Oakley buys Afterbuy, DreamRobot

Harriet Matthews
07 June 2021

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Oakley Capital has acquired majority stakes in Germany-based e-commerce software platforms Afterbuy and DreamRobot, combining them to create ECommerce One.

Oakley said in a statement that the deal was introduced to the GP by Valentin Schütt, who the GP worked in partnership with for its investment in gift card technology company Wishcard (formerly known as Seven Miles) in 2019.

Schütt is one of the owners of Afterbuy, while Peter Möller and Frank Oddey both own stakes in DreamRobot, according to a statement from DreamRobot.

Oakley is investing via its Origin Fund, which held a final close in January 2021 on €455m. The fund invests in lower-mid-market companies with enterprise values of up to €100m, deploying equity tickets of €10-50m and targeting the technology, consumer and education sectors.

Oakley's Origin Fund has previously invested in Germany, acquiring fitness and nutrition company 7NXT in an SBO from Crosslantic Capital in October 2020, as reported.

Oakley Capital Investments (OCI) is to make an indirect contribution to the deal via the Origin Fund, according to a statement. Around £173m in liquid resources (including the purchase price of the deal) will be available for future deployment.

Oakley said in a statement that it intends to use its operational and buy-and-build experience to assist with the growth of ECommerce One.

Recent DACH deals in the e-commerce software sector include Ufenau's acquisition of Mac IT-Solutions in November 2020, as well as Maxburg Capital Partners' acquisition of Metoda from its VC backers in April 2020.

Company
Afterbuy and DreamRobot both provide e-commerce software for small and medium-sized retailers to allow them to sell their products via online marketplaces including Amazon and eBay. The software allows businesses to automate processes sch as data collection and stock management.

Afterbuy is headquartered in Krefeld and has 30 staff. DreamRobot is based in Bielefeld and was founded in 2004, with around 10 employees, according to LinkedIn. Afterbuy is a product of ViA-Online and the two companies have a longstanding relationship, according to a statement from DreamRobot.

People
Oakley Capital – David Dubens (partner).
Afterbuy – Daliah Salzmann (CEO).

Advisers
Equity – Liberum Capital (corporate finance); Oliver Wyman (commercial due diligence); EY (tax, financial due diligence); Ego Humrich Wyen (legal); Crosslake (technology due diligence).