San Francisco, CA, Menlo Park, CA & Portland, OR – June 2nd, 2022 – Accel-KKR Credit Partners and Wells Fargo Capital Finance today announced that they provided debt financing to support Airship’s acquisition of Gummicube, an App Store Optimization (ASO) platform. Wells Fargo Capital Finance is a division of Wells Fargo that provides specialized lending solutions and Accel-KKR Credit Partners is a credit fund managed by Accel-KKR, a leading global software-focused investment firm headquartered in Silicon Valley.
“Driving consumers to download an app is a critical first step but keeping them engaged and maximizing value for everyone involved requires leveraging data to demonstrate customer respect and relevance with experiences that reward them for their loyalty,” said Brett Caine, CEO and president, Airship. “Together, Gummicube and Airship enable marketers, product owners and developers to optimize their entire mobile app experience — from the point of discovery to loyalty. This industry-first combination will drive greater app success for brands and unlock huge value for our business.”
The Airship App Experience Platform (AXP) goes far beyond orchestrating cross-channel messaging to overcome the biggest barrier to realizing the full business potential of mobile apps — ongoing reliance on development and app update cycles to drive innovation. AXP’s no-code approach and intuitive visual UIs empower the entire team to create and optimize native app experiences, customer journeys and app UX to capture more value from mobile apps. This improves brands’ ability to rapidly onboard app audiences, build user understanding for next-level personalization and advance monetization goals through a data-led approach, while also freeing up developers to focus on market-differentiating app features. Adding Gummicube’s ASO technology and expertise enables brands to optimize value across the entire mobile app lifecycle, driving greater organic growth, ROAS, retention, loyalty and monetization.
“Apps have become a part of our everyday life,” said Samantha Shows, Managing Director at Accel-KKR. “We shop with them, pay with them, and are rewarded by them. Airship supports brands behind some of the most engaging and valuable apps in the market. We look forward to seeing the business continue its quest to become the trusted guide in helping brands master mobile app experiences and optimize the entire mobile app lifecycle.”
Airship is backed by leading investment firms, Foundry Venture Capital, True Ventures and August Capital.
“We are pleased to expand our relationship with Airship and continue to support the business by co-financing its acquisition of Gummicube,” said Michael Ackad, senior managing director and head of Technology Finance at Wells Fargo Capital Finance. “Brands need to evolve and stay relevant to their customers, and Airship offers powerful solutions for companies to do so.”
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About Airship
No one knows more, does more, or cares more when it comes to helping brands master mobile app experiences than Airship.
From the beginning of apps, Airship powered the first commercial messages and then expanded its data-led approach to all re-engagement channels (mobile wallet, SMS, email), app UX experimentation and feature release management. Now, with the Airship App Experience Platform (AXP), business users can create and adapt native app experiences on their own — with no ongoing developer support or app update required.
Having powered trillions of mobile app interactions for thousands of global brands, Airship’s technology and deep industry expertise have enabled apps to become the digital center of customer experience, brand loyalty and monetization.
For more information, visit www.airship.com, read our blog or follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.
About Accel-KKR
Accel-KKR is a technology-focused investment firm with $14 billion in capital commitments. The firm focuses on software and tech-enabled businesses, well-positioned for topline and bottom-line growth. At the core of Accel-KKR’s investment strategy is a commitment to developing strong partnerships with the management teams of its portfolio companies and a focus on building value alongside management by leveraging the significant resources available through the Accel-KKR network. Accel-KKR focuses on middle-market companies and provides a broad range of capital solutions, including buyout capital, minority-growth investments, and credit alternatives. Accel-KKR also invests across various transaction types, including private company recapitalizations, divisional carve-outs and going-private transactions. Accel-KKR’s headquarters is in Menlo Park, with offices in Atlanta, London and Mexico City. Visit accel-kkr.com to learn more.
About Accel-KKR Credit Partners
Accel-KKR Credit Partners provides debt financing to leading software businesses. The fund structures non-dilutive investments for founder-owned businesses and flexible credit products for institutionally-owned businesses. The debt capital is used to support acquisitions, dividends, shareholder buy-backs and growth investment. Accel-KKR Credit Partners has completed nearly 50 investments and deployed over $750 million in capital.
About Wells Fargo Capital Finance
Wells Fargo Capital Finance provides senior secured lending services to a diverse range of companies, domestically and internationally, in verticals such as software and technology, industrials, retail, commercial finance, and others. Dedicated and specialized teams within Wells Fargo Capital Finance leverage domain expertise to provide creative asset-based lending, recurring revenue, and cash flow financing solutions tailored to its clients’ needs.
