Carrefour partners with European VC firm daphni to launch new fund for digital retail start-ups
Multinational retail company Carrefour Group is teaming up with Parisian venture capital firm daphni to develop a new fund dedicated to backing early-stage companies working in the digital retail sector.
The Dastore collaborative fund will initially invest €80M through minority stakes with up-and-coming start-ups both in France and across the globe.
The partnership between Carrefour and daphni is the next step in the supermarket’s 2026 Digital Retail Strategy, which aims to turn the retail giant into a primarily digital retail space.
The new fund will prioritise investment in start-ups that focus on the four key drivers of Carrefour’s 2026 strategy: the acceleration of e-commerce, the development of data and retail media operations, the digital transformation of financial services, and the digitisation of conventional retail activities.
Technology has already brought enormous change to the grocery retail sector since the start of the pandemic, with QR codes, automation, mobile apps and blockchain all being implemented to transform the consumer retail experience.
Marc Simoncini, Partner at daphni said: “Dastore is perfectly in line with one of daphni’s strategic aims, which involves creating bridges between startups and corporates (in this case specifically, with Carrefour) in the area of digital retail”.
The new Dastore operation will feature a team of experts from both daphni and Carrefour, who will not only offer start-ups financial support, but also company acceleration, assistance with operations, access to up-to-date data insights, and greater networking opportunities with future clients, and global markets.
Elodie Perthuisot, Carrefour Group’s Executive Director of E-Commerce, Data and Digital Transformation commented: “Launching this venture capital vehicle is a huge milestone in our innovation strategy and illustrates our willingness to further develop the links we have with the startup ecosystem.
“Investing in startups is an opportunity for Carrefour to speed up its own digital transformation, while at the same time helping early stage companies to grow faster. We have therefore opted for an unprecedented investment fund model in the retail space and are delighted to start this adventure alongside seasoned and well-known investors such as daphni”.
The grocery giant intends to triple its Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) in e-commerce to €10 billion by 2026.
