Chefclub announces a new financing round of 14m€ with the participation of First Bridge Ventures, SEB Alliance, Korelya Capital, and Aglaé Ventures.
First Bridge Ventures Chairman Adrian Cheng leads the round to accelerate Chefclub’s international development along with SEB Alliance, Groupe SEB’s corporate venture arm. Existing investors Fleur Pellerin’s Korelya Capital and Groupe Arnault’s Aglae Ventures are also participating.
Launched in Paris, France in 2016 by three brothers, Thomas, Jonathan, and Axel Lang, Chefclub has been able to leverage the power of social media to continually grow, strengthen its brand, and create a large audience while also transforming its video viewers into customers.
Its recipe videos and fun universe are designed to encourage everyone to cook: women, men, teenagers, and children
Convinced that the future of business lies in experiential content and direct contact with communities, the startup has already sold 700,000 self-published books since 2017, and in 2019 launched a series of innovative products for children that has equipped more than 150,000 families.
100 million followers: direct access to a community eager to participate in the creation of Chefclub products
The free distribution of quality content has helped Chefclub form a committed community that the startup can directly involve in the development of its products. All Chefclub products are created based on the requests, tastes, and opinions shared by the community throughout the product development process.
More than 1 billion monthly views: products that benefit from widespread social media presence
As viewers’ attention shifts from television to social networks, Chefclub promotes its universe and products through online videos of inspiring and fun recipes seen all around the world: in December 2020 alone, 50 million Americans and more than 15 million French people watched one or more Chefclub recipes.
Direct-to-consumer sales amplified by retail distribution
In addition to direct sales, the brand is developing its retail presence to allow members of its community to find Chefclub products in their favorite stores. In return, retailers carrying Chefclub products will benefit from the extensive coverage on social media platforms, allowing them to draw in customers who prefer not to order online.
A strategic brand license “Chefclub by Tefal”
Chefclub also announces a new partnership with Groupe SEB, with the launch of a range of products under the brand license “Chefclub by Tefal”, including skillets, saucepans, kitchen tools and small domestic appliances. Created in collaboration with the Chefclub community, this range combines Chefclub’s expertise in the development of creative recipes with Tefal’s sustainable design for simple products to make cooking easier. It will be launched shortly in France and internationally (Germany, Brazil, Italy, South Korea, Canada, Spain, the UK and Mexico), and will be sold via all offline and online channels as well as directly to customers (DtoC) on the Tefal and Chefclub websites.
The new brand “Chefclub by Tefal” benefits from unprecedented visibility on social networks and will broaden Groupe SEB’s reach, particularly with Millennials, who are discovering or rediscovering the joys of cooking thanks to the start-up’s content. By joining forces with Groupe SEB, world reference for small domestic appliances, Chefclub has access to recognized industrial expertise, the renown of the Tefal brand and a broader retail network which will enable its community to discover its products via the Group’s retail channels.
