What Krafter does

Krafter SAS is a bootstrapped French SaaS product studio founded in 2021 near Lyon by two senior developers — Fabien Maquin (Co-founder & CEO) and François Pluchino (Co-founder & CTO) — who personally design, build, deploy, and operate every product. The company operates as a hybrid studio: it both delivers custom development services to clients (cash, cash + equity, or pure dev-for-equity engagements covering SaaS, business applications, mobile apps, integrations, and AI integration) and runs five proprietary SaaS products in production — Melimelo (household management), Trottr (field service), Kascade (project management), Smashr (AI-boosted sales CRM), and Remastr (IT refurbishing OS) — collectively used by approximately 25,000 people daily. Pricing is publicly disclosed across tiers from €8,000 for a simple internal tool to €80,000 for a full multi-tenant SaaS platform, with on-demand application maintenance billed at €700–€1,100 per day.

The studio's technical platform is unified around a single open-source foundation called FastEdgy (MIT-licensed), which combines a Python/FastAPI backend on PostgreSQL with Vue.js for web and Flutter for mobile, and ships with built-in authentication, multi-tenant support, background tasks, internationalization, and migrations. This shared socle underpins both client deliverables and the studio's own products, enabling a stated 4–8 week MVP delivery cycle with weekly releases and full code/IP transfer to clients. GTM is founder-led direct sales via the website (contact form, budget simulator, pre-brief questionnaire) feeding into a 30-minute founder video call, supplemented by content marketing (blog, SEO-driven cost guides), LinkedIn, Instagram, and a GitHub presence for developer relations. Hosting infrastructure uses Google Firebase for the public site.

Commercially, Krafter is a two-person operation with €2,300 in share capital, registered in Villefranche-Tarare (RCS 902 139 047), fully bootstrapped with no external investment. The studio is not a subsidiary of any parent entity and holds no disclosed third-party equity, though dev-for-equity contracts allow it to take minority stakes in client companies. Revenue derives from one-time project fees, recurring subscriptions on the five own-products, optional time-credit maintenance retainers, and potential equity upside from dev-for-equity portfolio companies. Customer evidence is limited (one named testimonial), and the studio competes in the French and European market for SMB and startup custom software rather than enterprise digital transformation.

Name

Krafter

Legal name

Krafter SAS

Website

https://krafter.io

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Krafter is a bootstrapped French SaaS product studio that designs, builds, and operates custom software and five proprietary SaaS products for startups and SMEs, using a founder-led dev-for-equity or fixed-scope model on a shared Vue.js, Flutter, and Python/FastAPI stack.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Morancé

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

Revenue model

1. Custom development services: Traditional fixed-scope development contracts for SaaS, business applications, mobile apps, integrations, and AI integration. Revenue generated through project-based billing.
2. Proprietary SaaS products: Five self-operated SaaS products generating recurring revenue: Melimelo (family organization), Trottr (field service management), Kascade (project management), Smashr (AI-boosted sales CRM), and Remastr (IT refurbishing software).
3. Dev for equity: Development services compensated through equity stakes in client companies. Studio enters cap table at incorporation or during growth, sharing in product success.
4. Application maintenance: Corrective and evolutionary maintenance services for Python, Vue.js, Flutter, or Symfony applications. Billed on-demand or through prepaid time credits (blocks of 10 or 20 hours).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Krafter is a SaaS product studio that designs, develops, and operates software products both for itself and for clients. It runs five proprietary SaaS products (Melimelo, Trottr, Kascade, Smashr, Remastr) used by 25,000 daily users, and delivers custom SaaS, business applications, mobile apps, integrations, and AI features for client projects from MVP through production run. Engagement models include cash-only contracts, cash + equity, and pure equity (dev for equity), with fixed-scope pricing and weekly releases.

Product overview

Krafter is a SaaS product studio founded in 2021 near Lyon, France, offering custom software development services (SaaS, mobile, business applications, integrations, AI integration) from MVP through product-market fit, for both its own products and client projects. Its proprietary product portfolio includes five owned SaaS products: Melimelo (household ERP covering groceries, menus, and scheduling), Trottr (field service management), Kascade (lightweight project management), Smashr (AI-boosted sales CRM that prepares calls), and Remastr (IT refurbisher operating system from buyback to destruction certificate). All five products are born at the studio and operated by the studio, collectively serving 25,000 daily users. Additionally, Krafter maintains and open-sourced FastEdgy, an MIT-licensed full-stack SaaS development foundation (Python/FastAPI backend, Vue 3 web, Flutter mobile) used as the shared technical base for all studio projects.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• FastEdgy: Open source full-stack foundation (FastAPI, Vue, Flutter) used as the technical base for all Krafter projects and its own products. Released under MIT license.

Products and services

• Melimelo Household organization SaaS covering groceries, menus, and scheduling; helps families organize daily domestic life and is used daily by thousands of households.
• Trottr Field service management SaaS enabling scheduled on-site interventions without spreadsheets or whiteboards; handles planning and coordination of field operations.
• Kascade Lightweight project management SaaS positioned as a more practical alternative to heavyweight tools like Jira; focused on essential project tracking without enterprise complexity.
• Smashr AI-boosted sales CRM that prepares sales calls automatically for users; combines AI assistance with standard CRM functionality to support commercial teams.
• Remastr Operating system for IT refurbishers covering the full lifecycle from device buyback quote to destruction certificate; manages inventory, valuation, and certified disposal for reconditioned IT equipment.
• FastEdgy MIT-licensed open-source full-stack SaaS development foundation combining FastAPI, Edgy ORM, Vue 3, and Flutter; provides production-ready scaffolding including authentication, multi-tenant architecture, migrations, background tasks, emails, internationalization, and storage.
• Custom SaaS Development Services Fixed-scope custom SaaS development from discovery through MVP, weekly iterations, and production run for client companies; includes architecture, design, coding, deployment, and operations; full code and IP transfer to the client.
• Custom Business Application Development Fixed-scope development of bespoke business applications, Excel replacements, and legacy system modernizations for SMEs; includes multiple integrations, with IP and code transferred to the client.
• Mobile App Development Custom mobile application development for iOS and Android from a single Flutter codebase, including store publishing, delivered in 4 to 8 weeks.
• Integration & API Development Integration of client software with existing tools and APIs, ranging from simple connectors to complex multi-system integrations, delivered in 1 to 4 weeks.
• AI Integration Services Integration of AI features into client products, delivered as part of custom development engagements by the studio.
• Application Maintenance Services Corrective and evolutionary maintenance for Python, Vue.js, Flutter, or Symfony applications, billed on-demand at €700-€1,100 per day or via prepaid time-credit blocks of 10 or 20 hours usable over 6 to 12 months.
• Dev-for-Equity Engagements Studio engagement model where Krafter enters the client's cap table at incorporation or during growth, providing design, development, and operation as a technical co-founder in exchange for equity rather than (or alongside) cash fees.

Quantifiable outcome

• MVP development: 4-8 weeks from discovery to production deployment
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Google Ireland Limited (Firebase Hosting)infrastructureTechnology or IntegrationGoogle Firebase Hosting is used to host the Krafter website (krafter.io). This is a standard web hosting service for their public-facing website.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Fabernovel: French digital and technology studio that designs, builds, and operates digital products for clients. Comparable to Krafter in combining custom software delivery with proprietary product development in the French market.
• The Family: European startup support organization that helps founders build and operate tech companies. Comparable to Krafter in serving early-stage founders in the French/European market with technical and operational support.
• 50 Partners: French SaaS startup studio that co-founds and operates vertical SaaS products. Mirrors Krafter's studio-not-agency positioning and operational ownership of self-built products in the French ecosystem.
• ShakeUpFactory: French startup studio focused on building and operating SaaS products end-to-end. Closely comparable to Krafter in target customer (startup founders and SMEs) and operating model (build, launch, run).
• Hexa (formerly eFounders): Paris-based SaaS startup studio that builds and launches B2B software companies. Operates with a similar model of designing, developing, and operating SaaS products alongside client work, making it the closest direct comparator to Krafter.
• H-FARM: European innovation platform with a venture studio arm that incubates and operates digital businesses. Comparable to Krafter in operating proprietary digital products alongside partnerships with founders and corporates.
• ANEO: French IT consultancy that designs and delivers custom software and digital transformation projects. Comparable to Krafter as a French-based custom software development services provider targeting enterprise clients.

Broad incumbents

• Rocket Internet: Large, established internet company builder and incubator operating globally. Shares the startup studio DNA with Krafter but operates at vastly greater scale, capital base, and geographic reach.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses2 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• GitHubgithub.com/krafterio
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/krafterio
• Instagraminstagram.com/krafterverse

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 Krafter