Helping the creator economy keep on keepin’ on, Berlin’s Passionfroot raises €3 million

Berlin-based Passionfroot has raised €3 million in a pre-seed funding round. The startup joins the burgeoning field of back-office tool suppliers to the creator economy. Passionfroot intends to use the capital to further develop its product, up the headcount through strategic hires, and maintain community momentum gathered through early traction.

Creatin’ ain’t an easy hustle, for long gone are the days of a single stream of income, a factor particularly apparent in the creator economy. That is to say that many that choose to carve a living out of their passion are doing so through multiple income streams, newsletters, podcasts, vlogs, etc. Spreadsheets, personal lines of credit, and DMs have become the de facto modus operandi for many. To say 'risky at best' would be putting it mildly.

This is the pain point that Passionfroot is aiming to solve by providing creators with a unified no-code platform that offers a storefront, CRM solution, collaboration features, and cash flow management options. In addition to “just” running a business, clearly Passionfroot founders Jennifer Phan, Jens Joseph Mannanal, and Michelle Tian have been through the trenches themselves, as a key factor in Passionfroot’s raison d'être is, “your financial and mental wellbeing.”

When asked about Passionfroot’s USP, particularly when compared to elopage, for example, Phan explained, “We're addressing a different target group (i.e. younger millennial & GenZ creators and small media brands) and focus on workflows around B2B monetization (e.g. Sponsorship, Ad placements etc.) where 77% of the revenue is being generated.”

Passionfroot’s €3 million pre-seed funding was provided by Creandum, with a number of founders, operators, and creators including Photographer and Social Media Manager Kristin Chen (Top.gg), Laura Lewandowski (Smart Chiefs), Courtney Chin (Coinbase), Katia Yakovleva (SpotiAngels), and Chris Murphy (Web Summit, SaaStock, and now VC Investor) all participating.

“I use 4 different tools to manage and automate all of my tasks as a creator. Why not have it all in one? Passionfroot tackles one of my daily challenges and that’s exactly why I invested,” commented The People Branding Company founder Céline Flores Willers.