Hexa Acquires Veevart: Expanding Vertical SaaS for Museums

Hexa Acquires Majority Stake in Veevart, a Museum-Focused SaaS Platform

Hexa, a Paris-based startup studio, is pursuing a novel strategy. Rather than solely focusing on incubating startups from inception, they are now acquiring a controlling interest in Veevart. Veevart is a vertical software-as-a-service company specifically designed for the needs of museums.

Hexa's Background and Approach

Hexa, previously known as eFounders, has been a prominent player in the French tech landscape since 2011. The studio consistently generates concepts for new technology ventures. They concentrate on assembling suitable founding teams and providing support in areas like product development, market entry strategies, recruitment, and securing funding.

Following an initial development period, these companies transition into independent startups. However, Hexa retains a substantial ownership position. Notable companies within Hexa’s portfolio include Front, Aircall, Spendesk, and Swan.

Veevart: An Established Player

Unlike a typical startup, Veevart was established in 2014. Currently, the company serves 160 museums and cultural organizations globally, varying in size. Veevart operates with a team of 70 employees and is already generating a profit.

The platform is engineered as a comprehensive solution for museums, leveraging the infrastructure of Salesforce. Museums utilizing Veevart can manage events, facilitate both online and on-site ticket sales, oversee memberships, automate donor communications, and integrate with their museum shops.

A significant number of museums currently rely on multiple, disparate tools to handle these functions. Consolidating these processes onto a single platform simplifies management and long-term maintenance.

The Salesforce Foundation

Veevart’s strong reliance on Salesforce is directly linked to the background of its founder, Antonio Velasco Echeverry. He previously gained experience with Accenture and Salesforce, making it a natural technological base.

“The decision to build on Salesforce wasn’t necessarily a deliberate choice,” Velasco Echeverry explained to TechCrunch. “Often, such decisions are influenced by chance. It simply represented the technology with which I was most familiar.”

He acknowledged some inherent platform limitations but also highlighted the benefits of utilizing Salesforce, including robust security, scalability, and access to the broader Salesforce ecosystem.

Bootstrapped and Profitable

Veevart has operated independently for the past ten years, achieving profitability along the way – “moderately profitable, but profitable nonetheless,” according to Velasco Echeverry.

“Therefore, when discussions with Hexa began, our primary focus wasn’t securing capital. We were seeking a partner who could accelerate our progress towards revenue goals and streamline the process,” he stated.

Hexa's Investment and Objectives

Hexa is taking on the role of an active private equity partner with this investment. The studio is investing €5 million (approximately $5.4 million) to become the majority shareholder in Veevart.

“Our aim is for Hexa to assist us in reaching $20 million in annual recurring revenue and to implement industry best practices across product development, market strategy, sales, and leadership,” Velasco Echeverry clarified.

Deals of this size are typically outside the scope of traditional private equity firms, while venture capital firms generally prioritize companies with rapid growth potential. Hexa, however, believes it can propel Veevart to the next stage by providing operational expertise and accelerating its expansion.