CTI Digital acquires ecommerce agency Nublue
Digital agency CTI Digital has acquired Lancaster-based ecommerce specialists, Nublue. The announcement comes after six months of negotiations and in-depth business analysis, to align both organisations’ strategic future. The acquisition aims to strengthen a joint ecommerce service offering, while retaining separate brand identities.
CTI Digital has acquired Nublue as part of a growth strategy, supported by Cowgills and Brabners LLP. Working with Nublue, CTI plans to increase its service capacity for pan-European clients within the ecommerce space. Going forward, working alongside CTI Digital will allow Nublue to keep pace with emerging ecommerce markets by diversifying existing services and taking on new technologies such as Shopware, Shopify and AWS.
Nublue will retain its Lancaster presence, only merging the existing Manchester office with the CTI Digital Manchester head office. Following the acquisition, the organisation will reach 150 staff members within 2019. The organisations will maintain their current structure, with all senior management retaining their current positions.
The combined company has forecasted turnover to reach £8m in 2019.
Nick Rhind, chief executive at CTI Digital, says: “When we began negotiations with Nublue, we identified a striking strategic and cultural alignment. The team of experts Mike and Tom have built at Nublue are a credit to their knowledge and understanding of the ecommerce landscape. Collectively, we have a host of exciting projects ahead and this announcement is just the start. I’m extremely happy to welcome the Nublue team to the CTI family.”
Nublue, has been working in eCommerce since 2005, specialising in Magento since its launch in 2008. After steadily growing their hosting and support offering, the certified agency have embraced the acquisition to keep pace with emerging markets and expand their existing services to cover a range of ecommerce offerings.
Michael Ashworth, managing director at Nublue, adds: “From our first meeting with Nick, it was very clear that our businesses had real synergy. We recognised the great opportunities that would be made possible by working together. Our shared ambition, along with the depth of knowledge and capabilities within our businesses, makes our future possibilities really very exciting. We're all looking forward to seeing what we can achieve collectively."
Founded in 2003, CTI Digital now services a client roster which includes the British Council, Greater London Authority, McGraw Hill Education and Merlin Entertainments.