Do-it-yourself projects have come a long way - especially when it comes to gardening. Today, tailoring a garden design to one’s preference is far more inspiring than a simple turn of the screw.

To innovate and structure appealing garden spaces, Philippe de Chanville and Christian Raisson created ManoMano - and the world of horticulture got a little greener and more creative!

ManoMano represents the ultimate DIY gardening and home project platform.

With an expansive catalogue of appliances, the company digitizes and simplifies its purchase, delivery, and usability process for all eager gardeners. Not just for hobbyists, ManoMano also tends to thousands of B2B businesses - ensuring everyone designs the outdoor space they envisioned!

Rookies to garden experts trust ManoMano’s handpicked product assortment, and rest assured of the company’s lasting product quality and stellar customer care!

Thinking outside the box is what Christian and Philippe do best. Here’s how two craft lovers reintroduced the power of DIY projects that make every garden stand out!

In Wine Lies the Truth and Creativity!

The area which inspired Christian to found ManoMano with Philippe is - wine!

Besides DIY, they both share a passion for this divine drink which is most of the time considered as the drink of gods. Having similar interests just made the working environment more pleasant for both. Although Christian had a very wealthy financial background to help him start his companies, he wasn’t lacking the knowledge either.

Christian started the journey of his education at EDHEC business school, where he studied finance and gained all the wisdom needed to begin his business career. Using his educational background, he was lurking for a suitable partner to start off his business and luckily found Philippe, who attended the same school. The mutual passion for DIY let them start a revolution in that field and made them the first to interpret it in the digital era.

Before becoming a co-founder at ManoMano, Philippe worked as an Investment Executive at Caledonia Investments and BDO LLP. After that, he continued working as an Investment Manager at Otium Capital. Philippe has earned a Master's in Management from the EDHEC Business School, a post-grad diploma in accounting and finance from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) and is a chartered accountant (ACCA).

Christian, who finished at the same business school as Philippe, submitted an envious 15-year experience portfolio in managing and founding companies. Some of the roles he held throughout his career include CFO for Smart&co Group and a Managing Director at Gault Millaut and Le Guide Malin.

Laying Out the Foundations

Both eager to become entrepreneurs, Philippe and Christian joined forces and got down to business. By working together, they knew they would not only grow stronger but also build a much more coherent business plan. So, in 2013, they created a startup that would pay homage to all wannabe garden and outdoor space creators and named it ManoMano. Wanting to bring something fresh to the market, the ambitious, creative young fellas took some time to find an adequate project. While they were doing strategies and combining their mutual interests, two things popped up straight away: DIY and quality wine! They were surprised to find out that none of the DIY businesses were available in a digital form anywhere in the world, including their lovely France. Having found this, a niche was born!

They started right at the beginning - they created their product, refined it, and offered their clientele the very first bite!

Ego Will Get You Nowhere

When doing recruitment, Philippe and Christan were both looking for someone whose values were ingenuity, kindness, and boldness. Many candidates that were effulgent technicians were turned down because of their massive egos.

At ManoMano, Christian is more known as the people person. When dealing with clients, employees, and others, he tends to focus on the individual's inner values. Academic background will not get you on Christian’s good side without the correct professional values to show for. Not that Philippe is not a people person, far from it.

It’s just that he is a pinch more reserved but still amicable.

These core values of theirs are what make them stand out from the competition in the business field!

Improvement over Perfection

Over the years, ManoMano has gained 11 investors. Aglae Ventures and General Atlantic marked their most recent ones, and their total funding was estimated at an astonishing $705.5 million!

ManoMano includes personnel that shares the same values and visions of the company. Instead of short-term perfection, the company managed to continuously create unique products and adjustments, thus further refining its offering. ManoMano claims the largest DIY catalog in the French market with highly attractive prices, thanks to its pure-player approach! The company acts as the main line between the customers and the seller, offering both sides a simple and quick experience.

One genius thing that they implemented at their startup company is the Crafternoons every Thursday afternoon! In other words, this is a day in the week where they gather and share their knowledge while learning from each other at the same time. This is a great form of team bonding that benefits both the individual person's growth and company productivity. Philippe and Christian were the definition of true leaders.

They don’t manage their employees but lead them, inspire them to innovate, encourage them to think creatively, and strive for perfection!

ManoMano and Financial Friends

In September 2017, a €60 million fundraising was announced led by General Atlantic, who was absent from the market for 10 years. This would help them reinforce the European presence by developing brand awareness in existing countries. In April 2019, another €110 million raise was announced. With this, they aimed to develop its offering for professionals and its seller experience as well as recruit high profile tech talents and continue their conquest through Europe, especially on the UK market. On July 5, 2021, $355 million was raised from a Series F Round. They had 8 investors, with the leading one being Dragoneer Investment Group.

ManoMano, Today

Since its official launch in 2013, ManoMano has become a leader in DIY, gardening, and home improvement online in Europe. This company has the largest offer for DIY and gardening products online. This top offer includes over 3,600 seller partners and desirable 10 million products!

ManoMano has its wings spread amongst 6 countries, including France, Italy, Belgium, United Kingdom, Spain, and Germany. They currently have over 650 employees, including many international talents from 24 nationalities, working in one of the four offices that are based in Paris (two of them), Bordeaux, and Barcelona. The central values that drive the company forward are care, boldness, and ingenuity.

An interesting fact to know about ManoMano is that they are using 69 technologies for their website. These include Viewport Meta, IPhone / Mobile Compatible, and SSL by Default. ManoMano, to this day, has won many awards and reached a bunch of milestones, including winning ‘Best Startup’ - IMC Awards in 2014.

ManoMano continues to grow each day more and more and still sits on the throne for being the European leader for Online DIY and Gardening products and services.

As founder and CEO Christian Raisson would suggest - applying one’s personal values to their business is the perfect starting point. And, to succeed in creating a fantastic work culture, Christian suggests relying on building a strong team, trusting your vision, and always, always choosing quality over quantity!