US private equity firm Apollo Global Management has acquired Shutterfly, a leading photo personalisation retailer, in a US $2.7bn deal and plans to merge it with online photo printing service Snapfish.
Shutterfly, founded in 1999, produces personalised photography products such as gifts, décor and photobooks; it also owns Lifetouch, one of America’s leading school photo companies.
William Lansing, chairman of Shutterfly, believes Apollo will give the company the opportunity to expand its services and implement sustainable growth.
“What began as a digital photo printing company is now a large and diversified business that has successfully evolved with our customers,” he said. “As we enter this exciting new chapter for Shutterfly, Apollo is an ideal strategic partner, as they will provide additional resources and industry knowledge while we continue to work on our important business initiatives.”
David Sambur, senior partner at Apollo, said “At a time when billions of photos are taken every day, Shutterfly has led the charge as a pioneer of personalised photo products and school photography, helping consumers capture, preserve and share life’s most important moments.
“We look forward to working with Shutterfly’s talented employees and supporting further investments in technology to drive the continued growth and success of the business,” he said.
Apollo has also acquired Snapfish, which offers online photo printing services, and plans to combine it with Shutterfly. According to Sambur, the deal represents the marriage of two pioneers of the photo personalisation industry.
“We are confident that this transaction will create an opportunity for innovation and continued growth in the photo and personalised photo products industry. We are excited to work with Neil and the Snapfish team in this transaction, and to benefit from their market expertise after three generations in the photo product business.
“We believe that both companies will be better positioned to operate in a competitive marketplace through their enhanced ability to invest in product innovation to deliver the best consumer experience,” he said.
The deal is expected to close by the fourth quarter of this year.