What Creadev does

Creadev is a private, evergreen investment company founded in 2002 by the Mulliez family, the French entrepreneurial dynasty behind retail brands including Décathlon, Leroy Merlin, Auchan, and Kiabi. The firm finances and supports growth-stage SMEs (revenue above €10M in Europe, $20M in the US) across three verticalized sectors — Health (8 portfolio companies, €600M deployed), Food (14 companies, €450M), and Climate (4 companies, €60M) — with initial ticket sizes of €10–30M and an objective of helping portfolio companies reach €100M in revenue within five years. It operates from offices in Paris, Lille, New York, and Nairobi, deploying up to €250M annually to fund 5–10 companies, and has invested approximately €2.6B to date across Europe, Africa, and the United States. As an evergreen investor without a fixed exit horizon, Creadev can hold positions long-term and offers portfolio companies the option of eventual integration into the broader Mulliez family ecosystem of 150+ companies across 62 countries.

The firm differentiates through its patient capital model, the Mulliez family network, and its values-aligned investment approach anchored in impact themes. Creadev sources deals through direct entrepreneur outreach, ecosystem referrals, and proactive scouting across its three geographies, then supports portfolio companies via governance structuring, board participation, and an operating-partner bench drawn from consulting (BCG, Bain), financial services (KPMG, Deloitte, EY, PwC, Crédit Agricole, Natixis, Bpifrance), and operators (Orange, Doctolib, IQVIA, Décathlon). Its leadership includes Benoit Legrand as President, Bertrand Boré as Directeur Général, Séverine Tapié-Mulliez on the Supervisory Board, and regional leads Pierre Fauvet (Africa, since 2017) and Joel Filippi (USA).

Creadev's revenue mechanics differ from traditional fund managers: as an evergreen family vehicle, it generates returns through capital appreciation, dividends, and exits via trade sales, IPOs, or secondary transactions rather than through management fees or carried interest. Its 2024 portfolio impact metrics — 26,400 tonnes of CO2 avoided, 7,192 tonnes of wild fish fishing avoided, 367,000 people treated, and 306 million meals served — illustrate the operational scale of the underlying portfolio and the firm's impact-investment positioning.

Name

Creadev

Legal name

CREADEV

Website

https://creadev.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

Creadev is a privately held, evergreen investment firm founded in 2002 by the Mulliez family, financing growth-stage SMEs in health, food, and climate across Europe, Africa, and the United States with up to €250M deployed annually.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Capital gains and investment returns: Creadev generates returns through equity investments in growth-stage companies. As an evergreen investor without a fixed exit horizon, it holds positions long-term and exits through trade sales, IPOs, or secondary transactions. The firm benefits from capital appreciation and dividend distributions from portfolio companies.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Creadev is an evergreen growth equity investment company that deploys up to €250M per year into 5–10 high-potential SMEs with positive impact in three verticals: Health, Food/Agri-food, and Climate transition. Initial tickets typically range €10–30M, targeting European companies with revenue above €10M or US companies above $20M, with a stated objective of helping them reach €100M revenue within five years. In addition to capital, Creadev provides governance structuring, strategic support, and access to the Mulliez family ecosystem of 150+ companies and 615,000 collaborators.

Product overview

Creadev is an evergreen investment company founded in 2002 by the Mulliez family (Decathlon, Leroy Merlin, Auchan). The company offers investment services across three core verticals: Food (14 companies, €450M invested), Santé/Health (8 companies, €600M invested), and Climat/Climate (4 companies, €60M invested). Creadev operates through regional offices in Europe (Paris, Lille), Africa (Nairobi), and the USA (New York), deploying up to €250 million annually to accelerate 5-10 positive-impact companies. Investment typically ranges €10-30M with a goal of helping companies reach €100M revenue within 5 years. The company leverages the Mulliez family ecosystem of over 150 enterprises and 615,000 collaborators to provide portfolio companies with networks, expertise, and long-term capital.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Creadev Evergreen Growth Equity Investment Services Evergreen growth equity investment service deploying up to €250M annually into 5–10 high-growth SMEs with proven business models across Europe, Africa, and the United States. Initial investments typically range €10–30M, targeting European companies with revenue above €10M or US companies above $20M, with a stated goal of helping portfolio companies reach €100M revenue within five years.
• Santé (Health) Investment Vertical

Quantifiable outcome

• Portfolio companies have avoided 26,400 tonnes of CO2 emissions in 2024
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Wendel: Long-standing French listed investment firm with evergreen family-controlled origins, now diversified across industrials, healthcare, and services. Comparable in patient capital approach, French family heritage, and long-dated holding structure.
• Eurazeo: Leading French private equity firm with a strong growth equity and venture arm, investing across healthcare, food/consumer, and climate. Eurazeo is the closest pure comparable to Creadev in terms of size, French heritage, and sector coverage.
• Ardian: Paris-based global private investment house with significant growth equity, venture, and direct lending capabilities. Comparable to Creadev in evergreen patient capital philosophy, multi-sector mandate, and French roots.
• LBO France: Independent French private equity firm with growth and venture strategies including dedicated health and climate impact funds. Comparable in size, French origin, and focus on mid-cap growth equity in similar sectors to Creadev.
• Compagnie Nationale à Portefeuille (CNP): Belgian family-controlled evergreen investment company with a long-term capital approach analogous to Creadev's Mulliez family model. Operates as a long-only patient investor across diversified sectors.
• Tikehau Capital: Paris-based alternative asset manager with growth equity, private debt, and impact investing strategies. Similar in size, French origin, and focus on health, food, and climate transitions to Creadev.

Regional players

• Gimv: Belgian-listed European private equity and venture firm with strong focus on health, food/consumer, and sustainable cities. Comparable sector overlap and mid-cap growth equity approach, though primary focus is the Benelux/European market.

Broad incumbents

• Bpifrance: France's public investment bank providing growth equity, venture, and debt financing to French SMEs. Directly comparable in its €100M+ revenue scaling mission (Bpifrance Large Venture) and health/tech sector focus; competitor for many of Creadev's deals.

Emerging players

• Raise Impact: French impact-focused private equity and venture firm. Highly comparable to Creadev in its mission-driven approach and focus on food, health, and climate; some of Creadev's team alumni (e.g., Maud Lehman) previously worked at Raise Impact.
• Sofiprotéol / Groupe Avril: French agro-industrial group with a private equity arm historically active in food and agricultural value chains. Highly comparable in food sector focus; some Creadev senior team alumni (e.g., Bénédicte Monpert) worked at Sofiprotéol.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/creadev-investissements
• Xx.com/Creadev_Lab

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles22 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments50 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Creadev