French martech Sendinblue has secured around €136.5 million, in a round led by Bridgepoint Development Capital and BPI Large Cap, with existing investor Partech remaining as an equity partner.
Founded in 2012 by Armand Thiberge, Sendinblue is an all-in-one marketing and sales solution for SMBs, covering channels such as email, SMS, marketing automation, sales management and live chat. Positioned as a leader in digital marketing, the startup boasts a solid record, achieving 60% growth year over year and an approx. €46.9 million ($55 million) turnover.
The recent economic context has confirmed the need for this type of business, as many local and traditional companies accelerate their digitalisation efforts. As such, Sendinblue achieved over 50% growth between March and June 2020 (during the lockdown period) and now has 180,000 customers across over 160 countries.
Initially focused on email marketing, the scale-up has adapted to an increasing demand from businesses for an online acquisition and loyalty tool. For example, clients can start by sending newsletters, then go further with complex marketing automation scenarios or a chat tool that integrates into their website. These tools are accessible and don’t require any technical knowledge, meaning Sendinblue appeals to a wide range of companies (from restaurants to architectural firms, e-commerce sites or even manufacturing groups). Over 50% of their team is currently dedicated to these innovations.
With 70% of its revenue generated abroad, Sendinblue intends to accelerate its international development. This new fundraising will allow it to increase its external growth activities to enrich its value proposition as well as to gain foothold on new markets. As such, Sendinblue has just opened its first office in Toronto, reinforcing its presence in its number one market: North America. The goal by 2025 is to achieve around €188 million ($220 million) turnover.
Bruno Cremel, General Partner at Partech, commented: “SendInBlue is fast becoming the European-leading digital-marketing platform for SMBs, and Partech is very excited to continue the journey with the company”.
This vision was particularly appealing to Olivier Nemsguern, Partner at Bridgepoint: “Sendinblue is well positioned in a market experiencing high growth. An increasing number of SMBs are turning to digital, we saw this during lockdown. In addition, the company’s track record and performance are remarkable. After an in-depth financial audit over several weeks, we identified Sendinblue as the highest performer in this market.”
Louis Mollis, Partner at BPI, shared: “We invest in high-potential, innovative companies, so it was obvious to us that we should support one of our French jewels, especially one that does so well globally! We’re proud to stand with them to develop a European giant.”
