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Synergy of Czech-Slovak Leaders in Search Optimization

Luigi’s Box Acquires Prague-based Persoo, Strengthening Its Position in the European Market

Synergy of Czech-Slovak Leaders in Search Optimization
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Luigi’s Box acquires Prague-based Persoo, strengthening its position in the European market

Prague, January 8th, 2024

The rapidly growing Slovak company Luigi’s Box concluded the previous year with a significant success – the acquisition of the Czech competitor Persoo. This multi-million euro acquisition solidifies its position as a leader in search optimization in the Czech and Slovak markets. Luigi’s Box, which enhances e-shops with personalized search and product recommendations using artificial intelligence, has been profitable for four years and ranked in Deloitte’s Fast 50 in Central Europe for two consecutive years. The company has earned a spot among the leading global e-commerce search platforms. The acquisition of Persoo, which will become an integral part of Luigi’s Box, marks a new phase of growth.

“This opportunity came at just the right time in the evolution of Luigi’s Box. We’ve been working on the acquisition with Persoo for several months. We share similar company cultures, product visions, and perspectives on the e-commerce scene and its future development. We’re excited that the Persoo team will become part of ours, gaining more experts in the field, strengthening our position in Europe, and working together on new goals. As for our clients, the transition will be seamless and effortless. We’re confident that both Persoo’s and Luigi’s Box’s clients will benefit from an even higher quality product,” says Gejza Nagy, co-founder and CEO of Luigi’s Box.

Gejza Nagy
Co-founder and CEO of Luigi's Box

Both companies develop personalized search and product recommendation solutions for e-shops, fully leveraging the capabilities of artificial intelligence and machine learning. The success and growth of both companies have been repeatedly recognized in Deloitte’s Fast 50.

Last year, for the second consecutive year, Luigi’s Box ranked among the fastest-growing tech companies in Central Europe, while Persoo was featured in the 2023 Technology Fast 50 in the Czech Republic. Luigi’s Box has experienced significant year-over-year growth over the years, now serving over 3,500 e-shops.

Together with Persoo, they will provide services to clients like Alza, Muziker, Košík.cz, pharmacy networks Benu and Dr. Max, and companies like Makro or Mountfield. Integrating Persoo into Luigi’s Box aims to bring new innovations and optimizations to the e-commerce market.

19.12.23. Praha, Gejza Nagy, CEO Luigis' box a Pavel Pinkas, CEO Persoo, EXEC

“We have been observing and inspiring each other with Luigi’s Box for several years. The idea of joining forces had come up multiple times over the years, and by the end of last year, we successfully completed the merger. A major advantage is that our customers will benefit from the product synergies. I am pleased that Persoo will become part of Luigi’s Box, making us an even stronger player in Europe. I look forward to combining our strengths, expertise, experiences, and ideas,” says Pavel Pinkas, co-founder and CEO of Persoo.

Pavel Pinkas
Co-founder and CEO of Persoo

Optimizing search with AI and machine learning is crucial for e-shops. On average, sales through this function represent a quarter of their total turnover, and in some segments, even more than half.

With proper setup, according to Luigi’s Box’s experience, only 1 to 5 percent of search results end up being unsuccessful. In contrast, for most websites that do not address optimization, this figure averages 10 to 20 percent, and in some cases, even up to 40 percent. Persoo’s solution has increased the search conversion rate for companies by an average of 10 to 15 percent, previously supported by investments from Presto Ventures and Lighthouse Ventures.

"We supported Persoo in 2019. Since then, the company has undergone many changes and developments, propelling it forward both in terms of product and through its successful initiation of international expansion. We are glad to have been a part of this growth and believe that together with Luigi’s Box, they will continue to thrive in Europe," comments Roman Nováček, partner at Presto Ventures, on the acquisition.

Roman Nováček
partner at Presto Ventures

"Persoo had an interesting technology, but it was not until Pavel Pinkas, whom we introduced as the new director, came on board that its full potential was realized. We congratulate Pavel and his team on their union with Luigi’s Box and wish them much success in their future joint growth," remarks Michal Zálešák, founder of Lighthouse Ventures.

Michal Zálešák
Founder of Lighthouse Ventures

"In 2017, Neulogy Ventures was one of the first investors in Luigi’s Box, where the ambitious plans and their relentless implementation under Gejza Nagy's leadership made a strong impression on us. This first acquisition by Luigi’s Box has significantly accelerated its growth, which had been purely organic until now. We are ready to continue supporting the company in its further expansion," comments Christian Mandl, founding partner at Neulogy Ventures.

Christian Mandl
Founding partner at Neulogy Ventures

"We entered into Luigi’s Box in 2018. Since then, the company has managed to increase its revenue by 70 times and expand its portfolio of regular paying customers to hundreds of e-shops. We see the acquisition of Persoo as another step in strengthening our position in the Central European market and an opportunity to continue delivering innovative e-commerce solutions to both existing and new clients. In the coming years, we expect even faster growth, especially in Western European markets," says Matěj Boruta, partner at Leverage.

Matěj Boruta
Partner at Leverage

More about Luigi’s Box

Luigi’s Box is a leading Slovak technology company that provides intelligent search and product recommendation services to e-shops. It also helps them understand how to use customer behavior data during shopping to increase sales. It stands out for its simple implementation into any e-shop, which takes only about five minutes.

Through machine learning and artificial intelligence, the technology can determine the best way to sort search results or which product the system should recommend to a customer.

In 2014, it was co-founded by Gejza Nagy (CEO), Tomáš Kramár (CTO), and Michal Barla (CPO). Luigi’s Box’s technology is used by over 3,500 e-shops, including Alza, Acer, Electro World, Benu, Answear, Škoda Auto, O2, and Košík.cz.

In 2022 and 2023, Luigi’s Box ranked first in the G2, the world’s largest software marketplace, in the e-commerce search category and achieved the highest Market Leader category. Deloitte included it in the prestigious Technology Fast 50 2022 and 2023 as one of the fastest-growing technology companies in Central Europe.

Luigi’s Box started 2024 with the acquisition of Persoo, which until then had been its competition in the Czech market. Thanks to this multi-million euro deal, Luigi’s Box expanded its team and strengthened its position in Central Europe.

More about Persoo

Persoo was founded in 2014 by mathematician and artificial intelligence expert Jakub Černý with the aim of bringing to e-retail customers a shopping experience comparable to traditional retail. Thanks to the combination of artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI and ML) algorithms, Persoo is able to very reliably predict who the customer is, what interests them, and display products they are likely to purchase.

Persoo sees the future of e-retail in personalized search implemented in e-retail companies.