Acardo
Acardo group AG is a German B2B2C shopper activation platform for FMCG manufacturers, retailers, and pharma brands, providing electronic coupon clearing, check-out couponing, mobile couponing, cashback, and gamification across 30,000+ stores, 5,600+ check-out locations, and 830+ cinemas.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2001
- HeadquartersDortmund, Germany
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Acardo does
Acardo group AG, founded in 2001 and headquartered in Dortmund, Germany, is a B2B2C shopper activation platform purpose-built for FMCG manufacturers, retailers, pharmacies, and film distributors. The company pioneered electronic coupon clearing in Germany and has since assembled an integrated platform spanning check-out couponing, mobile couponing, cashback promotions, gamification, and consumer targeting on real purchase data. Core technology modules include the electronic coupon clearing engine (covering 30,000+ stores), the acardo Promotion Hub for cross-retailer campaign management, Add2Wallet for digital wallet-based coupon delivery, the scondoo cashback app, and acardo connect — a first-party data targeting product designed for the post-third-party-cookie landscape. The company integrates with all major German pharmacy POS systems (CGM Lauer, NOVENTI, PHARMATECHNIK, Aposoft, ADG), multiple cinema ticketing platforms, and operates Germany's largest check-out couponing network (5,600+ stores with EDEKA, Kaufland, Müller, Budni, and Hit).
The business model is a hybrid of transaction-based clearing fees (per coupon issued, validated, and settled across the network) and full-service campaign fees for CPG and pharma brands covering concept, technical implementation, and execution. Revenue is generated from coupon clearing, campaign services, digital media and targeting, and cinema voucher settlement. The company serves 600+ top brands, runs approximately 500 campaigns per year, and supports 350+ cinema actions per year. In September 2025, Verve Group SE acquired acardo for EUR 24.5 million, with expected 2025 revenue contribution of EUR 15 million and EBITDA of EUR 6 million, integrating acardo into a pan-European mobile, CTV, and DOOH advertising group.
Acardo firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Acardo
- Legal name
- acardo group AG
- Website
- https://acardo.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2001
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Acardo group AG is a German B2B2C shopper activation platform for FMCG manufacturers, retailers, and pharma brands, providing electronic coupon clearing, check-out couponing, mobile couponing, cashback, and gamification across 30,000+ stores, 5,600+ check-out locations, and 830+ cinemas.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Acardo industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Promotional Marketing Services
- akta.pro primary industry
- Price Comparison, Deals, Cashback & Loyalty Shopping Platforms (BPAMAGAH)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Grocery, Food & Essentials Commerce Platforms (BPAMAGAF)
Keywords
Where Acardo is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Dortmund
- HQ country
- Germany
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Acardo business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Coupon Clearing & Transaction Fees: Acardo earns transaction-based fees for processing, validating, and settling coupons across its retail and pharmacy network. Revenue scales with the volume of coupons issued and redeemed through the network.
- Campaign Services & Shopper Activation: Full-service campaign fees from CPG and pharma brands for concept, design, technical implementation, and execution of promotions. Services include drive-to-store campaigns, cashback promotions, couponing mechanics, and gamification — from concept through clearing.
- Digital Media & Targeting: Revenue from consumer targeting and promotional media placement through acardo connect, the Promotion Hub, and scondoo/couponplatz apps. Brands pay for access to targeted shopper audiences based on first-party purchase data.
- Cinema Voucher Clearing: Clearing and settlement fees for cinema vouchers across the network of 830+ cinemas. Film distributors, TV broadcasters, and loyalty programs pay for issuance and redemption processing.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels5 records
Acardo product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Acardo operates a Shopper Activation MarTech platform connecting FMCG/CPG brands, retailers, and consumers through electronic coupon clearing, check-out couponing, mobile couponing, gamification, and cinema voucher systems. The platform covers 30,000+ connected stores across food retail, drugstores, pharmacies, and cinemas in Germany, with full-service campaign delivery from concept and technical implementation through clearing and settlement.
Product overview
acardo group AG operates as a digital consumer activation company offering an integrated platform for shopper activation and promotions across multiple channels. The core portfolio includes scondoo (cashback/couponing app), couponplatz (digital couponing platform), and acardo connect (purchase-data-driven consumer targeting), supported by the acardo Promotion Hub for campaign management. The company provides channel-specific solutions including Check-out Couponing for retail receipts, cinema voucher management (Kinogutschein-System) with 830+ cinema locations, and electronic pharmacy couponing integrated with major pharmacy POS systems. Add2Wallet bridges digital marketing with in-store redemption, while the Gamification-Lösung enables branded engagement campaigns. The offering covers the full promotion lifecycle from conception and technical implementation through coupon clearing across a network of 30,000+ stores.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- couponplatz: Digital coupon platform for promotions and offers
- scondoo
Products and services
- scondoo Cross-merchant shopping companion app offering cashback and coupon promotions; enables consumers to save money on everyday purchases and provides brands with measurable activation campaigns. Awarded Bronze at the Bonus Awards 2026 in 'Best Cashback App / Customer Service' and won the Deutscher App Award in the Cashback Apps category.
- couponplatz
- acardo Promotion Hub Marketing platform for industry promotion; handles coupon distribution, campaign management and brand activation across multiple retail channels and store networks. Aggregates multiple promotional mechanics (cashback, eCouponing, gamification) for cross-retailer activation with centralized campaign management and industrial marketing.
- acardo Kinogutschein-System (Cinema Voucher System) Digital cinema voucher system managing voucher distribution, POS scanning, and monthly reimbursement to cinemas; connects film distributors, TV channels and retailers with over 830 cinema locations. Includes KulturPass support and over 350 cinema actions per year.
- Elektronisches Apotheken-Couponing (Electronic Pharmacy Couponing) Electronic coupon clearing and check-out couponing solution for pharmacies; automates coupon validation and settlement across pharmacy POS systems including CGM Lauer (WINAPO), PROKAS, NOVENTI (jump), PHARMATECHNIK (IXOS), Aposoft (PRISMA), and ADG.
- Check-out Couponing Service Point-of-sale coupon service printing coupons on receipts based on basket contents; drives customers back to stores and increases purchase frequency through targeted basket-based targeting across 5,600+ stores in Germany's largest check-out couponing network.
- acardo Whitelabel Gamification-Lösung White-label gamification solution allowing brands to create unique shopper activation experiences; includes spinning wheel mechanics for winning prizes like cinema tickets, with GDPR-compliant mobile number verification. Brands determine the design from landing page to cinema voucher.
Quantifiable outcome
- 35.5% coupon redemption growth in 2025 (acardo Coupon Report 2025)
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Acardo
Customer profileNamed customers15 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Acardo technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration16 records
Feature8 records
Acardo partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
20 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.
- EDEKAcoreEDEKA is a key retail partner in acardo's check-out couponing network, with EDEKA regions expanded from 2 to 5 in the network, covering the largest EDEKA regions. Coupons are distributed at EDEKA POS based on basket analysis and drive consumer loyalty and footfall.
- KauflandcoreKaufland participates in acardo's check-out couponing network as a key retail partner, enabling brands to activate shoppers at Kaufland stores through basket-triggered coupon distribution.
- MüllercoreMüller (drogerie) is a key partner in the check-out couponing network and has collaborated on innovative campaigns including cinema voucher integration on receipts.
- BudnicoreBudni integrated acardo Mobile Couponing into its own app via the Promotion Hub, enabling personalized coupon distribution to its customer base.
- Hit (Handelsgesellschaft für impulsive Type)majorHit participates in acardo's check-out couponing network as a key food retail partner in Germany.
- CGM Lauer (CompuGroup Medical)corePartnership with CGM Lauer to enable digital pharmacy couponing via the WINAPO POS system. The collaboration expanded eCouponing to pharmacies using Lauer-Fischer systems and also supports manual clearing for transitional periods.
- NOVENTIcoreNOVENTI (via its jump POS system) partners with acardo for electronic pharmacy couponing and clearing. The partnership was a landmark deal launching digital couponing for the pharmacy sector in Germany.
- PHARMATECHNIKmajorPHARMATECHNIK integrated acardo's electronic clearing into its IXOS pharmacy POS system, enabling automated coupon processing for pharmacies using their software.
- Aposoft (PRISMA Datensysteme)majorAposoft integrated acardo's electronic clearing into its pharmacy POS system, expanding acardo's reach in the independent pharmacy segment.
- ADG (Arbeitsgemeinschaft Deutscher Apotheken)majorADG provides pharmacy POS systems integrated with acardo's electronic clearing solution, enabling a large network of independent German pharmacies to participate in digital couponing.
- beefutureminorAcardo supports beefuture's environmental initiative with adopted beehives. The partnership reflects acardo's commitment to sustainability and ecological stability — bees pollinate roughly one-third of global food production.
- scondoocorescondoo is a cashback app operated by acardo, enabling consumer-facing promotions and brand activation. It was acquired by acardo and has won awards including the Deutscher App Award and Bonus Awards 2026 Bronze.
- catalinamajorAcardo and Catalina expanded their collaboration in the couponing space, combining their respective market positions and technology capabilities for promotional campaigns in the German market.
- OfferistaminorOfferista expanded its partnership with acardo to leverage the couponplatz platform for cross-retail promotional campaigns.
- SiTecmajorSiTec partnered with acardo for cinema voucher clearing and expansion into Austria, integrating acardo's cinema systems with Austrian cinema operators.
- HDF Kino & AG Kino (Gilde)coreAcardo worked with the German cinema associations HDF Kino and AG Kino - Gilde to develop the KulturPass solution for the cinema sector, enabling government-subsidized cultural vouchers to be redeemed at cinemas.
- SodaStreamminorAcardo and SodaStream co-presented at ECR Tag 2025 on 'From Shelf to Glass: How SodaStream Achieves Retail Media Success Along the Shopper Journey.'
- EDEKA Center SchneiderminorEDEKA Center Schneider co-presented with acardo at upliftCON2026 on a retail pilot project demonstrating how Shopper Activation creates measurable impact from drive-to-store to instore.
- Dohle Handelsgruppe (Globus)majorDohle Handelsgruppe (Globus) intensified its partnership with acardo, joining the acardo Promotion Hub for coupon clearing and promotional campaigns.
- Vectron Systems AGmajorVectron Systems AG acquired acardo in January 2023, integrating acardo's coupon clearing capabilities with Vectron's POS system technology before acardo was subsequently acquired by Verve Group in 2025.
Scale indicators10 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Acardo competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Sovendus: Sovendus is a Karlsruhe-based checkout marketing network operating across German and European online shops, offering coupon and deal distribution after checkout. It is the closest direct competitor to Acardo's check-out couponing and activation network in the German market.
- PAYBACK (Loyalty Partner GmbH): PAYBACK is Germany's largest multi-partner loyalty and couponing program, accumulating first-party purchase data across grocery, drugstore, and fuel partners. It is a direct competitor to Acardo's loyalty-activation and shopper-targeting proposition, particularly via the EDEKA, Kaufland and Müller ecosystems.
- Catalina Marketing / Neptune Retail Solutions: Catalina (now part of Neptune Retail Solutions) is the US leader in personalized checkout couponing, loyalty and shopper intelligence for CPG brands and grocers. It is the international benchmark and closest analog for Acardo's check-out couponing and first-party data activation model.
- Quotient Technology: Quotient is a US digital promotions and omnichannel media platform combining digital coupons, retailer media networks, and shopper data. It is directly comparable in digital coupon clearing and brand-to-retailer activation mechanics.
- Valassis Digital: Valassis (now part of Vericast) is a US-based digital and print coupon, FSI, and shopper marketing platform for CPG brands. It is a direct comparable for Acardo's end-to-end couponing and clearing business serving CPG advertisers.
- News America Marketing: News America Marketing, part of News Corp, is a leading US provider of in-store and digital shopper marketing, including couponing and FSI. It is comparable to Acardo across the CPG-brand-to-retailer activation value chain.
- Shopmium: Shopmium (part of HighCo) is a European mobile cashback and digital couponing app used by CPG brands for shopper activation. It is directly comparable to Acardo's scondoo and couponplatz consumer-facing cashback and mobile couponing products.
- iGraal: iGraal is a leading European cashback and loyalty platform acquired by Lycos/Papaya Global, operating across DACH. It is directly comparable to Acardo's scondoo cashback app in target audience, mechanics, and brand-side demand.
- Rakuten Advertising: Rakuten operates a global cashback, affiliate and shopper activation network used by CPG and retail brands. Comparable to Acardo's cross-retailer activation and digital media/rewards offering, particularly for international brand clients.
Broad incumbents
- Criteo: Criteo is a global commerce media platform with retail-media and shopper-targeting capabilities for brands and retailers. It is a broader incumbent with overlapping capabilities (audience targeting, retail media) but a much wider portfolio spanning open-web retargeting and DSP services.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks1 record
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Acardo social profiles
Digital presenceAcardo compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Acardo financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Acardo leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
Acardo subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Acardo funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Acardo M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Acardo
What does Acardo do?
Acardo operates a Shopper Activation MarTech platform connecting FMCG/CPG brands, retailers, and consumers through electronic coupon clearing, check-out couponing, mobile couponing, gamification, and cinema voucher systems. The platform covers 30,000+ connected stores across food retail, drugstores, pharmacies, and cinemas in Germany, with full-service campaign delivery from concept and technical implementation through clearing and settlement.
Is Acardo a public or private company?
Acardo is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Acardo founded?
Acardo was founded in 2001. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Acardo based?
Acardo is headquartered in Dortmund, Germany, in the Europe region.
How does Acardo make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Coupon Clearing & Transaction Fees are the primary driver. The others are campaign Services & Shopper Activation, digital Media & Targeting and cinema Voucher Clearing.
Who are Acardo's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Sovendus, PAYBACK (Loyalty Partner GmbH), Catalina Marketing / Neptune Retail Solutions, Quotient Technology, Valassis Digital, News America Marketing, Shopmium, iGraal and Rakuten Advertising. Criteo is listed as a broad incumbent.
Does Acardo have an API?
No public API is recorded for Acardo.
What industry is Acardo in?
Acardo's product category is Promotional Marketing Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAMAGAH, Price Comparison, Deals, Cashback & Loyalty Shopping Platforms, with a secondary code of BPAMAGAF, Grocery, Food & Essentials Commerce Platforms.