In a fascinating example of consolidation in the e-commerce space, Lightspeed, a leading provider of e-commerce technologies, has completed the acquisitions of Ecwid and NuOrder for $500 million and $425 million respectively. Through these two transactions, Lightspeed continues to signal its commitment to becoming an unrivalled merchant in this competitive and rapidly growing industry.
This expansion strategy underscores Lightspeed’s confidence in capturing even more of the e-commerce market with greater innovation. In addition to integrating Ecwid’s and NuOrder e-commerce solutions into their platform, Lightspeed is developing new capabilities encompassing retail operations: marketing programs to product launches; CRM integration to partnerships with online merchants.
The acquisitions also add significant donor support for Lightspeed’s existing cloud-based platform, which will capitalise on the added resources behind development and services delivery that support merchant stores worldwide. The combined platforms are expected to help Lightspeed generate over $1 billion in annual revenue by 2023—a considerable increase from its current CDN$714 million valuation.
Lightspeed buys Ecwid for $500M; NuOrder for $425M in ongoing e-commerce consolidation play
Lightspeed is a Canadian point-of-sale and e-commerce company that recently announced the acquisition of Ecwid for a reported $500 million. Ecwid is a cloud service provider specialising in e-commerce solutions for small and medium-sized businesses. This acquisition is part of Lightspeed’s ongoing consolidation play and follows its purchase of NuOrder for $425 million earlier this year.
Let’s look at the background of Lightspeed and Ecwid in detail.
Lightspeed
Lightspeed is a Canadian retail, restaurant and ecommerce software company, established in 2005 by Dax Dasilva to modernise commerce. The company has since become one of the world’s leading point-of-sale (POS) and ecommerce platforms, having helped retailers in over 100 countries worldwide manage their businesses easily and efficiently.
In 2018, Lightspeed continued its worldwide expansion by acquiring Clear (POS) for €350 million and launching Lightspeed HQ – an integrated cloud-based retail management suite. In December 2019, Lightspeed announced it had acquired NuOrder, a B2B ordering platform, for $425 million.
On February 1st 2021, Lightspeed announced their agreement to acquire Ecwid – a global shopping cart software provider – for $500 million. This acquisition further solidifies Lightspeed’s leadership in powering Unified Commerce experiences worldwide.
Ecwid
Ecwid is an e-commerce solution used by over 1M merchants in 175 countries. Founded in 2009, its cloud-based software allows entrepreneurs to create a website or add an online store widget to their existing website. It also provides multiple payment processing options, customizable product catalogues and inventory management features.
Under the direction of current CEO Jim O’Hara, Ecwid has been profitable since 2014 and works with companies of all sizes and industries including retail, wholesale, services and more. In addition, in 2020 it grew its community by 40% with more than 250 partners worldwide actively participating in the Ecwid Partner Program.
Lightspeed recently acquired Ecwid for $500m as part of its ongoing e-commerce consolidation play fueled by a record funding round of $623M led by Fidelity Management & Research Company. The acquisition will help Lightspeed expand into new markets, taking the number one spot in terms of Small Business Ecommerce solution globally, according to G2 Crowd Statistics.
Merger Details
Lightspeed, a leading provider of cloud-based commerce solutions for small businesses, has agreed to purchase Ecwid for $500 million to expand its e-commerce offerings. This move comes on the heels of Lightspeed’s acquisition of NuOrder for $425 million, announced only days before.
In this article, we will discuss the details of the merger, including the financials and what it means for the future of e-commerce.
Value of the Deal
The value of Lightspeed’s acquisitions is significant. For example, Lightspeed has agreed to pay $500 million in cash and stock to acquire Ecwid, an online e-commerce platform in San Diego. The purchase is part of a $525 million package that includes the acquisition of NuOrder for $425 million.
The deal’s value reflects the demand for integrated e-commerce solutions, which has grown significantly during the pandemic. Lightspeed plans to use features from both platforms to deliver a more powerful suite of product offerings and services for merchants and brands alike. Customers on both Ecwid and NuOrder will benefit from increased access to Lightspeed’s enterprise capabilities and smaller businesses will have access to cheaper, more efficient software solutions with greater scalability options.
Through its acquisitions, Lightspeed aims to maintain its leadership position as a global provider of cloud-based commerce technologies while continuing its mission of empowering retailers with tools that help them succeed online. With their combination, Lightspeed will support merchants’ evolving needs with comprehensive omnichannel solutions that provide better reporting capabilities, customization options and advanced analytics.
Reasons for the Merger
The merger of Lightspeed and Ecwid marks the latest in a series of e-commerce consolidation by the tech giant. The move will allow Lightspeed to further its goal of providing a full suite of cloud-based commerce solutions.
The purchase price for Ecwid was $500 million, while NuOrder was acquired for $425 million. Both acquisitions will bring Lightspeed closer to achieving their vision of assembling an industry-leading integrated platform that serves retail businesses across all stages of their growth and success.
Through this merger, Lightspeed gains access to Ecwid’s expertise in online and multichannel selling – combining their POS capabilities with Ecwid’s digital storefronts – and NuOrder’s mission-critical B2B ordering platform. As a result, the acquisition will create a comprehensive technology platform for merchants worldwide, making it one of the most attractive e-commerce solutions available today.
In addition, through this merger, Lightspeed will benefit from an expanded customer base and talent pool and an expanded product offering, including best-in-class digital marketing tools that enable merchants to better engage with customers and optimise conversion rates over time.
Impact of the Merger
Lightspeed’s acquisition of Ecwid and NuOrder for $500M and $425M respectively is the latest move in the ongoing consolidation of e-commerce platforms. The merger is likely to significantly impact the industry, as Lightspeed looks to become a major player in the online retail industry.
This article explores exactly how Lightspeed’s acquisition of Ecwid and NuOrder will affect e-commerce.
Impact on Lightspeed
The acquisition of Ecwid and NuOrder indicates that Lightspeed is taking its move into e-commerce seriously. The merger of the two companies is intended to create an integrated platform for merchants and buyers across all channels, from physical stores to digital channels. The consolidated product can now offer a complete suite of tools for managing inventory, orders, payments, analytics and customer relationships — all with the same integrated user experience.
Regarding operational impact, Lightspeed can leverage its expertise in creating a seamless shopping experience across multiple channels. Businesses can now use Lightspeed’s platform to manage entire customer lifecycles from within one central dashboard. This simplifies tasks such as inventory tracking, payment processing and order management in one place—enabling customers to spend more time running their business instead of manually handling manual tasks like these. Finally, merchants will gain access to enhanced analytics capabilities so they can gain deeper insights into their customers’ behaviours and preferences—making it easier to decide which products are selling well and where focus should be placed going forward.
Impact on Ecwid
The acquisition of Ecwid by Lightspeed has far-reaching implications for the e-commerce industry. It’s the latest in a string of acquisitions that have seen Lightspeed acquire NuOrder for 425 million dollars and other software providers, in a bid to consolidate its e-commerce platform.
For Ecwid, the merger is highly beneficial as it has created an extensive suite of tools to serve the entire online retail ecosystem. In addition, the financial backing of Lightspeed means Ecwid can now move faster and invest further in product innovation and market expansion, with more efficient customer service and increased global reach.
Further, Lightspeed’s existing customers are now provided additional value via access to a comprehensive user database and analytics capabilities.
In addition, this consolidation play enables Lightspeed to create an integrated shopping experience across multiple channels from one centralised system—bringing together brick-and-mortar retailers who were previously managing multiple systems between different solutions providers that lacked seamless integration, making it much easier to manage their operations from the same platform.
Overall, this merger is expected to significantly impact both companies for years to come as they continue on their journey towards providing retailers with an effective e-commerce solution that meets their needs—no matter what size business they may be running or where they may find themselves geographically.
Impact on the e-commerce Industry
Over the past few years, the most recent e-commerce consolidation has seen Lightspeed acquire Ecwid and NuOrder for a combined $925 million. The acquisitions represent a big bet on the future of e-commerce, as Lightspeed will gain access to new customers, products and technologies from both companies.
The acquisitions could majorly affect the existing players in the e-commerce industry, along with startup companies looking to establish themselves in this space. In addition, Lightspeed will be able to leverage the customer base and technology of Ecwid and NuOrder, giving them a significant competitive advantage in terms of development resources, branding recognition and accessibility.
It can also be assumed that Lightspeed’s larger customer base could increase consumer demand for their services, making it more difficult for smaller startups to compete against them regarding pricing and features. Finally, with numerous services having sprung up during the start-up boom of the past decade, it may become increasingly difficult for smaller operations to keep up with industry giants such as Lightspeed.
Moreover, this type of consolidation plays into consumer preferences towards established brands and ubiquity — seeing everything together rather than spread out across multiple platforms — could prove advantageous for Lightspeed’s bottom line. It’s hard to say exactly how other competitors will react as more mergers occur within the industry. Still, there will likely be changes brewing among existing players and entrepreneurs looking to make names for themselves in this sector.
