Image: © ontsunan/Stock.adobe.com
Irish e-commerce business eShopWorld is eyeing revenues beyond €1bn as it plans further expansion.
Following a new deal just announced, Dublin-headquartered eShopWorld will now be fully owned by international shipping provider Asendia.
Asendia, a joint venture between La Poste Group and Swiss Post, became a majority shareholder in e-commerce services company eShopWorld in 2017. It will now become the sole owner of eShopWorld, which employs more than 500 people in offices across Europe, Asia and the US.
Swords-headquartered eShopWorld will continue to operate as a standalone entity and the current management team will remain at the company.
“I want to thank and pay tribute to our incredibly talented and loyal staff, who have been a key differentiator in [eShopWorld’s] journey to becoming the world’s leading cross border e-commerce enabler inside a decade,” said eShopWorld founder and CEO Tommy Kelly.
‘The move dovetails with our overarching aim to make worldwide e-commerce simple and reliable’
– MARC PONTET
Though the terms of the deal have not been disclosed, The Irish Times cites industry sources that estimate the latest transaction values eShopWorld at more than €1bn.
Last October, the company announced annualised revenues totalling approximately €1bn. Its forecast for the coming years is for the acceleration of online shopping driven by the global pandemic to double this turnover.
Last year, eShopWorld announced 160 new jobs at the company due to increased e-commerce demand. It is expected that Asendia’s investment will further the company’s growth, increasing its global footprint through business expansion as well as fresh recruitment drives.
“Our exceptional workforce, committed shareholder and scalable and well-invested platform means [eShopWorld] is well poised for continuing growth and innovation, to better serve a growing demand for trusted online shopping,” Kelly added.
Brands and retailers in 200 markets partner with eShopWorld for services covering the online shopping journey end-to-end, including compliance, data security, fraud protection, taxes and tariffs, delivery, returns and customer service.
Asendia, which reported €1.8bn in revenues in 2020, is active in 15 countries across Europe, Asia and the US.
“The move dovetails with our overarching aim to make worldwide e-commerce simple and reliable, and is a significant step in making this vision a reality,” said Asendia CEO Marc Pontet.
