NEWSSwiss Visionary: Alexandre Bonvin's Rise to E-Commerce Dominance With Audacia Group
Oct. 13 2023, Published 5:38 a.m. ET
Founder and CEO of Swiss investment holding company Audacia, Alexandre Bonvin, has driven e-commerce in Switzerland to new heights. Audacia now manages 16 online platforms, offering products and services in more than 45 countries. However, reaching these peaks has been an arduous journey, single-handedly crafted by Bonvin in 2018. Despite the impressive growth over the years, Audacia is just getting started, effectively transforming the world of e-commerce.
With a finance and real estate background, Bonvin acquired a knack for business and entrepreneurship and is now entirely focused on private equity and e-commerce. As a graduate of the London School of Economics (MSC in real estate, economics, and finance), he decided his education would not stop there. Bonvin also attended MIT Sloan, where he recently completed his executive program in general management. In 2018, Bonvin founded Audacia before acquiring its first brand, KissKiss, a Swiss e-shop specializing in adult accessories. He has since scaled the company to where Audacia manages 16 online platforms, serving more than 2.3 million customers worldwide. Audacia’s annual sales have just about doubled every year since its inception. In 2022, the company reached nearly 70 million CHF and continues to grow.
Through his holding company, Bonvin is constantly on the lookout for promising Swiss or European e-commerce companies operating in niche sectors. All of the above accomplishments directly result from Bonvin’s education, global outlook, and strategic business acumen. Audacia has become a beacon of e-commerce prowess in Switzerland, and Bonvin has since been featured in various Swiss media such as Bilan (including its French-speaking entrepreneurs under 40 list), PME Magazine, and Le Temps, as well as Moneysmagazine, National (Romania), and UBS Switzerland. Like all journeys worth the trip, however, the road to success is always filled with various obstacles and hurdles.
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Bonvin and Audacia had to overcome several challenges adapting to the world of e-commerce and its customers, specifically their customers’ needs and expectations. This was largely propelled during major world events such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Adapting to the market's needs is significantly tricky as the e-commerce industry constantly evolves. Adapting Audacia to the consistently shifting needs of customers is challenging but also serves as continuous motivation for Bonvin, who remains focused on the company’s growth.
While remaining determined to continue growing Audacia worldwide, Bonvin is focused on making the company a Swiss reference in e-commerce. He is always looking for promising e-commerce companies to acquire and integrate into Audacia’s structure. The company is genuinely unique as it now has a robust buy-and-build strategy for buying and consolidating e-commerce companies. At this time, Audacia is looking to acquire more and more brands and grow them in the best possible way over the course of the next few years. Current projections show that by the end of 2023, Audacia will likely reach the symbolic threshold of 100 million CHF in annual sales, a remarkable testament to its founder’s unparalleled fortitude.
