(SGI) Snowleader, the leading French online retailer of winter sports and outdoor products, says it has collected €10 million in new financing from three institutional investors, including a fund owned by the BNP Paribas bank, to help pursue its international omni-channel strategy. The company’s revenues have grown by 38 percent to €35 million in the last six months, with about 40 percent of the turnover generated outside France. According to sport-guide.com, Snowleader is targeting sales of €100 million by 2025 or 2026 in its business plan.
Created 11 years ago in Annecy, the company has been generating profits in the last few years from its annual sales. While developing its online sales, it has also opened physical stores in Annecy, Chamonix and Lyon. The company wants to use the funds to open a new distribution center and to open two stores per year in areas where it is experiencing strong demand over the internet, giving customers the option of a click & collect service. In addition to other French cities like Paris, Toulouse and Strasbourg, Snowleader is also targeting foreign locations like Zurich, Brussels and London for its future stores. Thomas Rouault, co-founder and chief executive of Snowleader, will remain the majority shareholder after the new financing round, the third one since the company’s founding. In the latest transaction, three former investors have cashed out and the new ones have injected new equity, says sport-guide.com.
