Wix Acquires Rise.ai to Expand Wix eCommerce Offering

By McKenzie Carpenter | Wednesday, 05 May 2021 | Business, Startup, Ecommerce

Wix, a cloud-based website builder, announced it acquired Rise.ai, a gift card and store credit solutions startup company, for an undisclosed amount to enhance ecommerce capabilities.

About Each Business

Founded in 2006, Wix is a global business and website builder that allows anyone to use its cloud-based technology to create their own professional or personal websites for blogs, company landing pages, online portfolios, and more.

The website builder is used in more than 190 countries worldwide, with more than 1,000 web-building features. Since its launch, Wix has amassed more than 200 million users worldwide, a milestone it hit earlier this year. According to Google Finance, the website builder company is valued at $16.3 billion.

Rise.ai is an Israeli startup company that helps online brands manage their re-engagement activity by offering gift cards, store credit, loyalty cards, rewards, referral codes, and refunds to ecommerce customers.

The business is used by many big brands such as Gatorade, Kroger, Skims, Milk Bar, Gerber, AllBirds, and many others. In addition, the startup company has partnered with several digital platforms including, Visa, Facebook, Instagram, and Shopify, among others.

Rise.ai Acquisition

In a company statement, Wix announced that it acquired the startup as an attempt to expand the Wix eCommerce platform. Wix eCommerce allows all types of businesses and entrepreneurs to build, manage, and grow their own companies online and sell their products directly from their ecommerce websites.

The website builder business created a platform where customers can sell their products through multiple channels, including website storefronts, social media, ecommerce marketplaces, and brick-and-mortar locations. In addition, the website builder lets customers track and manage inventory, orders, and brand marketing.

According to the business, Wix users processed over $5.4 million in ecommerce transactions through the platform in 2020 — a 126% increase compared to 2019.

As a result of this acquisition, Wix eCommerce merchants will have access to the full suite of Rise.ai offerings to create their own personalized re-engagement solutions. The tools can potentially help the merchants increase customer retention and grow a long-term customer base.

Arik Perez, head of Wix eCommerce, said in a statement, “...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.”

The news of Wix acquiring Rise.ai comes after Wix announced in March it acquired SpeedETab, an online ordering technology provider, to enhance Wix Restaurants. Wix Restaurants is similar to Wix eCommerce but designed for restaurants to build their online presence.

Industry Competitors

Demand for website building services has increased in the last few years as companies and entrepreneurs turn to the internet to gain more business exposure. Weebly, WordPress, and Squarespace offer similar features to Wix.

On the flip side, Honey, a coupon browser extension, and Groupon, an ecommerce coupon website, act similarly to Rise.ai. However, Rise.ai is able to differentiate itself from these other websites as it offers a wider variety of incentives and rewards for customers to shop.

About the Author

McKenzie Carpenter

McKenzie Carpenter is a graduate of Central Michigan University with a B.A.A. in Integrative Public Relations and French. McKenzie has previously worked for small businesses and nonprofit organizations.