Wix buys Israeli startup Rise.ai to offer stores customer-loyalty tools
Tel Aviv based-startup, set up in 2015, is a developer of software that allows merchants to re-engage with customers using gift cards, rewards and referrals
Shoshanna Solomon was The Times of Israel's Startups and Business reporter
Wix, an Israeli firm that has developed a do-it-yourself platform to create websites, said Wednesday it is acquiring Tel Aviv-based startup Rise.ai, a developer of gift-card and store-credit software that allows e-commerce firms to re-engage with their customers. No financial details were disclosed.
The acquisition will extend the Wix eCommerce platform, providing a full solution for merchants to re-engage with customers and get them to spend more, through gift cards, loyalty programs, rewards and referrals, Wix said in a statement.
The Wix eCommerce platform provides online stores, service providers, restaurants and event organizers with ways to create, manage and grow their business online and in person. Using the Wix offering, merchants can sell through multiple sales channels including web and mobile storefronts, social media, online marketplaces and physical retail locations, as well as manage and track inventory, orders and fulfillment, and do payment and brand marketing.
In 2020, Wix users processed over $5.4 billion in online transactions via their websites, an increase of 126% over 2019. In addition, Wix eCommerce merchants saw an increase of 140% year over year growth in sales transactions in 2020 compared to 2019, the company said in the statement.
“By providing merchants with more native tools, we can help them grow long-term customer value and revenues to build their businesses and keep optimizing and increasing profitability,” said Arik Perez, head of Wix eCommerce. “Rise.ai is considered to be the best solution of its kind in the market, and the integration will enable merchants to easily manage and maintain customer engagement tools, ultimately leading to increased loyalty and revenue.”
Rise.ai was set up in 2015 by CEO Yair Miron, and has raised to date $454,000 in seed money from angel investors, according to the database of Start-Up Nation Central.
“Customer retention has become the top priority for eCommerce brands worldwide, as acquisition costs continue to spike,” said Miron. “Since our founding, we have powered tens of thousands of leading brands with loyalty and re-engagement solutions to grow their businesses.”
Wix said that the Rise.ai solution will be available to all of its customers in all countries and currencies.
Last year, Rise.ai partnered with Google to help businesses offer digital gift cards and Facebook used the startup to offer users a digital gift card program.
Wix’s headquarters are in Tel Aviv with offices globally.
