Woodkirk Stone
Cork-based company Granite Digital has acquired Dublin-based web development firm Willows Consulting.
The digital transformation company said the acquisition, believed to be for a six-figure sum, will see it boost its revenue by 25% this year to 9 million euros.
Granite Digital was founded in December 2008 as an online marketing agency and has grown steadily over the past decade. It took advantage of the fragmentation of the Irish web services market to acquire a number of smaller companies to broaden its customer base and skill set.
Granite now counts Pepsi, CRH, Bank of Ireland, UCD, Enterprise Ireland, Shannon Airport, Pfizer and Dalata among its clients. They have successfully completed extensive work programs for organizations such as Audi AG, Bon Secours and Dublin Bus, advising them on their digital transformation strategy up to 2025.
Granite has also hired an additional 20 new staff over the past year, including web developers, UX designers, project managers and performance marketers, bringing its team to 80 with offices in Cork, Dublin. and Galway.
Granit increased its annual turnover last year by more than 20% to 7.3 million euros.
This most recent acquisition will add 120 Willows customers from across Ireland, the UK, US and Asia, including the National Gallery of Ireland, Bord Na Mona, CityJet, Fexco and FAI.
Conor Buckley, CEO of Granite Digital, said, “Our latest acquisition provides us with significantly enhanced e-commerce skills and capabilities as we strengthen our offerings in this area. Willows Consulting brings 20 years of e-commerce expertise and deep relationships with an impressive clientele from across Ireland, the UK and beyond.”
“Our digital-first mindset is driving our continued success. We expect 2022 to be stronger again as we seek to accelerate our business expansion through organic growth and new strategic acquisitions. »
Sean Owens, Founder of Willows Consulting, said, “We’re on a fantastic journey at Willows, delivering over 500 highly successful e-commerce projects for our clients over the past two decades.
“Joining forces with Granite gives us the scale and expertise to grow at pace and offer our clients an even broader range of e-commerce and digital transformation services.”