Posts by Pleuni

Pleuni Jacobs is the editor-in-Chief at Ecommerce News Europe, where she has been working since 2019. She mostly writes news and background articles. She is also the person responsible for adding events to our event calendar. If you have questions about getting your event mentioned on our website, chances are that she will be the one answering them.

Do you want to read more of Pleuni’s work? Check out our other websites: Ecommerce News Nederland, Crowdfundmarkt, Investeerders, Investment Platforms Europe and Ondernemen en Internet.

Background

Before Ecommerce News, Pleuni studied Psychology and obtained a Master’s degree in Gender Studies. After that, she started out as a freelance writer but soon noticed that she wanted to work with colleagues. Then she found Ecommerce News, where she has been working ever since. Nowadays, she mostly writes news and background articles. She also manages advertisements and edits content from other editors.

– Pleuni Jacobs on LinkedIn

Shopify’s dropshipping-plugin Oberlo is shutting down

By Pleuni - May 18, 2022 - Subject(s): Software.

Leading ecommerce platform Shopify is shutting down its dropshipping extension, Oberlo. Sellers who want to use the app to fulfill their dropshipping business via AliExpress can no longer find it in the App Store. Shopify is transitioning to another dropshipping solution developed by DSers.

Inditex will charge returns in 30 countries

By Pleuni - May 16, 2022 - Subject(s): Cross-channel, Offline store.

Inditex, the major clothing retail group from Spain, is now charging a fixed fee for online returns. The owner of brands such as Zara, Pull & Bear and Bershka is implementing this change in 30 countries. It wants to motivate customers to return items in brick-and-mortar stores.

Octopia Fulfillment to enter the UK and Germany

By Pleuni - May 13, 2022 - Subject(s): Launch, Logistics.

Octopia Fulfillment, a logistics service provider from France, has announced that it will open new warehouses in the coming months. The company will launch warehouses in the UK and Germany, as an addition to its warehouses that are currently active in France and Spain. The expansion will further solidify the company's logistics network.

PayPal starts SME funding in France and Netherlands

By Pleuni - May 11, 2022 - Subject(s): Funding, Payments.

PayPal has launched its funding solution for SMEs, called PayPal Funding Pro, in two new European markets: France and the Netherlands. The solution gives SMEs quick and easy access to growth capital. Online sellers can find it in the PayPal Commerce Platform.

Fulfillment platform Byrd raises €53.1 million

By Pleuni - May 11, 2022 - Subject(s): Funding.

Austrian fulfillment company Byrd has raised 53.07 million euros in a Series C funding round. The company will use the capital injection to offer next-day delivery within Europe. It is currently active in seven European markets and will expand into three more.

Made.com acquires marketplace Trouva

By Pleuni - May 10, 2022 - Subject(s): Acquisition.

Online furniture retailer from the UK, Made.com, has announced an acquisition of Trouva. This lifestyle marketplace sells products from over 700 independent boutiques and brands. Through the acquisition, Made.com wants to grow its marketplace business.

Active Ants opens distribution center in the UK

By Pleuni - May 4, 2022 - Subject(s): Launch, Logistics.

Dutch fulfillment company Active Ants has announced that it is opening its fifth distribution center in September. After two sites in the Netherlands and an expansion to Belgium and Germany, the company will now take on England. "Coming to Northampton will allow us to increase our presence. Ultimately, we want to become the best fulfillment company in Europe", says co-founder Jeroen Dekker.

Olsam acquires aggregator MarketFleet

By Pleuni - May 3, 2022 - Subject(s): Acquisition.

British startup Olsam, an ecommerce aggregator, has acquired US-based competitor MarketFleet. It's the second time that the company acquires another aggregator, after its acquisition of Flywheel Commerce in November last year. The company hopes to consolidate the market with this move.

Zooplus revenue €2.1 billion in 2021

By Pleuni - May 2, 2022 - Subject(s): Cross-border.

Popular German online pet supply store Zooplus has increased its total sales to 2.09 billion euros in 2021. This is a 16 percent growth when compared to a year before. The company lost market share to Fressnapf, but expects to increase sales to 2.3 billion euros in this year.

Veepee’s Re-Cycle launches in Spain

By Pleuni - April 29, 2022 - Subject(s): Launch.

Veepee's second-hand platform, Re-Cycle, collects used products of members of the platform to resell or recycle them. It was founded in France two years ago, but is now making its entry into Spain. This is the first international expansion of the platform.

Eurora raises €38 million

By Pleuni - April 28, 2022 - Subject(s): Cross-border, Funding.

Eurora, which offers compliance solutions for cross-border ecommerce businesses, has raised 40 million dollars (37.94 million euros) in a Series A round. The capital injection will be used to accelerate the Estonian company's international expansion.

Lengow acquires Netrivals

By Pleuni - April 26, 2022 - Subject(s): Acquisition.

French ecommerce automation platform Lengow has acquired Netrivals, a software provider for price comparison. The companies have not released any financial details about the deal. As a result of the acquisition, Lengow will expand into Spain.

Online sales in Europe -13% in first quarter

By Pleuni - April 25, 2022 - Subject(s): Statistics.

Globally, ecommerce revenues have dropped 3 percent in the first quarter of this year, when compared to that same period in 2021. That decline was seen in Europe as well (-13 percent). However, online sales in Spain reached a 6 percent year-on-year growth. It's the only country in Europe where digital revenues grew in this time frame.

Maisons du Monde launches marketplace in Spain

By Pleuni - April 21, 2022 - Subject(s): Launch, Marketplaces.

Recently, French furniture retailer Maisons du Monde expanded on its website with a marketplace. The marketplace launched in France in 2020. Now, it's rolling out the marketplace in Spain with 150 partner brands.

Instabox raises €174 million

By Pleuni - April 21, 2022 - Subject(s): Funding.

Swedish parcel delivery service Instabox has raised 174 million euros in a financing round. Its value is now estimated at 1 billion euros. This makes it the newest unicorn in Sweden.