By bringing another investor onboard, Trusted Shops confirms its intent to expand in France.
Paris, 12 May 2011 – Trusted Shops, the European leader in certification of online retailers, has added Crédit Agricole Private Equity as an equity investor. The founding managers retain a majority interest alongside European Founders Fund, which has been a minority shareholder since 2008.
Based in Germany, Trusted Shops has set its sights on becoming one of the leaders in France in certification of retail websites. Its strength is providing merchants with a comprehensive solution unlike any other on the market. The company offers retail websites a way of gaining consumers’ trust and increasing sales through a package that includes a Seal of Approval, a Legal compliance and financial audit, a Money back guarantee for online shoppers and a dispute resolution service. Since 1999, more than 9,500 online retailers in Europe have found this package irresistible.
“France is the third-largest major market in Europe and the fastest-growing. I am delighted to be part of this new partnership with Crédit Agricole Private Equity, which is one of the leading French players in funding innovative smaller companies”, said Jean-Marc Noël, a Co-founder and CEO of Trusted Shops.
“Trusted Shops has already proved the effectiveness of its business model. In Germany, the company is number one among the brands that inspire confidence. We will be bringing our experience to bear and putting our network in France and other European countries to work on accelerating Trusted Shops’ expansion beyond its present borders”, explained Christian Claussen, Senior Partner within Crédit Agricole Private Equity’s venture capital team.
Trusted Shops is already operating in six European countries (Germany, Great Britain, Poland, Austria, Switzerland, France) and will soon be in Spain and the Netherlands.
Investor
Christian Claussen, Senior Partner, Venture Capital, Crédit Agricole Private Equity
Advisers
Crédit Agricole Private Equity: Jan-Peter Heyer (BMH Bräutigam & Partner, Berlin)
Trusted Shop: Dr. Koenig (Goerg, Cologne)
OXYGEN – Angélique De Barros/ Sabrina Gonzalez – 01 41 11 37 78 / 01 41 11 37 82, angelique@oxygen-rp.com
About Trusted Shops GmbH
Founded in 1999, Trusted Shops is the European leader in certification of retail websites. Based in Germany, the company audits online retailers using a catalogue of more than one hundred criteria such as company solvency, price transparency, customer service and protection of consumers’ personal data. If the retailer meets the audit criteria, it is awarded Trusted Shops’ highly prized quality label. At present, more than 9,500 online shops carry this label. www.trustedshops.fr
About Crédit Agricole Private Equity
Crédit Agricole Private Equity is an AMF-accredited asset-management subsidiary of Crédit Agricole, specialising in direct private-equity investment in non-listed companies. A multi-specialist player, Crédit Agricole Private Equity’s team of 100 professionals manages €3.3 billion with specific expertise in LBO & Expansion, Venture Capital, Mezzanine, Co-Investment, Renewable Energy and PPP Infrastructure. The 11-strong venture capital team manages €470 million through FCPIs invested in young companies with high growth potential in 2 sectors: information technology and life sciences. Crédit Agricole Private Equity has signed up to the United Nations’ Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI).