Poool, the French start-up specializing in audience conversion strategies for digital publishers, has raised €4 million in a series A fundraising round led by SWEN Capital Partners and GSO Innovation.
After an initial €350k funding in 2017 from Kima Ventures and private investors just one year after its launch, Poool has continued to grow over the last 5 years, providing over 130 digital publishers in 10 countries around the world with The Membership & Subscription Suite.
Today, with the market for turning content into business reacher further than ever, Poool is announcing a series A fundraising of €4 million led by SWEN Capital Partners, GSO Innovation & Crédit Agricole Aquitaine Expansion (a regional investor from Crédit Agricole), Aquiti Gestion and other business angels.
Poool's CEO, Maxime Moné, shared how valuable this fundraising will be for development, pointing to 3 key areas for maximizing on this investment over the coming months:
- Product development - such as building on The Membership & Subscription Suite to launch a 4th product, Engage, later this year, supporting digital content creators at every step of converting, managing and retaining their members and subscribers
- Reach new markets that hold huge opportunity - such as e-learning sites, VOD and, in particular, brands who are moving from content marketing to publishing to maximize the value that content has to offer
- Increase international presence - already the French market leaders, Poool are looking to grow in other countries around the world, particularly in the UK and USA
"We are incredibly excited to be accompanied by GSO Innovation & SWEN whose passion and vision for the future of Poool is going to be invaluable to our growth.”
The French start-up is now a team of 40 employees spread out between Paris and Bordeaux. Clients include ELLE Magazine, Prisma Media (such as Harvard Business Review) and EBRA Media Group in France, What Doctors Don’t Tell You in the UK, Neos Kosmos in Australia and EuroNews across the continent.
But with strong competitors such as Piano and the recent acquisition of Zephr by Zuora, what makes Poool different from the others?
- A simple and flexible platform that allows clients to build, test and optimize personalized, end-to-end reader conversion and retention journeys to quickly get ROI
- Complete autonomy for marketing teams to drive membership and subscription strategies without depending on tech support
- Expertise - not only do Poool’s consultancy team share insights and benchmarks with clients, but this expertise is continuously integrated and automated in the product itself. And keep an eye out for Poool's latest project, launching October 13th 👀
“The quality of their managerial team and proven driving force were key factors in our decision to accompany Poool. We’ve already seen high ambitions for the future, proof that these can be achieved and a united focus on customer satisfaction, all essentials for long-term, sustainable success.”
Xavier Le Blan, Head of venture and private banking at SWEN Capital Partners.
Discover more about Poool's Membership & Subscription Suite on our website, or book a free demo to see how it can help you convert, manage and retain your members and subscribers.
Madeleine White
