Positive Group (formerly Sarbacane Group)
The Positive group, a software publisher dedicated to business communication, is known for Sarbacane (Mailify outside of France), a key player in emailing in Europe since 2001. The group, based in the North of France, has since added a whole range of solutions based on its expertise to support companies in their digital communications. On a daily basis, the group supports 25,000 customers around the world.More
Positive Group raises $110M and expands its offer with data expertise with the acquisition of Marketing 1BY1.
As a key player in digital communication for companies for more than 20 years, Positive Group (formerly Sarbacane Group), parent company of Mailify and rapidmail announced a $110M fundraising from EMZ and banking institutions, and at the same time a third acquisition in 2 years with the purchase of the company Marketing 1BY1.
EMZ provides new resources to continue the historic growth of the last three years
After IDI in 2020, the European fund EMZ enters the capital of the group to support and finance its development. Mathieu Tarnus, founder and CEO, remains the majority shareholder of the group. The group’s turnover, which has increased by three times in 3 years, will approach $30M this year. The ambition is to keep up this pace and reach a turnover of $100M by 2026.
“Three years ago, we started a new phase of growth by not only continuing to develop our historical activities, but also by allowing ourselves to make targeted acquisitions to grow faster, enlarge our functional scope and expand abroad. To implement this strategy, we needed the right partners, aligned with our values, our vision and our ambition. An equation that has been solved through our discussions with the EMZ teams in addition to IDI, who joined us in 2020. We are very pleased to welcome them to the group’s capital”, says Mathieu Tarnus.
“Led by a management team built around the tandem of Mathieu Tarnus, the group’s founder, and Paul de Fombelle, its CEO, this transaction is at the heart of EMZ’s investment strategy,” said Charles Mercier and Ajit Jayaratnam of EMZ. “We support experienced teams who want to be involved as shareholders alongside us. We are very pleased to bring our human and financial contribution to this talented team and to support its ambitious external growth strategy”.
“Positive Group’s journey since we took a stake in the company just two years ago has been exceptional, with a group size that has doubled, thanks to strong organic growth and a successful and structuring acquisition in Germany. After having achieved a very good performance on our initial investment, we are pleased to participate again in this round of financing, together with the managers and EMZ, as we are convinced of the strong potential for development in France and in Europe in the coming years.” Augustin Harrel-Courtès, Managing Partner (IDI)
Sarbacane Group becomes Positive Group
To facilitate the distinction between the development and ambition of the group and the historical activity of Sarbacane (known as Mailify outside of France), the group is changing its name to Groupe Positive. Sarbacane and Mailify as well as their sisters rapidmail and Datananas, will continue to exist as brands and subsidiaries of the group.
A tribute to the values of development and optimism that have always been part of the company’s DNA, while keeping its feet on the ground and relying on sustainable and profitable activities.
European leader in communication services for companies
This fundraising opens a new phase in the development of the Positive group, which was founded in 2001 around its core software Mailify. Over the years, the publisher has developed a galaxy of solutions dedicated to digital business communication: email and SMS (marketing and transactional), creation of automated workflows, conversational marketing with livechat and chatbot, sales engagement, etc.
The Positive Group intends to become an entrepreneurial platform for digital innovation by relying on its strengths: advanced but easy-to-use technologies, a premium support service tailored to the needs of all its customers, and a strong local presence in Europe.
The group currently supports 25,000 customers, mainly SMEs and mid-market companies, but also large groups and public institutions.
With Marketing 1BY1, the Positive Group acquires data expertise
The group announces a third acquisition in 2 years: the french company Marketing 1BY1, a specialist in data management. Marketing 1BY1 develops a CDP (Customer Data Platform). While Mailify, rapidmail and Datananas solutions enable data to be activated through multichannel campaigns, Marketing 1BY1 is positioned upstream, at the data flow consolidation stage.
“The 1BY1 solution that we develop centralizes, for each of our customers, all the online and offline data of their consumers. Thanks to this database, they benefit from a 360° view of their business and can then use it to carry out highly personalized and automated marketing actions. This new partnership is also an opportunity to make Big Data technologies accessible to all types of companies.” —Benoit Venière Founder and CEO Marketing 1BY1″
Without denying its historical approach and its premium support for SMEs, Mailify has become a complementary partner for public institutions and large accounts. The acquisition of Marketing 1BY1 meets the growing need of these companies to set up an ultra-personalized customer approach without having to implement heavy and complex solutions.
“The arrival of Marketing 1BY1 within the Positive group is a great opportunity for our respective customers. Offering the best of CDP platforms to Mailify customers and all the features of the Sarbacane solution for Marketing 1BY1 customers. We are delighted to welcome them to our great tribe.” — Mathieu TARNUS, CEO Positive Group
