French-based open-source software developer Akeneo has raised $2.4m in start-up funds from venture capitalist Alven Capital. The funds will be used for developing the firm's innovative solutions in product information management (PIM).

Akeneo's use of open-source technology offers affordable access to software tools, contrasting with the domination of international competition by more expensive proprietary solutions. Akeneo has already won backing from investors Kima Ventures and Nestadio Capital.

"Akeneo is an open-source PIM application that is disrupting the market on top of proven technologies, such as PHP, Symfony and Oro Platform," said Yoav Kutner, co-founder of Magento. "It is able to deliver an enterprise grade PIM application for a fraction of the cost compared to other players in this space." "Big industrial groups no longer have a monopoly on providing this type of software," said Jeremy Uzan, partner at Alven Capital. "That's why we have decided to support Akeneo in developing this new generation of PIM. Making this investment reflects our confidence in Akeneo's prospects for further growth and increased productivity." Added Uzan: "We have been impressed by the PIM system created by Akeneo, which allows clients to enjoy economic and technical advantages. The system offers access to a community of developers as well as inter-operability with other marketing tools. Effectively, this software has created an open source eco system." Setting up in Germany and US next year The funds raised will be used by Akeneo for further expansion. Frédéric Gombert, co-founder of Akeneo, said: "This financing from Alven Capital will allow us to speed up our international development, with the opening next year of offices in Germany and the US. We already conduct a sizeable amount of business in these countries, where data management is especially promising. We aim to increase the percentage of business done outside France from 30% to 50% by next year and eventually to 70%." Said Alven Capital's Uzan: "The Akeneo directorial team is made up of people experienced in managing data. We are delighted that Yoav Kutner, co-founder of the best-recognised e-commerce system in the world, is reinforcing the international aspect of the project."

Akeneo's PIM software packages have already attracted numerous retailers around the world, including Feu Vert, Cora and Sergent Major.

This latest fund raising will allow Akeneo to strengthen its France-based-based technical teams. The start-up aims to recruit five more software developers by the end of the year.

About Akeneo

Created in 2013, Akeneo relies on open-source software. Three of its founders have experience of working with Smile, one of the first European firms to rely on this type of solution. A fellow Akeneo co-founder is Yoav Kutner, who helped set up leading e-commerce firm Magento.

Akeneo is based in Nantes, western France, where the firm has fifteen full-time staff, in addition to twelve partners located around the world. The team is based in countries including Germany, Australia, the Netherlands and the US. There are around 2,000 developers in the Akeneo software community.