What Kamael does

Kamael (legal entity SAS Kamael) is a privately held French vertical SaaS company founded in 2020 and headquartered at 8 place Jean Jaurès, Tours, France. It builds a four-product cloud-based ecosystem purpose-built for French independent bookstores: Gestock for inventory and point-of-sale, Kamael Agence Web for custom e-commerce sites, Fidélivres for targeted email marketing and loyalty, and leslibraires.fr for collective online sales. The platform is 100% cloud-delivered with no local server installation, automatic updates, continuous backup, and accessibility from any device, with the NF525-certified cash register operating offline-capable for mobile events and external sales.

The architecture is distinguished by its depth of integration into the French book trade's interprofessional infrastructure: Dilicom (FEL updates, EDI orders, Chorus invoices, dematerialized distributor invoices), Electre bibliographic databases, Pass Culture cultural voucher processing, Chorus Pro public-sector billing, Sofia lending-right declarations, PNB digital lending, VERSO / Observatoire de la librairie statistics, and supplementary enrichment sources such as Alkor, Dalbe, Clairefontaine, Exacompta, Celesa, Kantar, Edelweiss, and Datalib. This positions Kamael as a workflow backbone rather than a standalone POS.

The business model combines a quote-based recurring SaaS subscription for Gestock, commission-only monetization on leslibraires.fr with no subscription fee, project-based fees for custom website builds, and Qualiopi-certified training at 650 euros HT per trainer per day. Distribution is direct to SMB bookstores, supplemented by a commercial attachée (Cécilia Denis) and a Club Utilisateurs community program with monthly user group sessions and Matinées Kamael webinars. The customer base is 400+ independent bookstores across France, with no disclosed funding rounds, no VC or PE backing, and no revenue or ARR publicly reported.

Name

Kamael

Legal name

SAS Kamael

Website

https://kamael.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Kamael is a French vertical SaaS company that builds a cloud-based ecosystem — Gestock (inventory and POS), Kamael Agence Web (e-commerce sites), Fidélivres (email marketing), and leslibraires.fr (collective online portal) — serving 400+ independent bookstores across France with deep integration into the French book trade infrastructure.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Bookstore Management Software

NAICS

Software Publishers (5132), Book Retailers and News Dealers (45921)

SIC

Retail-Catalog & Mail-Order Houses (5961)

akta.pro primary industry

Generalist Marketplaces & Online Malls (BPAMAGAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Procurement Platforms, Catalogs & Contract Purchasing (Co-ops, GPOs, eProcurement) (EDAEAIAO), Digital Marketplaces for Downloadables (Creators/Assets) (CRAFAIAH)

Keywords

• Bookstore management software
• Cloud-based POS systems
• Independent bookstore platform
• E-commerce marketplace software
• Retail inventory management

Headquarters

HQ city

Tours

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Software Subscription (Gestock): SaaS subscription for Gestock inventory and POS management software. No server installation required; automatic updates and continuous data backup included. Pricing not publicly disclosed - quote-based.
2. leslibraires.fr Commission: No subscription fee for the portal. Commission is charged only on sales realized through the platform. This transaction-based model lowers barrier to entry for bookstores.
3. Training Services: Certified Qualiopi training programs. Pricing: 650€ HT per day per trainer, regardless of location (beneficiary premises, distance, or Kamael offices in Tours). Additional travel/accommodation expenses billed at cost for on-site training.
4. Website Creation Services: Custom e-commerce website design and development for bookstores. Pre-created design personalized to bookstore colors and feature choices. Connected to Gestock and leslibraires.fr.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Kamael develops and sells a 100% cloud-based software ecosystem for French independent bookstores, anchored by Gestock (inventory management and NF525-certified POS) and extended by an e-commerce website builder, the Fidélivres email marketing/loyalty tool, and the leslibraires.fr collective online sales portal. The offering bundles software, professional services (data migration, training, website creation), and a marketplace that aggregates stock from 400+ partner bookstores for geolocated customer discovery.

Product overview

Kamael offers an ecosystem of four interconnected software products for independent bookstores. The core product is Gestock, a 100% cloud-based inventory management and point-of-sale (POS) solution with NF525-certified tills. This core is extended by three complementary modules: (1) Kamael's own e-commerce website builder, which synchronizes in real time with Gestock for stock and orders; (2) Fidélivres, an email marketing and customer loyalty tool that targets newsletter campaigns based on purchase history and customer segmentation; and (3) leslibraires.fr, a collective online portal that aggregates stock from all partner bookstores, enabling geolocation-based search, in-store reservation, and home delivery with integrated payment and shipping. All four products are fully interoperable and share data automatically without manual re-entry.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Gestock: Stock management and point-of-sale software solution for independent bookstores, featuring NF525-certified cash register, automated workflows, and real-time synchronization.
• Kamael Agence Web
• Fidélivres
• Leslibraires.fr

Products and services

• Gestock Cloud-based inventory management and point-of-sale software for independent bookstores and cultural retailers. Covers multi-product catalog management, supplier ordering, stock control, customer management, NF525-certified cash register, professional/collective client orders, statistics, and real-time synchronization with e-commerce sites. Accessible from any device on Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, and Android with no server installation required.
• Kamael Agence Web (E-commerce websites) Custom e-commerce website design and development service for independent bookstores. Produces responsive, mobile-first online stores connected to Gestock with real-time stock and order synchronization, support for digital books (FEL), in-store reservations, home delivery, carrier label printing, and multi-store management. Pre-created design personalized to bookstore colors and feature choices.
• Fidélivres Email marketing and customer loyalty tool for bookstores. Enables targeted newsletter campaigns based on purchase history, geographic zones, and customer interests. Includes birthday campaigns, author/editor promotions, event notifications, and campaign performance analytics. GDPR-compliant with no manual re-entry required thanks to integration with Gestock.
• leslibraires.fr Collective online sales portal for independent bookstores. Aggregates real-time stock from 400+ partner bookstores via geolocation, enables online reservations with in-store pickup or home delivery, integrates payment and shipping tools, and provides each bookstore with a personalized page featuring editorial selections and events. No subscription fee; commission charged only on sales realized through the portal.
• Qualiopi-certified training services Certified training programs delivered to bookstore clients on use of Gestock, Fidélivres, and Kamael Agence Web. Priced at €650 HT per day per trainer, delivered remotely via video conference, on-site at customer locations, or at Kamael headquarters in Tours. Training is OPCO-eligible under the Qualiopi certification.

Quantifiable outcome

• 10% of revenue from online sales for active e-commerce users
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration15 records

AI capability1 record

Feature9 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• DilicomcoreTechnology or IntegrationPrimary integration partner for the French book trade. Provides FEL (Fichier Exhaustif du Livre) updates multiple times daily, EDI ordering, 24/24 urgent ordering service, supplier order responses, detailed shipping notices, Île-de-France transport, Chorus invoices, and dematerialized distributor invoices.
• ElectrecoreTechnology or IntegrationBook industry database integration for professional orders. Allows professional clients to import EAN13 lists or Electre baskets to simplify order preparation.
• Pass CulturecoreTechnology or IntegrationFrench government cultural spending application integration. Gestock cash register can process Pass Culture payments without requiring internet connection to the Pass Culture website.
• Chorus (French Government)coreTechnology or IntegrationFrench government e-invoicing system integration for public sector procurement. Enables automated billing for libraries and public institutions through the professional ordering module.
• SOFIA (Société Française des Intérêts des Auteurs)coreTechnology or IntegrationIntegration for Sofia declarations related to public lending rights. Required for libraries and public institutions purchasing books.
• PNB (Prêt Numérique en Bibliothèque)coreTechnology or IntegrationDigital book lending platform for public libraries integration. Supports e-book sales and lending rights management for institutions.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Momox: European recommerce and resale marketplace for books, CDs, DVDs, and games, with both B2C and B2B (Momox Education) channels. Comparable to leslibraires.fr as a book-and-media marketplace platform operating across European markets.
• Alibris: Online marketplace aggregating inventory from thousands of independent booksellers worldwide for new, used, and out-of-print books. Directly comparable to leslibraires.fr as an independent-bookstore marketplace model operating online.

Broad incumbents

• Square (Block): Integrated POS, payments, and commerce platform widely used by SMB retailers. Comparable to Gestock as a cloud POS serving small merchants, though Square spans every retail vertical rather than specializing in the French book trade.
• AbeBooks (Amazon-owned): Large global online marketplace for new and used books aggregating independent sellers. Conceptually comparable to leslibraires.fr as an online marketplace aggregating independent booksellers, though AbeBooks is global and serves individual sellers rather than physical bookstores.
• CDiscount: One of France's largest general-merchandise online marketplaces, with a meaningful books and media category that competes for the same French consumer spend as leslibraires.fr. CDiscount is a broad incumbent marketplace rather than a bookstore-specialized platform.
• Lightspeed Commerce: Public retail POS and commerce platform with a strong SMB customer base across restaurants and retail verticals, including bookstore merchants in some markets. Comparable to Kamael as an integrated POS-and-e-commerce SaaS for SMB retailers, though Lightspeed is far broader in scope and not specialized in the French book trade.
• Rakuten France (formerly PriceMinister): Major French online marketplace spanning categories including books and media, with a significant SMB seller base. Overlaps with leslibraires.fr as a marketplace on which independent retailers can list inventory, though Rakuten is a generalist marketplace rather than book-specialized.
• Shopify: Dominant global e-commerce and POS platform used by SMBs including bookstore merchants. Compares to Kamael as a multi-product SaaS serving retailers with online storefronts, payments, and POS, but Shopify operates at vastly greater scale and across all verticals.

Others

• Dilicom: French interprofessional book-trade cooperative providing FEL, EDI ordering, invoicing, and transport infrastructure to bookstores, distributors, and publishers. Kamael deep-integrates with Dilicom services, and Dilicom largely defines the network that Kamael's customers operate on.
• Cultura: Major French specialty retailer of books, stationery, games, and creative products with a large store network and proprietary e-commerce platform. Adjacent ecosystem participant whose scale and category overlap highlights both the opportunity and the competitive backdrop for Kamael's independent-bookstore customers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/leslibraires.fr
• Instagraminstagram.com/leslibraires.fr
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kamael

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Kamael