The start-up continues to grow... The company Auum, based in Châtillon, has reason to see the glass more than half full: the Seb group has just invested in this SME which produces a machine that washes and disinfects glasses with dry steam.
"Our mission is to support start-ups with innovative projects. What Auum is doing quickly spoke to us," says Lorraine Schmitt, director of SEB Alliance, the investment arm of the household appliance group. Auum is an acronym for "Stop Single Use Now".
The company founded in 2019 starts from a simple calculation: even if employees use glasses or mugs more and more frequently, there are still 5 billion cups thrown away each year in France, where with an average of three drinks per day, a company of 100 employees consumes nearly 66,300 drinks. And so, potentially as many disposable cups. From there, the idea of the four founders was born: a device the size of a coffee machine. The user places their glass on a small platform. It is immediately detected and encapsulated before being cleaned and disinfected with water vapour at 140°C. The last step is drying.
A revolutionary technique that could not be more in tune with the times. "Our vocation is to support them, to open our doors to them," continues Lorraine Schmitt. Seb is very present in the world of professional coffee. We therefore offer additional services. In fact, at Seb's headquarters, we already have several of their machines. The romance between the two entities was therefore obvious.
€3.2 million in revenue in 2023
Seb's acquisition of a stake comes at a pivotal moment in Auum's history. "We have just celebrated our thousandth machine," says Clément Houiller, one of the company's four co-founders. We met with Seb's executives a few months ago. It all makes sense."
Today, the amount invested by Seb remains secret. The only certainty, according to the group, is that "it is a very minority stake as we do in other companies". The objective is not to take control of the Châtillon-based SME. "They have the industrial expertise in household appliances. We bring them the innovation and ecology dimension. In addition, we are working on an identical technique, steam. So there are obvious bridges between us. »
The future together could result in technology transfers, reductions in the price of Auum's machines, collaboration on certain products, etc. This transaction should allow Auum to continue its growth. "We went from a turnover of €100,000 in 2021 to €1.6 million the following year and then to €3.2 million in 2023. By 2024, our goal is to double it! »