The start-up from Nice, that wishes it became the 'marketplace' of the global textile industry, succeeded in its first pool. The means to soar...
More than it was planned at the beginning ! On Monday March 20th, Ettex, the start-up from Nice, that has lately launched its textile 'marketplace' on Internet, managed to take up 46 million francs (7 million Euros) from a pool of American and European investors. Created in July 1998, by two men from Nice, Frédéric Allard, a textile expert, and Frédéric Court, the financier, the company had participated in the latest summit of venture capital in Sophia Antipolis. Then, it was looking for 20 million francs to finance its expansion and to assert itself as a virtual trading platform on the European textile market.
Some key investors
The two leaders of the operation are GRP (Global Retail Partners) and Partech International, two key funds of venture capital, that are particularly involved in the e-business, 'Business-to-Business'. The first pool also includes Cirlab, an Italian investor specialized in the Web (it is a member of the CIR Group, the holding of the De Benedetti family) and Gelardin Ventures, a group of investors based in New-York, and that is very active in Europe, as well as some international private investors.
'I am delighted about the quality of the pool we made, bringing together the key international investors', Frédéric Allard said. He is the cofounder of Etexx. This raise of funds strengthens our vision about the evolution of the textile industry in Europe, and it comes up added to the great support already shown by the professionals of the careers. That emphasizes the innovating character of our economic model and the relevance of our electronic platform' .
Further thirty people by the end of the year
According to Frédéric Court, the cofounder of Etexx, after six years at Lazard's, in London, in Milan, in New York, ' we were the first to launch out, in Europe; with such a large-scale pool, we are going to speed up our international expansion significantly and to reinforce our lead in the e-business meant for textile professionals. Thus, Etexx will become a more powerful tool of Internet, able to meet perfectly what our customers of the textile industry expect, whatever they are buyers or sellers. '
This capital contribution, that should open on a second pool before the end of the year, will allow Etexx to go faster. Etexx is going to create a subsidiary in the USA, and to open a department in New York. In Europe, it has already got its department in London, and it will open a department in Milan, before the end of the month. It has also got bigger in the Arénas, where its headquarters are, and it plans to go from a staff of 27 people to a staff of about 60 people, by the end of 2000. This let think Etexx, one of the most promising start-ups on the French Riviera, is going to soar tremendously !