45 employees, 2,000 clients and profitable growth anchor Fleet’s expansion across Europe and the US
Fleet, a French scale-up specialising in IT fleet management, equipment, and security for SMEs, announces the entry of ISAI Expansion into its capital through its ISAI Expansion III fund at a €100 million valuation.
After seven years of existence and having been entirely bootstrapped to date, Fleet is opening its capital to external investors for the first time.
This primary LBO transaction provides liquidity to the two founders, Sevan Marian and Alexandre Berriche, as well as to employees, while preserving a majority-independent shareholding structure.
I spoke to co-founder and CEO Sevan Marian to learn all about it.
From a leasing startup to a global IT operations platform for SMEs
Founded in April 2019, Fleet initially developed around a leasing offering that enabled SMEs to spread their IT investments over time.
The company has gradually expanded its positioning to support SMEs with 5 to 500 employees, often with a strong international footprint, built around three core pillars: IT procurement, with deliveries to over 120 countries in under 48 hours, day-to-day IT fleet management, and cybersecurity.
The more complex the hiring process is — remote teams, multiple geographies, cross-border employees—the more valuable Fleet becomes.
“Growth creates operational complexity, and we remove that friction,” explained Marian.
An international playbook
Fleet delivers in roughly 20 countries spanning India, Asia, and Africa, and operates across Europe and the US — a structure Marian says strengthens its cross-border positioning.
“We see more US companies operating in Europe and Indian companies choosing us because we specialise in cross-border setups. Internationalisation has been a major driver.”
Alongside its geographic expansion, the company has become more sales-led.
“We invested in building the team and improving execution on that side,” he adds.
Marian argues the company occupies a unique position in the market.
“Fortunately, Fleet doesn’t have direct competitors offering an international solution that combines leasing, financing, purchasing, warranty, insurance, and cybersecurity in one platform. I don’t think there’s another player delivering that full stack across so many geographies.”
In 2025, the company recorded growth of over 90 per cent, while maintaining a profitable model and a deliberately lean organisation.
Marian attributes the company’s growth to disciplined execution and a deliberate push into international markets. “It was mainly execution.”
“We expanded into multiple geographies and built a playbook for international expansion that works. Now we can replicate it market by market, and that’s given us a growing footprint.
We believe we’ve reached strong product-market fit. Every time we open a new market, customers respond very well.
We don’t face much direct competition, and our retention is strong — customers stay with us and keep adding equipment and licences.”
Bootstrapping is a strategy, not an ideology
Marian says the decision to bootstrap versus raise venture capital ultimately comes down to business fundamentals and founder priorities.
“Bootstrapping isn’t for everyone, just like venture capital isn’t for everyone”, he contends.
“It depends on your business model. You have to ask whether your company can generate the cash flow required to sustain growth.”
He argues that venture capital is best suited to companies designed for extreme scale.
“VC makes sense when you’re building something that could reach billion-euro scale — typically a highly scalable tech platform with recurring revenue and strong margins.”
Bootstrapping, by contrast, follows a different timeline and philosophy.
“It’s about strong cash flow, good margins, and long-term value creation. You may not build a billion-euro company in ten years — maybe in forty. It’s a different path, but it’s a great one.”
Marian stresses that the choice is not ideological.
“I’m also a venture investor myself, so I don’t see VC as bad. The key is deciding what you’re optimising for. If you bootstrap, your model must support operations and growth through working capital and healthy margins. You also need clarity on product-market fit early.”
Today, Fleet employs 45 people across Paris and Barcelona, serves nearly 2,000 clients — including Swedish unicorn Lovable, restaurant group Nouvelle Garde and Les Merveilleux de Fred — and operates actively in around ten European countries as well as in the United States.