The Walloon start-up has created the first connected art frame in the world based on electronic paper technology, more commonly known as ‘e-paper’. It has just accomplished a series A round of more than one million euros to boost its international presence and enhance its catalogue of works to be displayed in its digital frames. The aim? To revolutionise the digital artsector!
IONNYK can boast of being the first cordless connected art medium in the world, composed of millions of ink capsules and solely dedicated to digital art and NFTs.
The start-up currently offers nearly 1,000 black and white digital photographs/artworks to its customers. They can obtain them either through a subscription via a digital distribution platform that can be compared to an ‘art Spotify’ or by purchasing limited edition works/‘NFTs’, which are very trendy digital assets in the art sector that provides, among other things, proof of the work’s authenticity and traceability of its owner. The start-up also wants to enable its customers and the artists that are part of its collection to purchase, sell and resell these NFTs which are exclusive to the platform.
The IONNYK experience aims, in particular, not to limit its offering to the IONNYK frame alone, but to include everything that comes with it: artists' openings at home, temporary exhibitions, live events, etc. Beyond Smart Art (artworks that change over time) already present in the IONNYK catalogue, the Story concept will also be launched at the beginning of this year, 2022. This will enable its customers to subscribe, for example, to ‘Humankind’s first steps on the moon’, or ‘The great moments of human history’, etc. and thus discover new, iconic photos (and their context)every day and every week, to bring together art, culture and instantaneity, an experience that only a connected art frame can offer! The possibilities are endless...
For this new round of financing, the start-up has been able to count on its historic investors from the Walloon fund W.IN.G and members of the BeAngels network. The company has also been able to rely on the support of two new stakeholders: Noshaq and Invest.BW. A smart pool of heavyweight private investors that are respectively active in the worlds of art, culture and events have also joined the venture. “This pool will be a real asset to help us grow,” confides IONNYKfounder, Mathieu Demeuse.
The fresh cash injection will be useful for several aspects. “To achieve our goals, we must first strengthen our international presence. Then, we’ll redouble our efforts to develop and extend our artist collective, which will enable us to considerably expand our catalogue of works. Finally, it’s important to optimise our production chain and develop new customer experiences to support our growth,” adds the CEO.
Nicolas Dhaene, General Manager of W.IN.G, further adds: “We are especially enthusiastic about the ambitious roadmap proposed by Mathieu. Its innovative, concrete and relevant application of Blockchain and IoT technologies has the potential to profoundly and permanently change the Art sector.”
As the first Walloon start-up active in this sector to raise such an amount, the stated goal is to exceed one million euros in turnover in 2022, to expand the team with staff that have specific profiles (digital marketing, production line manager, etc.), extend Brand Awareness across Europe (and reproduce the success encountered from its presence at the art fairs AAF Brussels, AAF Amsterdam and Expo Dubai in 2021), prepare for its extension to the American market, but above all to confirm its position on the growing and flourishing Digital Art Frame and Digital Art/NFTmarket, as a pioneering brand that is unique, exclusive and globally recognised.