AB Tasty acquires AI-driven personalization provider Epoq
Fraser has acted as financial advisor to epoq internet services GmbH, the leading provider of AI-driven personalization solutions, on its acquisition by AB Tasty, the fast-growing global experience optimization company.
The acquisition amplifies AB Tasty’s best-in-class offering to power relevant and engaging customer experiences via recommendations and intelligent search, ushering in a new era of experience optimization.
New York – October 5, 2022. AB Tasty, the fast- growing global experience optimization company, announced today that it has acquired Epoq, an AI- driven recommendation and smart search solution. The acquisition accelerates both companies’ shared vision of empowering digital teams to deliver relevant and engaging shopping experiences along the consumer journey with a best-in-class experience optimization platform.
“The Epoq team is the perfect addition to AB Tasty’s business, bringing their expertise, insights and sophisticated products. We are truly excited for this new era as we work together to unlock more value for our customers, who will now have unparalleled recommendation and search capabilities at their fingertips,” said Alix de Sagazan, AB Tasty CEO and co-founder.
Since 2003, the Ettlingen, Germany-based Epoq has created customized e-commerce solutions for every part of the customer journey from product research, selection, buying intent to customer loyalty. The company’s decades-long expertise comes at an advantageous time in the context of digital acceleration and soaring demands for unique customer experiences. “Joining forces with AB Tasty means that we are more formidable players in the market through a shared vision of delivering personalized digital experiences,” said Thorsten Mühling, Epoq CEO and co-founder. “This is a great opportunity for Epoq to add more value along the consumer journey for e-commerce businesses, not just in Germany, but on a global scale.”
Epoq’s AI-powered recommendation engine enables brands to showcase the most relevant products or personalized content by analyzing shoppers’ click-and-buy behavior via a robust library of algorithms, such as “recently viewed,” “most popular” and “purchased together.” With intelligent search, digital teams can provide consumers with a targeted buying journey, ensuring they find a direct way to the intended product. In today’s tech stack, when recommendation and search engines are developed separately, they aren’t able to communicate with each other. Epoq’s sophisticated technology connects the two solutions in a knowledge center, where each action feeds the other in order to enhance the results.
Together, these solutions complement AB Tasty’s existing product suite of client-side and server-side experimentation and personalization solutions. AB Tasty’s platform enables marketing, product and tech teams to easily validate their ideas and optimize conversions on multiple digital channels. Pairing AB Tasty and Epoq creates a 1:1 personalized experience for users at every point of the buying process — and helps digital commerce teams deliver the elusive “wow” user experience. “The pandemic triggered an e-commerce boom, with over half of transactions now coming from search requests and a third of that from recommendations,” said Remi Aubert, AB Tasty CEO and co-founder. “People using e-commerce site search bars are expecting the same level of precision as they do from Google search. This has been a challenge for digital teams to stay competitive. By adding Epoq to AB Tasty’s platform, we are not only easing the lives of our clients but accelerating the delivery of tailored experiences — and driving profitability.”
This acquisition makes AB Tasty the first company in its class to offer a consolidated approach in experience optimization with experimentation, personalization, recommendation and intelligent search. The deal will also greatly strengthen AB Tasty’s existing customer base, headcount and product portfolio. With Epoq joining AB Tasty’s extensive global ecosystem, the Paris-headquartered company now boasts over 1,100 clients and 320 employees globally, with 13 offices in key markets such as France, Germany, UK, US and APAC.
The announcement comes after AB Tasty’s $40 million Series C fundraising. In the past two years, AB Tasty has seen 200% international growth and has added global brands such as Kering, McDonald’s and Ulta Beauty to its stellar roster of clients, joining L’Oreal, Disneyland Paris and LVMH. Meanwhile, server-side solution Flagship was named a leader in “The Forrester New WaveTM: Feature Management And Experimentation” report.
About AB Tasty
AB Tasty is a global leader in experimentation, personalization and feature management solutions — enabling companies to validate ideas while maximizing impact, minimizing risk and accelerating time to market. Enterprises use AB Tasty and Flagship solutions to align their marketing, product and engineering teams and ensure increased efficiency, reduced costs and optimal end-user experiences. Founded in 2013 in Paris, AB Tasty is built for businesses looking to use controlled experimentation to implement only the best ideas to better serve their customers. AB Tasty has offices in key markets from France, UK, US to Singapore for complete global coverage. To learn more, please visit www.abtasty.com.
About Epoq
Epoq internet services GmbH provides its customers with a unique software suite for the holistic personalization of digital commerce. With modular, customized services based on artificial intelligence, Epoq creates unique shopping experiences along the entire customer journey. Consumers receive orientation, advice and inspiration when shopping online. After the purchase, they are provided with relevant shopping news in real time in their personal shopping area, encouraging them to return to the online store. In addition, consumers are kept up to date with personalized emails and, thus, stay in touch with the online store.
About Fraser
We are a dedicated M&A advisory and investment firm, partnering with leaders in Europe’s technology sectors to unlock next levels of growth and success. Based in Berlin, London and Chicago, we advise entrepreneurs, senior management and boards on their most important strategic decisions and transactions. Alongside our clients and partners, we also invest into selected opportunities. For further information, please visit www.fraserfinance.com.