Startups > Akeneo

Akeneo

Akeneo helps retailers and manufacturers manage product data at scale across all channels.

Series D $197M total Founded 2013 Nantes, Pays de la Loire 293 employees

Akeneo is a Product Experience Management (PXM) platform that centralizes product data, content, and intelligence across all sales channels. It serves enterprise retailers and manufacturers who need to manage complex product catalogs at scale, with AI-driven capabilities that govern data in real-time from supplier to post-sale. The platform combines a free open-source community edition with enterprise SaaS editions, making it accessible to both SMBs and Fortune 500 companies. Akeneo's differentiation lies in its focus on making product data 'perform'—driving traffic, conversions, and AI discoverability—rather than just managing it.

Problem solved

Product teams spend excessive time manually managing inconsistent product data across channels, resulting in incomplete catalogs, slower time-to-market, and lost sales from poor product discoverability and customer experience.

Target customer

Enterprise retailers, manufacturers, and distributors with complex product catalogs (100K+ SKUs), omnichannel sales operations, and cross-border commerce needs. Also mid-market companies using the Growth Edition starting at $45K/year.

Website LinkedIn Crunchbase

Founders

Frédéric de Gombert

CEO

Former e-commerce director at Smile, Europe's largest open-source system integrator, with deep expertise in building e-commerce strategy for retailers like Nestlé, Decathlon, and The North Face.

Benoit Jacquemont

Co-founder

Former CTO at Smile with 5+ years leading 450+ open-source developers and launching major European websites; expert in complex web application architecture.

Nicolas Dupont

Co-founder

Previously worked with de Gombert and Jacquemont at Smile, bringing deep experience in open-source systems and e-commerce solutions.

Yoav Kutner

Co-founder

Joined as founding team member to help build Akeneo's initial product vision for a centralized product database.

Funding history

Seed €350,000 October 2013 Led by KIMA Venture · Nestadio Capital

Seed $2.3M September 2014 Led by Alven Capital

Series B $13M March 2017 Led by Partech Ventures · Salesforce Ventures

Series C $46M September 2019 Led by Summit Partners

Series D $135M March 2022 Led by Summit Partners · Alven Capital, Partech Ventures

Total raised: $197M

Industries

Information Services E-Commerce Product Management Software

Pricing

Not publicly available. Community Edition is free and open-source (70,000+ users). Growth Edition starts at $45,000 annually (estimated $150,000+ over 3 years with support and maintenance). Enterprise and Serenity Mode editions require custom quote.

Notable customers

Sephora, Fossil, Staples Canada, Jabra, Shop.com, Midland Scientific, Air Liquide, Rexel, Babolat, LVMH, Auchan, Sealed Air, Giant Tiger, ASSA ABLOY

Integrations

Salesforce, marketplace platforms, ecommerce channels, supplier data sources, AI content curation tools, content syndication networks

Website

akeneo.com/

Competitors

Salsify

Also operates in PXM space but focuses more broadly on digital marketing and product content syndication alongside data management.

Syndigo

Specializes in master data governance and product information management but with less emphasis on AI-driven automation and real-time orchestration.

Informatica

Broader data integration and MDM platform serving multiple industries; less specialized in retail/ecommerce product experience.

Why this matters: Akeneo has achieved remarkable scale (70K+ community users, $197M funding, 293 employees) by combining open-source accessibility with enterprise SaaS sophistication. The company's focus on AI-driven product data orchestration—rather than just management—positions it ahead of the curve as retailers prioritize AI discoverability and real-time personalization. Its recent $135M Series D (2022) and strategic investor backing from Summit Partners and Salesforce Ventures signal strong market confidence.

Best for: Best for enterprise retailers, manufacturers, and distributors managing 100K+ SKUs across multiple sales channels who need to unify product data, reduce time-to-market, and improve customer experience through consistent, AI-powered product content.

Use cases

Omnichannel Product Data Unification

A global retailer with 50+ brands and thousands of SKUs across physical stores, ecommerce, and marketplaces uses Akeneo PXM Studio to create a single system of record for all product information. This ensures consistent descriptions, images, and attributes across every touchpoint, reducing manual errors and duplicate effort. Giant Tiger increased their product data completeness from 60% to nearly 100% and accelerated time-to-market as a result.

Supplier Product Onboarding at Scale

A manufacturer with 200+ suppliers uses Akeneo Onboarder to automate the ingestion of product data from suppliers instead of manual data entry and reconciliation. The platform standardizes incoming data formats and validates quality in real-time, cutting onboarding time by weeks and reducing support burden. ASSA ABLOY reduced employee workload by 40+ hours per week using this approach.

AI-Driven Product Content Curation for Discoverability

An ecommerce company uses Akeneo's AI agents to automatically enrich product content, optimize descriptions for search engines, and generate channel-specific variations. This improves search visibility, increases page views by 27%, and reduces bounce rates by 16%, directly impacting conversion rates. Sealed Air achieved 20% faster time-to-market for new products with improved engagement.

Alternatives

Salsify Choose Salsify if you need broader digital marketing capabilities and syndication to 1000+ retailers; choose Akeneo for deeper data governance and AI orchestration.

Syndigo Choose Syndigo if you prioritize master data governance and regulatory compliance; choose Akeneo if you need faster channel-to-market and customer experience optimization.

Informatica Choose Informatica for enterprise-wide data integration across multiple business functions; choose Akeneo for specialized, retail-focused product experience management.

FAQ

What does Akeneo do? +

Akeneo is a Product Experience Management (PXM) platform that centralizes product data, content, and intelligence for retailers and manufacturers. It helps companies manage product information across all sales channels (ecommerce, marketplaces, physical stores), automate data onboarding from suppliers, and use AI to optimize product content for better customer experience and search discoverability.

How much does Akeneo cost? +

Akeneo's Community Edition is free and open-source. The Growth Edition starts at $45,000 annually (typically $150,000+ over 3 years with support). Enterprise and Serenity Mode editions are custom-priced. Contact their sales team for quotes based on your scale and requirements.

What are alternatives to Akeneo? +

Key alternatives include Salsify (broader digital marketing focus), Syndigo (stronger master data governance), and Informatica (enterprise-wide data integration). Choose based on whether you prioritize retail-specific PXM, data governance, or broader data integration needs.

Who uses Akeneo? +

Akeneo serves enterprise retailers and manufacturers like Sephora, Fossil, LVMH, Auchan, and global brands like The North Face and Nestlé. It also serves mid-market companies via the Growth Edition. 70,000+ companies use the free Community Edition globally.

How does Akeneo compare to Salsify? +

Both are PXM leaders, but Akeneo emphasizes data governance, AI-driven orchestration, and time-to-market efficiency. Salsify focuses more on digital marketing, syndication to 1000+ retailers, and campaign management. Choose Akeneo for data-first, AI-powered operations; choose Salsify for marketing-led content distribution.