Unicommerce, a software development company that enables e-commerce, on Tuesday announced acquiring Shipway, another such platform, in a two-step process.
In the first tranche, Unicommerce will acquire a 42.76 per cent stake in Shipway for a cash consideration of Rs 68.4 crore. It will acquire the balance stake within a year by way of a merger or stock swap through an issue of equity shares.
Unicommerce said the acquisition will expand its product suite to include solutions for courier aggregation, shipping automation and returns reduction. It will enable Unicommerce to offer a platform that uses artificial intelligence to allow brands and retailers to target buyers with “personalised, segmented and wide-reach marketing campaigns”. The two software as a service companies are based in Gurugram.
Unicommerce’s product suite provides technology solutions for e-commerce warehousing, order management, shipment tracking and order payments. Shipway's technology will allow Unicommerce to offer courier aggregation and automated shipping solutions to customers.
Kapil Makhija, managing director and chief executive officer of Unicommerce eSolutions, said: “Our collective product suite of software solutions from Unicommerce and Shipway will be transformative, offering an unparalleled, one-stop, seamless solution to simplify e-commerce for businesses in India, including and beyond our 6500 customers.”
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Shipway co-founders Gaurav Gupta and Vikas Garg said Unicommerce has built a “dynamic” technology ecosystem and a fast-growing business. “Together, our products will be able to comprehensively serve the growing technology needs of e-commerce businesses,” they said.
Expanding its capabilities, Unicommerce will offer solutions in the pre-purchase part of the e-commerce journey before a customer orders. Shipway’s “ConvertWay” solution will allow brands and retailers to deploy SMS and WhatsApp marketing tools.
As part of the acquisition, the Shipway team will continue to grow the Shipway and ConvertWay businesses.
The acquisition is expected to enable Unicommerce to provide its technology solutions to 3,000 global and Indian clients of Shipway.