Matt West, chief revenue officer of Feefo, has completed a management buyout of the reviews and customer insights technology company.
The deal was backed by London-based private equity house Vespa Capital. No financial details were disclosed.
The agreement sees the management team acquiring the shareholdings from Feefo co-founders, CEO Andrew Mabbutt and CSO Matt Eames, along with that of chairman Nicholas Wheeler and the minority shareholders.
The strengthened team now comprises: Matt West as CEO; Richard Sawney, chief finance officer; Paul Greatbatch, technical director; Steph Heasman, director of customer success; and James Winn, US vice president of sales and operations.
West said: “This deal is an important and significant milestone for Feefo, which is fast becoming one of the most disruptive and forward-thinking technology brands.
“This new investment will fuel our ambitious programme of enterprise-level expansion, while enabling further innovation within our market-leading data analytics and artificial intelligence capabilities.
“The continued evolution of our technology as a comprehensive customer experience management platform is enabling brands to make smarter business decisions every day.”
He added: “The level of experience, integrity and effective execution meant that Vespa were the right choice for Feefo.
“They recognised the unique opportunity we have in the market and shared our vision for growing Feefo into one of the most innovative customer experience management platforms.”
Mabbutt said: “Being a founder and part of the team and journey that has witnessed Feefo develop into a superior customer experience technology business has been brilliant.
“The buyout represents the next chapter for the brand, initiating even more growth and innovation. Feefo is a great business run by ambitious people and will no doubt continue to do amazing things.”
Feefo was established in 2010 by Mabbutt and Eames, achieving rapid expansion, recognised by The Sunday Times Tech Track as one of Britain’s 100 fastest-growing private technology companies.
Earlier this year the company gained status as a Google Partner and is seen as a leader in review-based advertising.
Feefo uses machine learning through its “Smart Themes” and “Performance Profiling” solution to help customers instantly find the information they want