Smart50 alumni Cashrewards acquires Little Birdie

Cashback platform Cashrewards says it has taken a significant step towards becoming the country’s “ultimate shopping companion” after acquiring shopping deals platform Little Birdie.

Little Birdie was officially launched in 2021 by Catch founders Gabby and Hezi Leibovich, along with CEO Jon Beros and received $30 million in pre-launch funding from Commonwealth Bank.

Its app allowed shoppers to search through millions of products online and find the best deal, and the company later added a browser extension that alerted customers to a cheaper deal than the one they were perusing at the time.

However, the startup paused its operations in May this year. At the time, the company suggested it was working on “an improved format” to deliver an artificial intelligence-powered shopping tool.

The acquisition will eventually see the Little Birdie platform, including its proprietary algorithms, fully integrated with Cashrewards, which gives its members a percentage of their purchases back as cash if they access a retailer’s website via the Cashrewards portal.

Cashrewards was founded in 2014 by Andrew and Lorica Clarke, and made it onto the Smart50 list of Australia’s fastest-growing SMEs in 2017.

In 2020, it was listed on the ASX but was later bought by 1835i Ventures, the external venture capital and innovation partner of ANZ Bank.

More than 2000 retailers now use the Cashrewards platform to offer cashback deals to more than 2 million members, including the likes of Myer, The Iconic, Woolworths, Ikea, Adore Beauty, Cotton On and Birdsnest.

The percentage cashback offered by retailers varies between stores and can also change depending on the promotions offered by brands.

Cashrewards employs 202 employees and CEO Anthony Seymour-Walsh confirmed to SmartCompany on Tuesday that “several” Little Birdie employees will join the business as a result of the acquisition.

“The Little Birdie team will be focused on re-establishing the product experience ahead of peak retail season,” he said. 

The price tag on the deal has not been disclosed, however, Seymour-Walsh said the deal will allow “the two brands to come together and explore ways of combining our features to deliver great value to consumers and brand partners”. 

While Seymour-Walsh said the long-term goal is to integrate the two businesses so shoppers “will be able to enjoy a seamless shopping journey with Cashrewards, supercharged with Little Birdie’s powerful product search and price comparison tools”, the integration will happen in stages.

The first phase will involve Cashrewards relaunching the Little Birdie website and app. The goal is for the customers to be able to access both before this year’s busy Black Friday and Christmas retail periods.

Despite the pause in its operations, Seymour-Walsh confirmed Little Birdie still has an active membership and these customer accounts will now be managed by Cashrewards according to the existing Little Birdie privacy policy, including customer data and personal details.

“Both Little Birdie and Cashrewards prioritise data security and Cashrewards uses world-leading encryption technology to keep it safe,” he added. 

“A significant milestone” for Cashrewards

Once fully integrated, the combined businesses will offer consumers the ability to search for millions of products from online retailers; check the price history of those products and compare them across retailers; receive notifications when prices are dropped; and earn cash back on purchases.

“This acquisition is a major win for consumers in Australia and is a significant milestone in Cashrewards’ growth trajectory,” said Seymour-Walsh.

“This move not only strengthens our market position but will enhance our value proposition and accelerate the growth opportunities within our cashback and retail media sectors.”

“We know that households are looking for ways of making their budgets go further. In addition to giving our members cashback when they shop online at their favourite brands, we are looking forward to being able to help them search for products, compare prices and get greater value on every shop.”

In a statement provided to SmartCompany, Little Birdie co-founder and CEO Jon Beros said the acquisition will mean Australian consumers “will be empowered like never before”.

“In the future, they’ll have all the tools they need to make smarter, more informed purchases while getting the best value possible,” he said in the same statement.

“This will not only enhance the shopping experience but also generate millions of customer referrals for retailers, adding value across the industry.”

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