Cowgills advises 9xb on sale to Velstar

Cowgills Deal Advisory team has recently advised 9xb on the sale of its business to ecommerce growth specialist Velstar.

Leeds-based 9xb is a privately owned B2B ecommerce agency specialising in complex ecommerce development, strategy and growth. It has joined forces with Velstar, who is a Liverpool based Shopify Plus agency that works with brands such as Castore, Neom, and Tangle Teezer to help in their ecommerce growth journey.

Cowgills partner, Sam Davies, who led on the transaction, said: “We have worked with the shareholders of 9xb for a number of years, and we’re incredibly pleased to have brokered this transaction in such a tough market. We supported the business in finding the right strategic partner for 9xb to continue their growth journey.”

“We used our sector knowledge to identify Velstar as a key partner for 9xb in terms of scale and motivation. As one of the leading UK Shopify Plus agencies in the B2C space, this is a highly strategic acquisition for Velstar who now has a ready-built platform to build out their B2B offering which is critical given Shopify’s focus on this part of the market.”

This represents Cowgills’ seventh deal completion since it joined the Sumer Group in February this year. Sumer is a rapidly expanding organisation with a mission to champion smaller and medium-sized businesses. Its strategy involves investing in the leading regional practices who share the same ethos, values and approach.

Rob Burns, 9xb co-founder, said: “We are extremely pleased with the deal that Cowgills has secured for us. Velstar and 9xb are a great fit, with similar aims, intentions and culture, and we feel very positive about the future of the business.”

Dan Sheard, CEO of Velstar, added: “This is a strategic move towards building something even more impactful within the ecommerce market, and will open up significant opportunities for the Velstar group.”