Hexa is trying something new. Instead of growing startups from scratch and incubating them in the first year or so, the Paris-based startup studio has acquired a majority stake in Veevart, a vertical software company as a farmer that offers tickets, funding, CRM and collection management solutions.
Hexa is a familiar name in the French technology ecosystem. Startup Studio originally started life as Efounders in 2011 and regularly came up with ideas for new high-tech companies. They try to find the right founding team and support product design, market-bound strategies, employment and fundraising.
After this first phase, businesses will become appropriate and independent startups, but Hexa has a big bet on the cap table. Successful heck support folio companies include Front, Aircall, Spendesk and Swan.
But Veevart is not a new startup. Founded in 2014, it currently works with 160 museums and cultural institutions of all sizes around the world. With a team of 70 people, Veevart is already profitable.
Veevart's Temyimage Credit: Veevart
This product is designed as an all-in-one platform for museums built on top of Salesforce. Museums using Veevart can create and manage events, sell tickets online and on-site, manage membership, automate communication with donors, and integrate with museum shops.
Many museums use multiple tools for all these tasks. Having a single platform makes it easier to manage and maintain over time.
The reason Veevart is so dependent on Salesforce comes from Veevart's founder Antonio Velasco Echeverry.
“I'm not saying I've 'choosed' to build on top of Salesforce. People often assume that these decisions are intentional, but honestly, luck plays a big role. We didn't choose Salesforce – that was the technology I knew best,” Velasco Echeverry told TechCrunch.
Despite some platform limitations, he added that building on top of Salesforce has several advantages, including security, scalability and access to the entire Salesforce ecosystem.
Veevart has been bootstrapping for the past decade and has been making money for a while. “It's not incredibly profitable, but it's profitable,” Velasco Echeverry said.
“So when we started our conversation with Hexa, we didn't look much of the money, but we were looking for more for a partner that would help us achieve our revenue goals faster and less pain,” he added.
With this investment, Hexa will act as a kind of practical private equity partner. Startup Studio is investing 5 million euros ($5.4 million at its current exchange rate) to become a major shareholder of Veevart.
“Our aim is to help hexa achieve $20 million. [annual recurring revenue]implements best practices regarding the product, [go-to-market]sales, leadership,” Velasco Ekeberly said.
Private corporations usually don't engage in such small transactions, but VC companies usually want companies with potential for growth. However, Hexa believes that by providing operational expertise to accelerate the company's growth, it can take Veevart to the next level.