On Tuesday night native time, Motier Ventures, an early stage tech funding agency primarily based in Paris, unveiled a startup hub referred to as La Maison. This comparatively new investor within the French tech ecosystem is the household workplace of the Houzé household — the house owners of upmarket vogue retailer the Galeries Lafayette Group.
Because the Galeries Lafayette malls’ most important belongings are its bodily retail shops in addition they imagine a bodily house for startups will give them an edge over different tech funding corporations.
Early stage startup founders primarily based in Paris have extra choices than ever on the subject of elevating a seed spherical. Many unicorn founders have develop into angel buyers on the aspect. Household places of work have diversified their funding methods with a renewed urge for food for tech startups. And early stage VC corporations are nonetheless preventing for one of the best offers.
Probably the most promising startups get to decide on who they need on their capitalization desk. Some buyers like to vow introductions with potential purchasers and enterprise companions. Others pledge a speedy, no frills monetary transaction in order that entrepreneurs can get again to work on their startup.
Motier Ventures is betting on an ecosystem-first method. Over the previous three years, the fund has deployed capital at a speedy tempo as it’s now an investor in 85 firms, together with many promising AI firms — resembling Mud, H and Mistral.
They’ve additionally organized a number of occasions which have put many founders and buyers within the French tech ecosystem into the identical room. The subsequent step in that technique is a bodily house, referred to as La Maison (a phrase which interprets as home or dwelling).
Unfold throughout the highest three flooring of the Lafayette Connoisseur constructing subsequent to the Opéra Garnier, La Maison will host a dozen early stage startups on this Haussmannian constructing. It should open in early 2025.
The fourth ground can be a bit completely different as it’s going to act as an occasion/demo day/hackathon/cocktail reception house. “It’s a big project, and I think what drives us is not just Motier Ventures, but the whole entrepreneurial and family ecosystem that we’ve represented for five generations,” Motier Ventures associate Guillaume Houzé mentioned throughout an AI-focused occasion in Paris organized by Motier.
“With Galeries Lafayette, we’re ultimately trying to support those who make the finest brands,” he added, saying the fund’s purpose for La Maison is to assist “exceptional teams” by offering not only a work and assembly place but additionally inspiration for creativity — or “a space to reflect collectively on the vision of society we want to build”, as he put it.
In some ways, the pitch for La Maison is harking back to the early days of native tech hub The Household. Round 10 years go, The Household opened as a startup accelerator with an attractive occasion house that shortly grew to become the city sq. of the French tech ecosystem.
With the COVID-19 pandemic, The Household had no selection however to close down the house to chop prices. Extra not too long ago, it’s been again within the information for all of the improper causes as Oussama Ammar, one in every of The Household’s co-founder, is being sued for allegedly diverting hundreds of thousands of euros.
For individuals who have been working within the French tech ecosystem for quite a lot of years, The Household’s meetups and dinners are actually only a distant reminiscence. And nothing has actually stepped in to interchange it. Whereas Station F is an impressive startup megacampus, it’s too large for informal and casual occasions. Possibly La Maison will develop into the brand new default house to host small meetups.
“Our ambition is to cultivate an environment where the next generation of tech entrepreneurs, in AI and beyond, can feel supported, inspired, and connected every day,” Motier Ventures associate Nicolas Essayan mentioned in a press release.
