Ekestrian
Ekestrian is a France-based licensed online auction platform for exceptional sport horses (show jumping, dressage, eventing), serving European professional buyers and sellers with expert-vetted lots, veterinary certification, and escrow-secured payments via timed online auctions.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersEaubonne, France
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What Ekestrian does
Ekestrian, operated by IT'S MY CHAMPION SAS, is a France-based online auction platform for exceptional sport horses across the show jumping (CSO), dressage, and eventing disciplines. Founded in 2011 (trademark registered at INPI in 2013), the company is headquartered in Eaubonne, France, and operates under an Opérateur de Vente Volontaire license (approval number 101-2017) issued by the Conseil des ventes volontaires, providing commissaire-priseur (licensed auctioneer) oversight on every transaction. The web-based platform runs timed online auctions multiple times per year (February through August), featuring mixed lots of foals, embryos, broodmares, and young jumpers, with cumulative throughput of more than 130 auctions, 3,889 horses presented, and 35,764+ bids placed since 2016.
The platform's core technology stack combines a custom auction interface with Mangopay for escrow and bank pre-authorization, Cloudinary for media hosting, Hippomundo.com for certified pedigree data, and JotForm for seller intake. Each lot is vetted through expert selection by named European specialists (Xavier LEREDDE, Olivier JOUANNETEAU, Jessica MICHEL, François ROEMER, Jean-Luc FORCE), a veterinary visit under three weeks old, an Equitas cabinet counter-expertise, and a Denoix protocol of 14 X-rays read by a former French national team veterinarian (Dr. Thevenot). The platform also operates a Stallion Semen Marketplace and a Conciergerie service that places non-European buyers' purchases in 5-star partner stables.
Ekestrian generates revenue primarily through an 11% HT buyer's commission on hammer prices, supplemented by fees for breeding services (surrogate mare purchase, foaling, monthly boarding at €240-€360 HT), broker commissions (5% of adjudication), and insurance coordination. The company is privately held, founder-controlled under President Claire-Aline Quantin, with 1-10 employees, no disclosed institutional investors beyond a 2015 seed round of approximately $438,132 led by Investessor, and primary operating geographies in France, Belgium, and the Netherlands with global buyer reach via the Conciergerie.
Ekestrian firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Ekestrian
- Legal name
- IT'S MY CHAMPION SAS
- Website
- https://ekestrian.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Ekestrian is a France-based licensed online auction platform for exceptional sport horses (show jumping, dressage, eventing), serving European professional buyers and sellers with expert-vetted lots, veterinary certification, and escrow-secured payments via timed online auctions.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Ekestrian industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Online Equestrian Auctions
- NAICS
- Livestock Merchant Wholesalers (42452), Horses and Other Equine Production (11292)
- SIC
- Wholesale-Farm Product Raw Materials (5150), Agricultural Prod-Livestock & Animal Specialties (200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Equine Sales, Auctions & Bloodstock Agencies (AFAEAGAH)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Stallion Services & Semen Collection/Distribution (AFAEAGAB), Horse Boarding, Livery & Stable Operations (AFAEAGAG)
Keywords
Where Ekestrian is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Eaubonne
- HQ country
- France
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Ekestrian business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- Buyer's Commission (Frais de vente): Ekestrian charges buyers a commission of 11% HT (excluding VAT) on top of the auction hammer price (adjudication HT). This is added to the buyer's total payment obligation. The commission is calculated on the HT adjudication price and VAT is applied based on the buyer's country and status.
- Breeding/Surrogate Mare Services: Fees for breeding services including surrogate mare purchase (~1500€ HT), surrogate mare deposit (~1500€ HT), boarding for pregnant surrogate mare without foal (300€ HT/month), boarding for pregnant surrogate mare with foal (360€ HT/month), foal boarding after weaning (240€ HT/month for foals, 270€ HT/month for yearlings, 300€ HT/month for 2 and 3 year olds), and foaling (400€ HT).
- Insurance Services: Insurance services offered as part of post-sale support for buyers, including transport organization and insurance for purchased horses.
- Purchase Order and Broker Services: Buyers not available during the auction period can place purchase orders through the Ekestrian team. Commission for brokers is 5% of the adjudication price, deducted from Ekestrian's earnings.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Buyer's Commission on Adjudication Price |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Foaling Service |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Surrogate Mare Purchase |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Surrogate Mare Deposit |
| Subscription | Monthly | Boarding - Embryo in Surrogate Mare (not accompanied) |
| Subscription | Monthly | Boarding - Embryo in Surrogate Mare (accompanied/with foal) |
| Subscription | Monthly | Boarding - Foal (after weaning) |
| Subscription | Monthly | Boarding - Yearling |
| Subscription | Monthly | Boarding - 2 and 3 year olds |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Broker Commission |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels6 records
Ekestrian product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Ekestrian operates an online auction platform for exceptional European sport horses (show jumping, dressage, eventing), enabling sellers to list horses and buyers to register and place bids in real time. The service is delivered under a licensed commissaire-priseur (auctioneer) with veterinary certification, secure Mangopay escrow payments, and a 5-star concierge offering for non-European buyers covering stabling, breaking, and post-sale support.
Product overview
Ekestrian operates as a unified online auction platform for exceptional horses, combining its core auction marketplace with integrated services. The platform offers regular Vente Mixte (Mixed Auctions) featuring foals, embryos, broodmares, and young jumpers, alongside a dedicated Stallion Semen Marketplace. Services are delivered through a combination of the core auction platform with ancillary offerings including the Conciergerie service for international buyers and comprehensive pre/post-sale support covering veterinary certification, secure payments via Mangopay, transport, insurance, and administrative follow-up.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Ekestrian Online Auction Platform Full-service online auction marketplace for exceptional European sport horses, featuring real-time bidding, Mangopay-secured escrow payments, veterinary certification, and licensed auctioneer oversight. Targets professional equestrian athletes, breeders, and international buyers of show jumping, dressage, and eventing horses.
- Vente Mixte (Mixed Auctions) Regular themed auction events that combine multiple horse categories (foals, embryos, broodmares, young jumpers) into single timed sales sessions, typically held multiple times per year. For sellers and buyers seeking varied sport horse investment opportunities in a single event.
- Stallion Semen Marketplace Separate online marketplace for purchasing stallion semen (semence étalons), offering breeding opportunities with high-performance horse genetics. For breeders and investors seeking elite European bloodlines outside the timed auction format.
- Ekestrian Conciergerie Service
- Broker and Purchase Order Services Phone-based purchase order service for buyers unavailable during live auctions and authorized broker network (courtiers) that participates on behalf of clients. Brokers must register officially with Ekestrian before sales close. Broker commission is 5% of the adjudication price, deducted from Ekestrian's commission.
- Breeding and Surrogate Mare Services Standalone equine breeding services including surrogate mare purchase (approximately €1,500 HT), surrogate mare deposit (approximately €1,500 HT), boarding for pregnant surrogate mares (€300-€360 HT/month), foal boarding after weaning (€240-€300 HT/month), and foaling services (€400 HT per event). For breeders and investors building equine breeding programs.
Quantifiable outcome
- Each lot presented with veterinary visit under 3 weeks old and Equitas counter-expertise for buyer assurance.
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Ekestrian
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Ekestrian technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration3 records
Feature5 records
Ekestrian partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.
- Station FminorStation F is a major French startup campus in Paris. Ekestrian's affiliation with Station F provides ecosystem credibility and potential referral access to the broader startup community. Their logo appears in the Partners section of the website.
- Hippomundo.comcoreHippomundo.com provides certified pedigree and performance data for horses listed on Ekestrian. Lot pages include 'Certified by hippomundo.com' badges with dates, providing verified bloodline and sport performance records for each horse.
- MangopaycoreMangopay is the payment infrastructure provider for Ekestrian, handling bank pre-authorization during account registration and managing the escrow account (compte séquestre) for buyer payments. Protects all bidders and eliminates malicious activity risk.
- Equitas (Veterinary Cabinet)coreEquitas provides counter-expertise veterinary services for each lot sold on Ekestrian. This partnership ensures independent veterinary verification beyond the standard veterinary visit, building buyer confidence in high-value transactions.
- 5-Star Partner Stables (Conciergerie)minorPartner stables across Europe that accommodate non-European buyers' purchased horses (foals, broodmares, 3-year-olds) through Ekestrian's concierge service until the desired age, providing breaking and valorization services.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Ekestrian competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- TheHorseDealer / Equine.com: Equine.com is a major English-language online horse marketplace aggregating listings from breeders and dealers. Comparable to Ekestrian as an online horse trading platform with pedigree and discipline filters, though primarily a listings model rather than timed auctions.
- FENCES (Fédération des Enchères Nationales de Chevaux d'Exception et de Sport): FENCES is a French auction house specializing in sport horses including show jumping and dressage, running physical and online sales. Closely mirrors Ekestrian's elite-sport-horse auction focus and licensed auctioneer model in the same French market.
- ProHorse International: ProHorse is an online horse marketplace focused on sport horses with search by discipline, pedigree, and level. Directly comparable to Ekestrian as a digital discovery and sales channel for sport horses across European markets.
- Arqana: Arqana is the leading French auction house for thoroughbred and sport horses, conducting both physical and online sales. Directly comparable to Ekestrian in operating licensed horse auctions across European bloodstock with a take-rate model.
- Horse24 (horse market GmbH): Horse24 is an international online horse marketplace offering listings across dressage, show jumping, and eventing. Comparable to Ekestrian in target buyer (elite sport horse purchasers) and digital marketplace model, though broader and more horizontal.
- ehorses GmbH: ehorses is one of Europe's largest online horse marketplaces, listing horses across disciplines with buyer/seller matching and premium placements. Comparable to Ekestrian as a digital-first European horse trading platform serving sport and breeding segments.
Regional players
- ChevalAnnonce: ChevalAnnonce is a long-standing French online classifieds platform for horses, with listings across disciplines and regions. Comparable to Ekestrian in French equestrian audience and online listing format, but operates a classified rather than auction model.
Others
- Arion Pedigrees / Horsetelex: Horsetelex is a European pedigree and performance database for sport horses and an Ekestrian media partner. Comparable as a data infrastructure layer enabling pedigree verification for online horse sales, though it is not itself an auction or marketplace.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Ekestrian social profiles
Digital presenceEkestrian financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Ekestrian leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Ekestrian funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors3 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Ekestrian M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Ekestrian
What does Ekestrian do?
Ekestrian operates an online auction platform for exceptional European sport horses (show jumping, dressage, eventing), enabling sellers to list horses and buyers to register and place bids in real time. The service is delivered under a licensed commissaire-priseur (auctioneer) with veterinary certification, secure Mangopay escrow payments, and a 5-star concierge offering for non-European buyers covering stabling, breaking, and post-sale support.
Is Ekestrian a public or private company?
Ekestrian is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Ekestrian founded?
Ekestrian was founded in 2013. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Ekestrian based?
Ekestrian is headquartered in Eaubonne, France, in the Europe region.
How does Ekestrian make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Buyer's Commission (Frais de vente) is the primary driver. The others are breeding/Surrogate Mare Services, insurance Services and purchase Order and Broker Services.
Who are Ekestrian's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are TheHorseDealer / Equine.com, FENCES (Fédération des Enchères Nationales de Chevaux d'Exception et de Sport), ProHorse International, Arqana, Horse24 (horse market GmbH) and ehorses GmbH. ChevalAnnonce is listed as a regional player. Arion Pedigrees / Horsetelex is listed as an others.
Does Ekestrian have an API?
No public API is recorded for Ekestrian.
What industry is Ekestrian in?
Ekestrian's product category is Online Equestrian Auctions. Its primary akta.pro industry code is AFAEAGAH, Equine Sales, Auctions & Bloodstock Agencies, with a secondary code of AFAEAGAB, Stallion Services & Semen Collection/Distribution. Its NAICS code is 42452 and its SIC code is 5150.