Obat raises €6 million from Truffle Capital, Evolem and Holnest to digitize the management of VSEs and SMEs in the construction industry

The management of VSEs and SMEs in the construction industry is still very complex and not very automated, with many legal constraints and back and forth with customers. Few tools offer a simple and complete solution, suitable for small and medium-sized businesses. Since 2019, Obat has been simplifying the daily lives of entrepreneurs, craftsmen and business leaders by improving the costing of quotes, the monitoring of invoicing and margins for each site. By streamlining the customer relationship and automating repetitive tasks, Obat allows entrepreneurs to fully focus on their core business and maximize their value proposition.

100% online, the Obat solution is an easy-to-use integrated platform whose functionalities cover almost all the areas common to all construction companies, in particular:

• Customer relations (invoicing, installments, VAT certificate, electronic signature, reminders of unpaid bills, personalization of documents, etc.)
• Site monitoring and financial management (quotes, project database, management of margins, etc.)
• Accounting, monitoring of margins and overheads, accounting export
• Personnel and human resources management

With this fundraising, Obat is now supported by the Private Equity company Truffle Capital, which is leading this round. The Fund has been supporting fintechs in the portfolio for many years through its dedicated funds and invests alongside Evolem Start, the venture capital vehicle of the family office Evolem, and Club Holnest, a structure of the family office of Jean-Michel Aulas.

This lifting allows Obat to continue its growth already well underway in 2021 with an expected three-fold increase in turnover in 2022 (on a 1m ARR basis). The company will concentrate its efforts on the French market, whose complexity, depth (more than 550.000 companies in the construction industry) and vitality (50.000 new companies created every year) represents a very large potential for growth. Finally, and although the platform addresses larger companies, Obat will continue to focus on VSEs and SMEs with the objective of reaching 2022 active customers and 10.000 million by the end of 3. ARR.

This operation constitutes the biggest fundraising of a company in full remote in France. Since its creation, Obat has opted for a 100% teleworking organization, a unique and ambitious choice in 2019. This organization offers exceptional living comfort to Obat's 62 employees and leads to better productivity. Regular meetings also improve team cohesion. On the strength of this experience, this way of working is now a strength for Obat. By requiring its employees to always think and rethink the communication and structuring processes within the company, by constantly challenging them, full remote is a catalyst for innovation and continuous improvement for the company, but above all for the services it offers and ultimately for its customers.

For Florent Liagre, Co-founder and CEO, Obat: “This operation is a strong signal that demonstrates the confidence of leading investors in our strategy and our team now structured around sixty employees. Obat was born out of the complexity of the construction sector, which makes exercising the profession time-consuming and still very administrative for most players. Our integrated solution meets these optimization needs, but goes beyond them to better prepare the sector's transition towards sustainable design and an increasingly digital future. »

For Bernard-Louis Roques, Co-founder and Managing Director, Truffle Capital: “Obat has demonstrated the solidity of its model with players in the construction industry and benefits from the transformation of this sector, which the company supports and carries with success. This is a trend that will be confirmed and the investments made by Obat in 2021 will bear fruit from 2023 to allow the company to establish itself as a key player in the sector. Driven by the experience and complementarity of the management team, Obat will benefit not only from the expertise of Truffle Capital but also from its accumulated experience in the fintech sector. »

For Thomas Rival, Partner, Evolem: “81% of construction professionals do not yet use business software. However, the financial and operational monitoring of construction sites is both complex and crucial for the survival of the 550.000 companies in this sector, 95% of which are VSEs with fewer than 10 employees. The very strong organic traction with almost zero churn convinced us that Obat was the solution that craftsmen were waiting for. »

For Patrick Bertrand, COO, Holnest: "Holnest and the business angels who support it within the framework of the Holnest Club, were convinced by two essential elements which constitute the basics of the success of a new company: a seasoned management and a strong entrepreneurial culture, an unparalleled offer in a market that is still largely under-digitalized due to the lack of an easy-to-use "business" solution. Obviously, the two components of a success that is confirmed month after month. »