Ice cream and sorbet manufacturer L’Angélys has agreed to divest stakes to the French investment bank Bpifrance and Paris-headquartered investor Unigrains.

Financial details and the size of the stakes acquired by the two investors have not been disclosed.

based in Fontcouverte, L’Angélys is a family-owned company established by Denis Lavaud in 1996.

With a workforce of 40 people, L’Angélys manufactures ice creams and sorbets without preservatives or additives.

Its products are currently available at more than 16,000 points of sale and the company has a turnover of €10m ($12m).

The proceeds will be used by the ice cream maker to open new franchised shops, the first of which is expected to open in the Royan region mid next year.

Lavaud said: “My daughters and I are very happy with this partnership, which has continued to grow over the years.

“These new projects have been made possible thanks to our collaboration with Unigrains and Bpifrance, which share our human and quality values ​​and the promotion of French knowhow. This future growth is a new rebound for the future of the company and a strong message for all our employees.”

Bpifrance investment director Jérôme Langlade said: “We are proud to support Denis Lavaud in this new important step for this very beautiful family business.

“We are also delighted to prepare for the generational transmission with the arrival of Angélique and Sarah in the capital. We will obviously put at the service of the company all the means put in place by Bpifrance to support and accelerate its development!”