New Atlas invests €1 million in PadelShot | Padel Magazine

Nouvel Atlas, a French fund, has invested €1 million in PadelShot, a company founded in 2017 by Jérôme Dolige. They have now become major shareholders in the company.

PadelShot develops a network of sports clubs, mainly dedicated to the practice of padel, all over France. They now have 3 clubs, Caen-Mondeville (2022), St. Etienne (2022) and Lyon (2023). In total, the company has 23 padel courts, 10 badminton courts, 3 pétanque courts, and other games for families and companies wanting to spend time in a sporting atmosphere. Each club has its own restaurant serving only local products. In addition, each club has a store where you can purchase the equipment you need.

In 2022, PadelShot generated around one million euros in revenue from its''clubs in Caen and St. Etienne. Three new PadelShot clubs are planned to open in France from 2024. By the end of 2028, the company plans to open twenty clubs, i.e. 200 padel courts across France, and reach revenues of €15 million.

In France, padel is in an exponential growth phase, with an 80% increase in the number of registered players in 2023 compared to 2022. The country has around 400,000 players and more than 1,700 padel courts. The French Tennis Federation (FFT) has set a target of reaching 2,000 padel courts in the country by 2024 and has recently signed an agreement with the National Sports Agency to support the creation of 500 padel courts in France, which will add to the 500 others the Federation will''invest.

"The entry of Nouvel Atlas into our capital will of course give PadelShot the opportunity to grow throughout France, but that's not the most important thing... At PadelShot, we are very attentive to the experience we offer our clients, and I think it is a real fortune for us to have all the expertise in this field that the Lemarchand family has developed at Nature & Découvertes.

Antoine Lemarchand, CEO of Nouvel Atlas, explains, "My family and I are very enthusiastic about Jérôme Doliger's project to become one of the three leaders of the French padel market. What convinced us? The high quality of the existing facilities,''The professionalism of the team, whose members are some French champions, and the potential for development, given that Spain has 4 million padel players and France has less than 400,000. We will bring our perspective on the customer experience and the environmental impact of each club. "

This is the 11th investment by Nouvel Atlas in two years. Nouvel Atlas continues the mission started by Nature & Découvertes. The Lemarchand family has decided to continue the mission of Nature & Découvertes (founded by them in 1990 and then sold in 2019 to Fnac Darty), accompanying the development of a new way of life based on being rather than owning. They support experienced and independent entrepreneurs striving for a new model of society, paying attention to social and environmental issues.

Nouvel Atlas, established in 2021 and''is a wholly-owned division of Mercator, the historic Family Office, specializes in direct investments in companies related to active and passive outdoor recreation, education and French craftsmanship seeking strong growth in both offline and online commerce.

Antoine Lemarchand has taken over as CEO of Nature & Découvertes in place of his father François for 12 years. At the end of 2019, the company joined the FNAC-DARTY group, which now holds 100% of the shares.

Mercator is the historic family office of the Lemarchand family. They invest in low energy real estate, as well as listed and unlisted funds aimed at positively impacting social and''the environmental field in Europe. They have 10 people in their team.