2024-10-28 15:00:00
For several years now, amateur sport has whetted the appetite of many companies offering a whole host of services aimed at making everyday management easier (SportEasy, AssoConnect, etc.)
Latest example with the company Sportyneo founded in 2021 which offers a complete offer for clubs, leagues and other federations. The company notably offers payment spread over 10 months confidentially and without penalizing the association.
To find out more about Sportyneo, we asked a few questions to Johan Gouttefangeas, the co-founder.
“We are planning a new fundraising of 4 to 5 million euros in the next 18 months”
Sport Buzz Business: Can you tell us about your background? When did you create the company Sportyneo?
Johan Gouttefangeas: I am the co-founder and CEO of Sportyneo. Before launching this company, I always evolved in the world of sport, a former high-level athlete, then moved to the other side of the barrier with in particular a strong experience in the management of professional and amateur sports clubs. I have been very involved in the development of infrastructure for sports fans, notably having been vice-president of the Singapore Professional Football League and the creation of the GOAL FC (N2) football club which with more than 1800 licensed had become the biggest French club. This international experience and direct contact with French clubs allowed me to understand their challenges and to see how digital solutions could simplify their daily management.
We officially created Sportyneo in February 2021, after carrying out market research on 14 different sports, we saw a crucial need in the management of memberships, payments and cash flow for sports clubs.
The objective was to offer a completely free platform for clubs, with access to tools allowing them to simplify their daily lives and help them generate new sources of income.
SBB: Who is behind Sportyneo? How many are you on the team?
JG : Behind Sportyneo, there is a passionate and committed team. Cyril, my co-founder and CEO, and I joined forces to launch this adventure. Today, we are a team of around 15 people spread across several areas, including marketing, business development, tech, and partnerships. Everyone brings their skills to develop the platform and ensure the best possible experience for our users.
SBB: What was the trigger that pushed you to create your own business in the sports field? What was the observation, the motivation?
JG : The trigger came from my personal experience within a sports club. I saw how clubs, and especially volunteers, were faced with administrative challenges that took up their time and energy. Managing contributions, installment payments, unpaid debts, reimbursements, equipment, and even events like sports camps, could quickly become a headache.
I wanted to simplify these processes and offer an all-in-one solution that would allow clubs to focus on their core business: sport, and not on administration. In addition, it seemed essential to us to offer a 100% free solution for clubs and levers so that they can increase their income without additional efforts, hence the introduction of services such as merchandising and discount platforms. for members on whom the clubs receive a commission which can reach several thousand euros per season!
“The main current challenges are recruitment, structuring the company and rapid growth”
SBB: Can you present Sportyneo and its value proposition to us?
JG : Sportyneo is a platform dedicated to sports clubs and their members, with the mission of making administrative and financial management easier for them using simple and intuitive tools.
Our value proposition is clear: we offer clubs a completely free solution, with no hidden costs, which allows them to manage memberships, payments in installments, and benefit from services such as cancellation insurance and merchandising, all without no additional management.
In addition, members can access a discount platform for their everyday purchases, which allows them to make savings which allows them to partially or even completely reimburse their annual sports costs.
Sportyneo’s leitmotif for clubs and licensees is: Save time – Save money
SBB: How did you start the Sportyneo adventure from a financial point of view?
JG : We started the adventure with our own funds, then a first “Love Money” fundraising of €500,000 in 2022, before a fundraising in January 2024, for an amount of 1.6 million euros. This financing was provided by Groupama Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, several business angels, as well as the Obiz group. This allowed us to develop our platform, recruit a solid team and launch the first communication campaigns.
SBB: Are you looking for new funds, partners, future collaborators?
JG : Yes, we are constantly looking for new partners to continue to expand our network, and we are planning a new fundraising of 4 to 5 million euros in the next 18 months. This will allow us to develop internationally, particularly in Spain, Italy, and England.
Our team is complete at the moment but we will soon be looking for new talents in commercial and technical development to support our rapid growth.
SBB: What is the targeted turnover within 3-5 years?
JG : We do not communicate on our figures
SBB: What problem(s) do you want to address with your business?
JG : Sportyneo tackles the problem of the cost of sporting activities in associations.
You probably know this period of September, when you have to register your children for football, tennis, judo, while budgets are tight after the summer holidays and all the back-to-school expenses.
Sportyneo is the first solution that allows families to choose to pay in 1x 4x or even spread their payments over 10 months, confidentially and without penalizing their Associations. On the contrary, since Sportyneo advances the full funds to the association regardless of the payment choice of its members. No more multiple checks and reminders, Sportyneo is the win-win solution for Associations and their members.
The associations simplify their management and even see their budgets increase thanks to the commissions that Sportyneo pays them on discount and merchandising services.
Families, for their part, relieve their budgets and gain purchasing power. We launched an Economy Coach to help them reimburse the cost of their sporting activities. This is what we call the Free Sports Bet.
“What sets us apart is our completely free model for clubs and our ability to generate new sources of income for them, without hidden costs”
SBB: What sets your company apart from other players in the market?
JG : What sets us apart is our completely free model for clubs and our ability to generate new revenue streams for them, with no hidden fees. We offer a complete offer that includes split payment, insurance for members, and an automated merchandising service. Our competitors often offer paid solutions for clubs or disguised donation systems, which is not our case.
We are also innovating by offering members a platform for discounts on their everyday purchases, which is unique in the association sports market. This allows them to make savings throughout the year on their daily purchases in order to regain purchasing power. We are also the only ones to offer insurance that covers the member and reimburses their contribution and/or vacation course in the event of illness, injury, pregnancy, moving, etc., all without impacting the club’s cash flow, which retains 100% of the amounts. already paid by the member.
Thanks to our discount platform, members can reduce their sports costs by saving on their everyday purchases in more than 200 popular brands such as Leclerc, Auchan, Carrefour, Nike, Ikéa, Décathlon, etc.
SBB: What are the main challenges you are currently facing in developing your business?
JG : Entrepreneurship is all about challenges and that’s what makes this adventure so captivating, but I would say that the main current challenges are recruitment, structuring the business and rapid growth.
We have already signed partnerships with several federations, leagues, departmental committees and amateur clubs in all sports, but the objective is to expand internationally, with countries such as Spain, Italy, Portugal, Germany and England in their sights.
Another challenge is to continue to innovate in our offering and integrate technologies such as artificial intelligence to optimize the user experience. We also aim to attract new investors for our next fundraising.
SBB: What is Sportyneo’s target market?
JG : Our target market is broad. We work primarily with amateur sports clubs, but our solution can be aimed at any sports or cultural association that needs to simplify membership management and find ways to generate additional revenue. We also plan to extend our offer to sports professionals, e-sports clubs and cultural activities.
SBB: What marketing and communication actions will you put in place to make yourself known to the general public and B2B players?
JG : We have implemented a multi-channel strategy to reach both the general public and clubs. This includes social media campaigns, including LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook, where we communicate about the services we offer and the partnerships we establish. We also have collaborations with ambassadors from the sports sector.
For B2B, we are working on strategic partnerships with sports federations and institutions to expand our reach, and are open to opportunities with esports players who are experiencing exponential growth.
SBB: What is Sportyneo’s business model?
JG : Sportyneo generates income via commissions on several services:
- Transactions carried out on the platform, including payments in installments for memberships and internships.
- Insurance for members which covers their inability to practice their sport.
- Merchandising, where clubs receive a commission on sales of derivative products, without having to manage stock or logistics.
- The discount platform, where we take a commission on vouchers, and part of the savings made by members is returned to the clubs.
- Other services such as carpooling are on the way…
SBB: What is the best experience you have had since launching your business?
JG : One of the best experiences was being named a winner by the French Football Federation (FFF). This not only validated our vision and value proposition, but also strengthened our credibility in the world of amateur sport. This award marks a turning point for us, opening many doors and allowing us to form strategic partnerships with clubs and districts. Seeing our work recognized by such a prestigious institution is extremely gratifying and pushes us to continue to innovate to facilitate club management and improve the member experience.
Also read
1730187896
#Interview #Entrepreneurship #sport #Johan #Gouttefangeas #cofounder #Sportyneo
