Fedrigoni Acquires Minority Stake in Connected Solutions Pioneer, SharpEnd / io.tt

With offices in the UK and US, SharpEnd uses technologies such as NFC, QR codes and Augmented Reality to develop connected packaging, product and retail experiences for consumer brands.

Jan. 11, 2024 - The Fedrigoni Group announced that it has acquired a minority stake in SharpEnd / io.tt, an Internet of Things partner for consumer brands.

According to Fedrigoni, the deal consists of an initial investment with a path to acquire their entire capital in the longer term and is part of a new corporate venture capital program launched by Fedrigoni to identify innovative start-ups to accelerate its innovation process and the acquisition of new technologies.

"The world of connected products is increasingly strategic for us, and this highly complementary and synergic transaction with the recent bolt-on acquisitions of Tageos, a French company specialized in the manufacturing of UHF and NFC inlays (acquired in 2022), and the Grenoble Research and Development Center (which joined the group in 2023), will enhance our solutions portfolio in the world of smart labels and papers," said Marco Nespolo, CEO at the Fedrigoni Group.

"SharpEnd provides solutions and consulting services to support major brands, particularly in the luxury and FMCG sectors, in the creation of smart products and packaging, which are essential for product safety, authenticity and traceability but also to provide end users with increasingly engaging shopping experiences," Nespolo explained.

SharpEnd was founded in 2015 as the world's first Internet of Things (IoT) agency, with a mission to help brands evolve their products, packaging and customer engagement through connected solutions, leveraging a proprietary SaaS (software as a service) platform, launched in 2019, called io.tt that is now managing billions of touchpoints across packaging and retail for many leading global brand owners across drinks, beauty, wellness, FMCG and luxury fashion.

With offices in the UK and US, SharpEnd uses technologies such as NFC, QR codes and Augmented Reality to develop connected packaging, product and retail experiences for brands powered by their SaaS platform, called io.tt, which is currently used in over 130 countries. SharpEnd's proprietary platform, io.tt, connects billions of products and store touch points across the globe, identifying where and why consumers are interacting and delivering these insights back in real-time dashboards and management consoles.

Based in Italy, Fedrigoni Group is a leading producer of specialty papers for graphic use and self-adhesive products for labels, and primarily the production of self-adhesive labels for the wine sector.

SOURCE: Fedrigoni S.p.A.