Must Group
Must Group is a French hospitality and entertainment company operating premium nightlife and dining venues in Cannes (Copal Beach) and Paris (Medellin Paris), formed as a joint venture between entrepreneur Julien Manival, casino operator Partouche Group, and tennis champion Stanislas Wawrinka.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2024
- HeadquartersParis, France
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Must Group does
Must Group is a French hospitality and entertainment company founded in 2024 that operates premium nightlife, dining, and beach-club venues. It was formed as a joint venture between Julien Manival (through his Milandre holding), the listed French casino and entertainment operator Partouche Group, and tennis champion Stanislas Wawrinka, who serves as a brand-facing partner. The group's stated portfolio currently includes Copal Beach on Cannes' La Croisette and Medellin Paris on Avenue Marceau in Paris's 8th arrondissement, with additional venues — including Ex Doobie's in Cannes and a planned 800 m² festive restaurant — in the pipeline.
The business model is direct-to-consumer and venue-based: revenue is generated from F&B covers, beverage programs, private events, seasonal beach-club operations, and nightlife entry/spend at premium price points in supply-constrained locations. There is no disclosed SaaS, subscription, or licensing revenue stream; the model is fundamentally experiential hospitality anchored by real estate and brand. The group leverages Partouche's operational and regulatory infrastructure for the French market and Wawrinka's profile for marketing reach, while Manival provides the operator track record established via his prior portfolio (Groupe Bonne Compagnie, 7 establishments in Occitanie, approximately €15M turnover). The group is small (51-100 employees per public profile data) and still in early rollout.
At present, Must Group has no disclosed technology platform, proprietary software, or AI/ML capabilities; the core offering is the physical venue experience. Strategic intent — based on venue pipeline, geographic expansion from the Riviera to Paris, and senior leadership hiring — is to build a multi-venue French premium hospitality platform rather than remain a single-property operator.
Must Group firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Must Group
- Legal name
- Must Group
- Website
- https://group-must.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2024
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Must Group is a French hospitality and entertainment company operating premium nightlife and dining venues in Cannes (Copal Beach) and Paris (Medellin Paris), formed as a joint venture between entrepreneur Julien Manival, casino operator Partouche Group, and tennis champion Stanislas Wawrinka.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Must Group industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Premium Hospitality and Entertainment Venues
- NAICS
- Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) (7224), Food Services and Drinking Places (722)
- SIC
- Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810), Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Hotel & Resort Restaurants (THAFACAH)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Adult Nightlife Venues (Strip Clubs) (THAFAEAK)
Keywords
Where Must Group is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Paris
- HQ country
- France
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices2 records
Markets served
Must Group business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Food & Beverage Operations: Revenue from restaurant dining, beach club services, and nightclub operations. The company operates physical venues including Copal Beach in Cannes and Medellin Paris club, generating revenue through food, beverage, and entertainment sales.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels3 records
Must Group product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Must Group is a hospitality and entertainment company that creates and operates experiential venues combining gastronomy and nightlife. Its current portfolio includes Copal Beach, a private beach and restaurant on La Croisette in Cannes operating 330 days a year, and Medellin Paris, a nightclub at 6 Avenue Marceau in Paris 8th arrondissement open seven days a week. The group is also developing additional venues in Paris, including a restaurant in the 8th arrondissement.
Product overview
Must Group operates as a hospitality and entertainment company offering experiential dining and nightlife establishments. The company's portfolio includes Copal Beach, a private beach on La Croisette in Cannes, and Medellin Paris, an exclusive nightclub at 6 Avenue Marceau. A new venue called Ex Doobie's is planned for Paris 8e. Previously, founder Julien Manival operated 7 establishments in the Occitanie region through Groupe Bonne Compagnie, generating 15 million euros in turnover.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Copal Beach: Private beach and restaurant located on La Croisette in Cannes, previously known as '3.14' beach.
- Medellin Paris
Products and services
- Copal Beach Private beach and restaurant located on La Croisette in Cannes, open 330 days per year, offering premium daytime beach leisure, dining, and event experiences to affluent consumers and corporate guests.
- Medellin Paris Exclusive nightclub at 6 Avenue Marceau, 75008 Paris, open seven days a week, blending Parisian elegance with South American nightlife, DJs, and Latin music for premium nightlife consumers.
- Ex Doobie's Upcoming club venue opening in the Paris 8th arrondissement as part of Must Group's Paris expansion.
Companies that use Must Group
Customer profileSegments1 record
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Must Group technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Must Group partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators4 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Must Group competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Bagatelle Group: Bagatelle operates upscale beach-club restaurants and nightlife venues globally, including Bagatelle Cannes on La Croisette. It is a direct competitor on both Must Group's Cannes beach-club asset (Copal Beach) and the upscale dining-plus-DJ experiential format.
- Beefbar: Beefbar operates premium steakhouse concepts in luxury hotel and resort locations globally (Monte Carlo, Mykonos, Saint-Tropez, Paris). Directly comparable for upscale gastronomy in prestigious French and Riviera addresses at similar price points.
- Big Mamma Group: Big Mamma Group is a fast-growing French hospitality group operating trendy upscale-casual restaurants in Paris and Europe (East Mamma, Mamma Primi, Gloria, Pink Mamma). Comparable on multi-site French F&B scaling, premium positioning, and Paris market dynamics.
- La Petite Maison: La Petite Maison (LPM) operates upscale Mediterranean restaurants in luxury locations (London, Dubai, Miami, Nice, Cannes). Directly comparable for premium French Riviera dining and high-net-worth tourist clientele.
- Raspoutine Paris: Raspoutine is one of Paris's most iconic upscale nightclubs/restaurants in the 8th arrondissement, blending Russian-inspired décor with DJ-driven nightlife. Directly comparable to Medellin Paris on the Avenue Marceau / 8th arrondissement nightlife address.
- Paris Society: Paris Society is Laurent de Gourcuff's flagship hospitality group operating premium restaurants and nightclubs in Paris (Girafe, Raspoutine, Le Piaf, Bonnie) and beyond. It is the most direct peer to Must Group: identical experiential premium F&B + nightlife model, same Parisian 8th-arrondissement customer set, and the same beach-club presence on the Riviera.
- Experimental Group: Experimental Group runs a portfolio of cocktail bars and restaurants across Paris, London, New York and Ibiza (Experimental Cocktail Club, Compagnie des Vins Surnaturels, Hôtel des Grands Boulevards). Highly comparable for premium Parisian F&B with nightlife adjacency.
Broad incumbents
- Partouche Group: Partouche Group is a major publicly-listed French casino, hotel, and entertainment operator and the JV strategic partner in Must Group. It is a broad incumbent in the same F&B and entertainment space but at much larger scale and with a casino-led portfolio rather than restaurant-led.
- Accor (Ennismore / lifestyle brands): Accor, through Ennismore and its lifestyle brands (Maison Delano, 25hours, Mama Shelter, etc.), operates premium lifestyle hospitality globally including restaurants and bars in flagship Paris and Riviera hotels. A broad incumbent with overlapping premium lifestyle F&B and experiential positioning.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Must Group social profiles
Digital presenceMust Group financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Must Group leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
Must Group subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries3 records
Must Group funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Must Group 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 Must Group
What does Must Group do?
Must Group is a hospitality and entertainment company that creates and operates experiential venues combining gastronomy and nightlife. Its current portfolio includes Copal Beach, a private beach and restaurant on La Croisette in Cannes operating 330 days a year, and Medellin Paris, a nightclub at 6 Avenue Marceau in Paris 8th arrondissement open seven days a week. The group is also developing additional venues in Paris, including a restaurant in the 8th arrondissement.
Is Must Group a public or private company?
Must Group is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Must Group founded?
Must Group was founded in 2024. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Must Group based?
Must Group is headquartered in Paris, France, in the Europe region.
How does Must Group make money?
One revenue line is on record: food & Beverage Operations.
Who are Must Group's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Bagatelle Group, Beefbar, Big Mamma Group, La Petite Maison, Raspoutine Paris, Paris Society and Experimental Group. Broad incumbents are Partouche Group and Accor (Ennismore / lifestyle brands).
Does Must Group have an API?
No public API is recorded for Must Group.
What industry is Must Group in?
Must Group's product category is Premium Hospitality and Entertainment Venues. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAFACAH, Hotel & Resort Restaurants, with a secondary code of THAFAEAK, Adult Nightlife Venues (Strip Clubs). Its NAICS code is 7224 and its SIC code is 5810.