… it’s a huge waste, and a considerable economic
loss in these straightened times!” argues Pierre-Etienne Roinat, Chairman and cofounder.
For its partners in Europe (mainly telecom carriers, MVNO1, distributors, manufacturers and e-merchants)
the company immediately buys back electronic products, including mobile phones. RECOMMERCE
SOLUTIONS’ partners use its services via websites, and in more than 5,000 sales outlets, to enable their
customers to sell their old devices in exchange for a voucher or immediate cash payment.
RECOMMERCE’s INNOVATIVE CONCEPT
Contrary to the conventional e-commerce system, in the “recommerce” business, the consumer sells his
article back to the merchant. This is a win-win model. Consumers gain purchasing power by obtaining a
discount on their next purchase in exchange for their old article. Distributors boost their sales and build
customer loyalty. RECOMMERCE SOLUTIONS develops its business by selling used phones to customers
looking for a reliable, guaranteed—and cheap—article.
Since its foundation, the customer has invested heavily in the development of IT systems and algorithms to
build its end-to-end business, from collection to sale, via processing, for total traceability. In particular, the
company has developed engines to optimize and list the value of electronics products, allowing uses to
ascertain quoted prices for these articles on markets worldwide in real time. This information is essential in
order to optimize buyback and sale prices. “The funds raised will enable us to intensify our R&D in order to
consolidate our leadership in France and accelerate our development in Europe”, adds Pierre-Etienne Roinat.
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Mobile virtual network operators.
A MODEL GEARED TO A FAST- CHANGING EUROPEAN TELECOMS MARKET
The company currently employs 40 people and is responsible for more than 70 indirect jobs in France, in its
industrial co-contractors’ workshops, some belonging to the social and cooperative sector of the economy.
Most of the reconditioned products are sold in France via e-commerce channels, which have seen strong
growth in demand since January 2012, and in Europe. The emergence of unsubsidized mobile phone plans
has opened the way for a new market for certified used articles. RECOMMERCE SOLUTIONS acts as a trusted
third party, marketing reconditioned, retrofitted and guaranteed devices to meet increasingly strong
demand.
Bruno Rivet, Managing Partner at Seventure Partners, explains: “The recommerce concept is a serious,
deeplying trend, one that could apply to a huge array of products. With the Europewide deployment of its
services and technologies, RECOMMERCE SOLUTIONS is contributing to the evolution of consumption
patterns, helping to address environmental, social and economic challenges.”
Xavier Deleplace, Chief Investment Officer at CDC Entreprises, continues: “One of the keys to the company’s
success is RECOMMERCE SOLUTIONS’ teams’ knowledge of the telecom ecosystem and the challenges
currently facing it. It has the capability to take appropriate, targeted and innovative action to enable the
different actors to leverage new growth opportunities or boost customer loyalty. This capital raising round
will enable RECOMMERCE SOLUTIONS to place its unique know-how at the disposal of a great many
European carriers and distributors facing the same challenges.”
Gilles Debuchy, Managing Partner of 3T Capital, adds: “In 3 years, RECOMMERCE SOLUTIONS has grown
rapidly thanks to its management team’s impressive execution skills. This capital raising round is a record for
the sector in Europe, in recognition of the innovative nature and excellence of RECOMMERCE SOLUTIONS’
model”.
The company will be present at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, February 25-28, (Hall 5 stand 5A81).
About RECOMMERCE SOLUTIONS
Founded in 2009 by Pierre-Etienne ROINAT, Benoît VARIN, Cédric MAUCOURT and Antoine JEANJEAN,
RECOMMERCE SOLUTIONS is the no. 1 player in the market for buying up electronics products in France and the
leading e-commerce merchant for used articles. The company designs and operates white label websites for the
repurchase of used mobile phones and tablets for leading brands including Bouygues Telecom, Virgin Mobile,
PriceMinister, NRJ Mobile, etc. The company has notably developed MonExTel.com.
RECOMMERCE SOLUTIONS organizes the purchase and resale of used electronics products in a sustainable
development perspective. Its technological leadership and its traceability methods are the key to its success. The
company has been distinguished by numerous awards. In particular, it was named one of the best French “CleanTech”
startups in November 2011.
For further information, see: www.recommerce.com
About Seventure Partners
Founded in 1997, as part of the BPCE Group, Seventure Partners is a leading private equity player in Europe, with more
than €500 million raised and under management. It actively partners French and European tech companies with strong
growth potential, financing the development of innovative companies in Information and Communication Technologies and
in Life Sciences. The company is based in Paris, with offices in Munich, London and Geneva.
Website: www.seventure.fr
About FSN PME
FSN PME is the private equity fund dedicated to innovative SMEs in the digital sector, set up by the French State under its
Investments for the Future Program and managed by CDC Entreprises, a subsidiary of the Caisse des Dépôts and the
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future Banque Publique d’Investissement (French public investment bank).
This fund acts as co-investor in SMEs with strong innovative and growth potential, developing new digital applications,
services and contents, or technologies essential to the development of the digital economy.
Website: http://www.cdcentreprises.fr/portefeuille/fiche/fonds_directs/F332/fsn_pme.php
About TELECOM TECHNOLOGIES TRANSFERT (3T Capital) – www.3tcapital.com
3T Capital is an independent venture capital firm, partnering the Institut Mines-Télécom. It specializes in financing
technology transfers and the startup of innovative firms in the information technologies and communication sectors, right
from the seed and startup phases. Its main shareholders are the European Investment Fund, via the European Union
Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme, CDC Entreprises under the FSI France Investissement program,
and the Institut Mines-Télécom. 3T is managed by experienced entrepreneurs who have themselves successfully started,
built up and sold technology businesses.
contact: [email protected]
About Alpha Capital Partners
Alpha Capital Partners is an investment bank specializing in raising capital, and in M&A. It is active mainly in the mid
markets in Media and Telecom-Intern Technologies (TMT), with deals worth between €5 and 100 million. It possesses
strong expertise in growth companies. Alpha’s partners have supported more than 50 TMT companies internationally,
including Dailymotion, Deezer and CCM Benchmark Group
Company advisors :

Legal : Vendôme (L. Jung-Allegret, Nicolas Mazzella)

Fund raising : Alpha Capital Partners (Marc Oiknine)
Investors advisors :

Legal : Jones Day (Renaud Bonnet, Anne Kerneur)

Legal CDC Entreprises : Edwige Kharoubi

Financial Audit : Atlays (Stéphane Fay)
PRESS CONTACTS :
[email protected]
Image 7 – +33 1 53 70 74 70
Roxane Planas – [email protected] – +33 1 53 70 74 18
Flore Larger – [email protected] - +33 1 53 70 74 91
Priscille David-Reneaume – [email protected] – +33 1 53 70 74 61
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CDC Entreprises, together with Oseo and the Strategic Investment Fund (FSI), will be one of the founders of the French
public investment bank, following completion of all administrative and legal formalities.