Two competitors are coming together in an effort to consolidate the retail technology marketplace.
Bentonville, Ark.-based Movista Inc. on Monday announced the acquisition of Sterling, Va.-based Natural Insight in a combination of like-minded retail tech providers. The deal, backed by New York private equity firm Level Equity, brings together two major U.S. providers of retail-specific execution technology.
Both firms focus on inventory and display management tech, which has grown in demand as brick-and-mortar stores find new ways to retain customers. The market for their solutions is large, too, with IHL estimating out-of-stock items resulted in $144 billion in lost revenue for U.S. retailers and brands in 2018.
Movista and Natural Insight, both founded about 10 years ago, claim they have facilitated the completion of more than 63 million work assignments by 100,000-plus workers worldwide. The companies said they will continue to support customers and maintain their respective platforms.
Natural Insight CEO Stefan Midford will become the combined firm's chief customer officer.
“In today’s rapidly evolving retail environment, customer experience is critical. Physical stores have to look great, and products have to be where expected,” Movista co-founder and CEO Stan Zylowski said in a statement. “Stefan and his team at Natural Insight share our passion for value delivery and customer-focused innovation."
As part of the transaction, Movista will also own a majority stake of Natural Insight’s Capango brand. Capango, a 2018 DC Inno 50 on Fire winner, is a retail job-matching platform that connects job seekers to opportunities without requiring their resumes. Movista says it will play a pivotal role as the company seeks to address the rise of the gig economy and the need for on-demand labor.
“As we look to our next phase of growth, joining forces with Movista will ensure our customers around the world have the tools they need to stay ahead of a constantly evolving retail landscape," Midford said in a statement. "I’m excited for what the future holds and tackling retail’s biggest challenges together.”
