The 50 BEST startup studios in FRANCE and EUROPE in 2024

INCUBATION • EXCUBATION • ACCELERATION

Find the list of TOP 50 Startup Studios in France and in Europe.

WHAT IS A STARTUP STUDIO?

A startup studio (also known as a “startup factory”, “venture builder”, or “venture studio”) is a company that aims to create several startups in a row“. Some are specialized (for example Fintech, BioTech, SaaS, etc.) and others are generalists.

See the definition from Wikipedia

HOW DOES IT WORK?

Startup studios aim to industrialize the creation of new activities thanks to shared resources, a dedicated multidisciplinary team and the provision of capital or services in order to allow founders to focus on execution.

Les better structures have often been created by experienced entrepreneurs. Many communication agencies or consulting firms have launched structures called “startups studios”, but without real entrepreneurial experience with startups.

Unlike other structures (accelerators, investment funds, agencies, consulting firms, etc.), Startup studios are long term partners. They intervene very early in the ideation phase and support startups over the long term (several years), from the initial idea through the launch of the activity, and until the acceleration of the startup.

Startup studios are there to support founders in positioning themselves as co-founders, while letting the team take off.

Depending on the initial financing of the structure, some startup studios offer financing for the launch of new startups, in addition to their contribution to industry or services (e.g. human resources, offices, etc.).

THE EMERGENCE OF STARTUP STUDIOS AND CORPORATE STARTUP STUDIOS.

The startup studio concept is quite recent sinceIt started to develop in 2007 to meet the growing need of entrepreneurs to be supported and to have access to resources in order to develop their innovative project.

Startup Studios are often theinitiative of one or more entrepreneurs who have themselves succeeded in their past entrepreneurial experiences. Examples include Archimède Labs co-created by Keith Teare in 2015, founder of Easy Net, or Rocket Internet created in 2007 by the co-founders of Alando.

What about Corporate Startup Studios? The Startup Studio phenomenon accelerated from 2017 with the emergence of new players: large companies started to launch their own Startup Studios such as Axa, Thalès, Schneider, Crédit Agricole, La Banque Postale (see examples at the bottom of the page).

In 2015, we were already able to identify more than 70 Startup Studios around the world. This number is constantly increasing with various economic models: independent, corporate or multi-corporate studios, specialized or generalist studios...

LIST OF FRENCH STARTUP STUDIOS

Here is a list of the best French startup studios. Do not hesitate to contact us if an actor is missing or if the information is incomplete.

‍‍‍321 was created in 2019 by Patrick Amiel, co-founder of MyBestPro (a marketplace acquired by Vivendi) and Romain Ledru-Mathé, 321 helps large companies launch new growth drivers. The Venture Design team studies for 2 to 3 months new business opportunities that will lead to the creation of new startups/join ventures. The Venture Builders team then focuses on marketing and commercial development.

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Created in 2010 by Antoine Duboscq, Adventures creates startups in niche markets. The head office is based in Paris, but the startups are located in Paris, New York, and San Francisco.

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Created in 2016 by Jérémy Harroch, founder of Quantmetry, Anova specializes in innovations related to artificial intelligence (AI). The objective is to connect all AI players in France: entrepreneurs, data experts, corporations and investors.

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Created in 2009 by Thomas Pruvot and Denis Marchant, Bricks creates startups in the media sector. This startup studio has launched three startups: Consistently, Bababam, Actirise. In 2023, Bricks became Sparteo, an adtech for publishers.

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Created by Laurent Kretz, François Defossez and Matthieu Stefani, CosaVostra is a digital agency that publishes podcasts (La Panier and Génération Do It Yourself). This agency also offers a Startup Studio activity for project leaders. They co-created nearly 10 startups within their startup studio Pareto. Projects ranging from e-commerce to fintech.

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‍eFounders, henceforth Hexa was created in 2011 by Thibaut Elzière and Quentin Nickmans for SaaS startups around the Future of Work. Among the startups launched: Mailjet, Textmaster, Frontapp, Frontapp, Aircall, Mention, Spendesk, StationHQ, SliteHQ, GiveBriq, Frontapp, Aircall, Aircall, Mention, Spendesk, StationHQ, SliteHQ, GiveBriq, GiveBriq, UpflowHQ. Today, the studio addresses various verticals such as LogicFounders for the development of fintech and 3founders for the development of Web3 projects.

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Founded in Paris in 2018 by Marc Menasé, Founders Future is a Venture Studio that combines both seed investment and startup studio.

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‍Factory 319 is a startup studio based in Marseille, dedicated to the health and biotechnology sector, founded by a team of Tech, Science and Innovation enthusiasts.

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‍Fast-Up Partners Fast-Up Partners is a “strategy consulting boutique with the courage of an entrepreneur”, which works with B2C companies and their shareholders, for consulting services, excubation, go-to-market or new ways to fuel mergers and acquisitions. They now have offices in Paris, New York, and London.

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Created by Nicolas Bellego, Icade Urban Odyssey is a startup studio dedicated to creating solutions for better cities: improving homes, workplaces, and wellness experiences. It was created in partnership with the HEC incubator at Station F. Startups created: Virtuo City, Skult...

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Innovation Machine is a startup studio from Nantes created in 2017 by Rob Spiro, with the conviction that entrepreneurship can change the world. Since its launch, the studio has launched 8 impact startups: Beem Energy, Les Mini Mondes, Smala (Ex-Il Éwere Several Times), Jho, river home, UpTogether, UpTogether, Vite mon Marché and Good Steps.
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Launched in 2021 by Camille Tyan (co-founder of PayPlug) and eFounders, Logic Founders is a startup studio dedicated to fintech.

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‍Mobility Founders is a startup studio founded in 2016 with initial investment from Rent a Car. They focus on the mobility industry and are addressing both the digitalization of traditional mobility players and the creation of new mobility services.

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Founded in 2007, Matters is a French product and startup studio that supports entrepreneurs, intrapreneurs and project leaders in the creation and development of successful businesses and digital services! Matters supports Startups, Large Groups and Institutions on all of their product and innovation approaches: ideation, strategy, design, development, development, tests, growth...

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‍Pathfinder is a startup studio created by Miguel de Fontenay, former executive partner of The Family. Since 2016, Pathfinder has been working with major companies to invent new business models and support their digital projects.

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‍Possible Future is a studio, part of the Caggemini Group, created in 2016 around sustainable innovation and a certified B Corp. Possible Future company creates innovation strategies and projects, with the ambition of a positive impact on society and the environment.

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Created in 2015 by Arnaud and Fathi, RedStart brings its help and its network to the creation of startups, as they did for MyBizDev, La Chaise Française and Phonizy. RedStart has opened a unit in Tunisia.

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Created in 2007 by Jean-Claude Charlet, Schoolab offers an ecosystem that supports and accelerates their innovation projects. As an early-stage startup incubator, Schoolab supports French and international entrepreneurs for 6 months from the idea to the first customers. Schoolab claims more than 350 accelerated business projects in France.

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‍Sparkling Partners is a startup studio created in 2014 by Martin Toulemonde, co-founder of Chronodrive and Charles Perrard, e.g. A.T. Kearney. Based in Lille and Paris, the studio launched twenty companies in 8 years such as Delitoon, Newcard or Javelot.

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Created in 2014 by Freddy Cimper, SPLIT is at the crossroads between a digital agency and a business accelerator whose objective is to create Products/Startups for early-stage startups or Corporates.

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Created in 2014 by Yves Matton, Pierre and Olivier Le Blainvaux, TechnoFounders is a startup studio specialized in creating innovative startups from research laboratories. Their credo is to start from research work to transform them into startups and as a result, they work in close collaboration with French universities, laboratories and research centers (CNRS, INRIA, INRA, CNES...).

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‍Wow is a venture studio created by Emmanuel Gonon and Hervé Kleczewzki and established in Lyon and Paris since 2014. The structure proposes impact projects that promote responsible growth.

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Created in 2014 by Frédéric Arnoux and Benjamin Duban, Stim is a startup studio aimed at helping businesses transform by integrating sustainable projects, while taking into account the limits of the planet.

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LIST OF CORPORATE STARTUP STUDIOS

‍The Dassault 3DEXPERIENCE Lab is shaping a new framework for open innovation that combines collective intelligence and a collaborative approach to foster entrepreneurship as well as to strengthen the creation of new innovative businesses.

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‍Car Studio by Mobivia is an accelerator of innovative solutions for Norauto, Midas and Carter-Cash (Mobivia's core business brands). It focuses on the mobility/autotech industry.

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‍Kamet Ventures by Axa was created by Stéphane Guinet, with Nicolas Bosc and Michael Niddam, is dedicated to the creation or acceleration of startups in the fields of insurance, protection and assistance.

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‍LaFabrique by CA was created in 2018 with the financial support of the Crédit Agricole Group. LaFabrique is managed by Laurent Darmon, Anaïs Bonnement Desmoulins, Sabine Fillias. This startup studio is dedicated to the creation and acceleration of Fintech startups to invent the bank of tomorrow. 5 startups launched in 2 years (e.g.: Blank, Yapla, CA Lending Services, CA Lending Services, Trajectoire Patrimoine, I am an entrepreneur...)

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‍Leonardo by VINCI was created in July 2017. It is the accelerator of the VINCI group. This structure helps Group employees, but also external project leaders addressing VINCI's biggest challenges, to develop their projects around the future of cities and territories, the digital revolution, the acceleration of innovation cycles and the ecological transition.

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LIST OF EUROPEAN STARTUP STUDIOS

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‍Builders (Netherlands) was created by Michael van Lier in 2015. Builders is a startup studio based in Rotterdam, designed to create and develop technology businesses from scratch, with bold ideas, and by bringing together co-seasonal founders, operational support, and investment capital. Examples of startups created: Influentials, IPS, Obey.

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‍Creative Dock (Czech Republic) was created by Martin Pejsa and Miroslav Esser in 2012 in Prague, and is now represented in 8 European countries. This venture builder works with companies, ETIs and investment funds on innovative projects by starting from scratch and launching them on the market: “from ideation to scale”. In 8 years, Creative Dock has launched over 50 startups.

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‍EIT Digital (Belgium) is a European digital innovation and education organization with an entrepreneurial approach that drives Europe's digital transformation.

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‍Entrepreneur first (United Kingdom) was founded in 2011 by Matthew Clifford and Alice Bentinck with the ambition to invest in talented entrepreneurs. Their startup studio supports individuals in creating technology companies and operates in Toronto, London, Berlin, Paris, Singapore, and Bangalore.

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‍Finleap (Germany) is a corporate venture builder focused on finance, founded by Ramin Niroumand and owned by the IONIQ Group. They co-founded over 15 companies, including Solaris Banks (digital banking platform), Connect (open banking), and Element (insurtech).

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‍Founders Factory (UK) was created by Brent Hoberman (co-founder of Lastminute.com and Made.com) and Henry Lane Fox. This startup studio is associated with 6 major companies (M&S, L'Oréal, Aviva, Easyjet...) to co-create startups on their domestic market.

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Created by Carlos Blanco in Barcelona and then opened in Madrid, Nuclio (Spain) is inspired by successful models abroad to replicate them in Spain by creating startups from scratch. Fifteen startups have been created, including Housfy, Typs, Proptex, Casum.

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Created by Marc Samwer, Oliver Samwer, Alexander Samwer and Fabio Tran in 2007, Rocket Internet (Germany) builds and invests in startups that replicate proven business models in new, high-growth markets. Rocket Internet offers 3 plans: Incubation, Investment, Growth. Some examples of startups launched: Bluenest, Everstox, Global Savings Group, Home 24 or Nestpick. And also, StartupGym in Italy.

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The startup studio WeBuild Ventures (Switzerland) creates fast-growing technology companies for the next generations of Switzerland, with a particular focus on insurance, financial services, real estate and mobility.

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WHAT IS THE BUSINESS MODEL OF THE STARTUP STUDIO?

To deal with the diversity of projects and entrepreneurial ambitions, startup studios adapt with different business models.

Acquisition of a stake in the startup's capital

Taking a stake in a startup's capital is a traditional model for sharing the entrepreneurial adventure while ensuring the provision of financial and industrial resources (know-how, advice, support, etc.).

The business model of the startup studio is therefore similar to that of VCs where the entrepreneurial risk is shared by all the stakeholders in the project. If successful, the startup studio sells its capital shares to make a profit that compensates for the capital losses resulting from the failure of the other startups supported.

Necessarily, the acquisition of equity by startup studios requires significant initial capital to allow projects to mature over several years without running out of cash. Like a holding company, it It is not uncommon for the startup studio to raise funds, dont la valorisation dépend de la qualité des startups de son portefeuille.

Outre la question de la trésorerie, l'acquisition d'une partie importante du capital par un startup studio peut être mal vécue par les entrepreneurs. Lorsque le projet est très précoce, certains fondateurs peuvent considérer que l'engagement du startup studio est secondaire par rapport à l'énergie qu'ils doivent déployer pour faire avancer le projet. De même, la participation du studio peut dissuader les futurs investisseurs lors des premiers tours de table en raison des dilutions des capitaux déjà réalisés. Aussi, les investisseurs, focalisés sur l'équipe et le projet peuvent percevoir le studio de la startup comme un poids mort. Pour ces différentes raisons, certains startup studios proposent différents modèles de rémunération.

Le paiement de fees au startup studio

Le versement de royalties de la startup au studio est un mode de rémunération alternatif qui évite la prise de participation. Positionné comme un prestataire de services, le startup studio contractualise le versement d'un pourcentage du chiffre d'affaires réalisé par la startup pendant une période déterminée. Bien entendu, le concept peut être décliné et adapté en fonction des caractéristiques de chaque startup ou encore être indexé sur des données financières autres que le chiffre d'affaires. Il est également possible d'envisager une simple facturation des produits et services fournis à la startup (locaux, conseils, accompagnement, matériel, etc.).

Par ailleurs, rien n'empêche d'envisager un modèle mixte (prise de participation et royalties) ou une rémunération sous forme d'obligations convertibles. Avec ce mode de rémunération, le startup studio est partie prenante de la réussite du projet entrepreneurial des fondateurs tout en réduisant la trésorerie du startup studio. Quant aux fondateurs, ils disposent d'une plus grande agilité dans la mise en œuvre de leur projet et dans leur recherche de financement.

Le modèle de corporate venture studio

Le modèle économique du corporate start up studio s'inscrit dans la philosophie d'innovation de l'entreprise qui souhaite favoriser la croissance externe du groupe sans perturber ses processus internes établis. À cet égard, ils disposent de ressources humaines et financières dédiées capables de répondre aux nombreuses problématiques des entrepreneurs.

Le startup studio est alors considéré comme une business unit ou un prestataire externe (s'il est une filiale du groupe). L'adossement du corporate studio au groupe lui permet de disposer d'un budget, d'une expertise, d'une notoriété et d'un écosystème conséquent. Idéal pour attirer les entrepreneurs les plus talentueux !