Milan, June 2024 - UNGUESS (unguess.io), the first platform in Italy to use crowdtesting methodology to conduct tests and obtain relevant and effective feedback from a real user community, has announced the creation of a leading European group in the fields of Quality and UX research through the acquisition of Ferpection, the expert UX Research consultancy active in the French market with a high-profile client portfolio, with brands such as Air France, Clarins, L’Oréal, LVMH, Matmut, SANEF.
![Management Team - Lorenzo Capecchi (Chief Community Officer), Federico Malvezzi (Chief Strategy Officer), Thibault Geenen, Antonio Arezzo (CFO), Luca Manara](https://blog.unguess.io/hs-fs/hubfs/Management%20Team%20-%20Lorenzo%20Capecchi%20(Chief%20Community%20Officer)%2c%20Federico%20Malvezzi%20(Chief%20Strategy%20Officer)%2c%20Thibault%20Geenen%2c%20Antonio%20Arezzo%20(CFO)%2c%20Luca%20Manara%20(2).jpg?width=476&height=317&name=Management%20Team%20-%20Lorenzo%20Capecchi%20(Chief%20Community%20Officer)%2c%20Federico%20Malvezzi%20(Chief%20Strategy%20Officer)%2c%20Thibault%20Geenen%2c%20Antonio%20Arezzo%20(CFO)%2c%20Luca%20Manara%20(2).jpg)
From left to right: Lorenzo Capecchi (Chief Community Officer), Federico Malvezzi (Chief Strategy Officer), Thibault Geenen, Antonio Arezzo (CFO), Luca Manara
This initiative aims to strengthen UNGUESS's presence in France, expanding its commercial network and enhancing Ferpection’s product offerings by leveraging the Quality and Security services provided by UNGUESS. Ferpection's clients will also benefit from UNGUESS’s platform and technological architecture, utilizing its dynamic and global crowd for tester recruiting. In addition, Ferpection will bring to the partnership its robust expertise in impact-driven solutions for businesses focusing on CSR, including eco-conception, inclusivity, and accessibility.
“We are very excited to have Ferpection as our strategic partner in the French market” commented Luca Manara, CEO of UNGUESS. “They’ve been leading the UX Research market in France and relentlessly creating value for their customers both in France and at an international level. We were looking for a team of like-minded experts that will help carry the torch from UNGUESS and benefit from our ambitions to go even further. This operation undoubtedly represents a significant step in our international expansion plan — a step that would not have been possible without the continued trust of our investors in the Series B funding round of over 10 million completed last January”.
“When we met Luca and the team at UNGUESS - commented Thibault Geenen, Founder and CEO at Ferpection - we were surprised by what we could achieve together on a European level. UNGUESS had pushed their platform both in the QA and UX space. Meanwhile, we had, in the past year, moved away from our platform to focus on services. It was like two teams being re-united again. This is an element that more and more customers are asking for. Before, you could provide the tech or the services. The truth is that now customers need them both. Beyond that, we are already seeing synergies around ur shared vision for experience and quality solutions in Europe.”
UNGUESS Figures
The completion of the acquisition of Ferpection follows a period of robust development for UNGUESS, which saw record revenue and orders in the first quarter of 2024, confirming the results achieved in 2023 — a year that ended with organic growth of over 30%. The goal for 2024 is to exceed 10 million in turnover and achieve operational breakeven. As Luca Manara mentioned, UNGUESS had closed a funding round of over €10M at the beginning of 2023, led by FITEC, with participation from existing investors in the corporate structure, notably P101 SGR with its two vehicles Programma 102 and Italia 500, managed on behalf of Azimut, Italian Angels for Growth (IAG), Club degli Investitori, and Club Italia Investimenti 2.
UNGUESS
Founded in 2015 within the 'Mobile Lab' research center of the Politecnico di Milano, Cremona campus, from an idea by three former students - Edoardo Vannutelli, Filippo Maria Renga, and Luca Manara, now CEO of the startup - UNGUESS was the first in Italy to use the crowdtesting methodology to optimize the quality, security and user experience of companies' digital products and services. Thanks to the crowd and the technological platform created, UNGUESS is able to quickly and effectively offer tests, insights, and relevant feedback because they come from users and to test a wide variety of available digital devices and interfaces. The commercial offering of UNGUESS is based on three product lines: 1. UNGUESS Quality, which allows the quick identification and resolution of digital product errors (bugs); 2. UNGUESS Experience, which enables the collection of data on user experience, optimizing User Experience and Customer Experience; 3. UNGUESS Security, which leverages a community of cybersecurity researchers to quickly identify and resolve application vulnerabilities (Bug Bounty programs). In January 2023, UNGUESS closed a capital increase of 10 million euros led by Fondo Italiano d’Investimento SGR, through the Fondo Italiano Tecnologia e Crescita - 'FITEC' in which P101 SGR also participated with its two vehicles: Programma 102 and Italia 500, managed on behalf of Azimut, Italian Angels for Growth (IAG), Club degli Investitori, and Club Italia Investimenti 2.
FERPECTION
Founded in November 2014 by Thibault Geenen (exCoca Cola) and Arnaud Limbourg (ex-BlaClaCar), Ferpection stands as the expert UX research consultancy that any organization can count on to improve their user-centricity as well as the value of their websites, mobile applications and omni-channel projects. Ferpection partners with prestigious companies such as Air France, Clarins, Enercoop, Kiabi, L'Oréal, Legrand, Louvre Hotels, Matmut, LVMH, SANEF, Société Générale… and help them find through user experience the sweet spot between their business objectives, our planet and society. More information: https://ferpection.com/en/
Contacts for press enquiries: Disclosers
Valeria Volpato: valeria.volpato@disclosers.it (+39 348 926 3279)
Sara Lualdi: sara.lualdi@disclosers.it (+39 370 110 6716)
For French speaking contacts:
Thibault Geenen: thibault@ferpection.com (+33607865350)