Merlien
Merlien is a Singapore-based B2B events organizer founded in 2008 that operates global conference series (MRMW, QUAL360, UX360, CIEX), webinars, training programs, and professional communities for enterprise market-research, consumer-insights, and UX professionals across Europe, MENA, APAC, and North America.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2008
- HeadquartersSingapore, Singapore
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Merlien does
Merlien (legal entity: Merlien Live Pte. Ltd.) is a privately-held Singapore B2B events organizer and market-research think-tank founded in 2008. The company produces and operates four conference series — MRMW (Market Research Week), QUAL360, UX360, and CIEX — held across Europe, MENA, APAC, and North America, with a total of 10+ annual in-person events plus a virtual UX360 format. Its platform combines dedicated regional event portals, a webinar series, video and photo archives, white-paper publishing, LinkedIn professional communities, and the UX360 Certificate in Applied UX training program. The underlying technology stack is a content-distribution and event-management infrastructure (web portals, video archives, email newsletters, community platforms) rather than a proprietary AI or data product.
Merlien serves enterprise market-research, consumer-insights, and UX professionals at global brands such as Google, Microsoft, Amazon, IKEA, Nestlé, Visa, Coca-Cola, Maersk, and Unilever, who participate as attendees, speakers, sponsors, and exhibitors. Revenue is generated through three streams: paid conference registrations (with early-bird and standard pricing plus discount codes), sponsorship and exhibitor fees, and professional training program fees. Go-to-market is event-driven: each conference series operates its own regional portal (e.g., eu.mrmw.net, apac.qual360.com), and the company maintains year-round engagement through webinars, white papers, and three LinkedIn community groups.
Merlien's competitive positioning rests on 17+ years of category leadership in qualitative research conferences, four registered trademarks (Merlien Institute®, MRMW®, QUAL360®, CIEX®), and an accumulated content library spanning multiple regions and years. The company is independently operated, with Jens Cornelissen as Founder and Managing Director Global Events, and has no disclosed parent company, funding rounds, acquisitions, or restructuring events.
Merlien firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Merlien
- Legal name
- Merlien Live Pte. Ltd.
- Website
- https://merlien.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2008
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Merlien is a Singapore-based B2B events organizer founded in 2008 that operates global conference series (MRMW, QUAL360, UX360, CIEX), webinars, training programs, and professional communities for enterprise market-research, consumer-insights, and UX professionals across Europe, MENA, APAC, and North America.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Merlien industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Business Conference Services
- NAICS
- Convention and Trade Show Organizers (56192)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Strategic Meetings Management (SMM) & Governance (THACAFAA)
Keywords
Where Merlien is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Singapore
- HQ country
- Singapore
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices1 record
Markets served
Merlien business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Conference Registration: Revenue generated from paid attendance to market research and UX conferences (MRMW, Qual360, UX360 series) across multiple global regions
- Training Programs: Revenue from professional certification and training programs such as UX360 Certificate in Applied UX
- Sponsorship and Exhibitor Fees: Revenue from brand and company sponsorships at conferences and exhibitor booth fees
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Conference attendance with regular and early-bird pricing options |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels7 records
Merlien product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Merlien (Merlien Live Pte. Ltd.) is a Singapore-based B2B conference organizer that produces a portfolio of niche research-industry events including MRMW (mobile and market research), QUAL360 (qualitative research), UX360 (user experience research) and CIEX (consumer intelligence exchange), supported by training workshops, webinars, and content programs for the global market-research and consumer-insights community.
Product overview
Merlien (Merlien Live Pte. Ltd.) is a B2B events organizer and market research think-tank that operates multiple conference series and content platforms. The core offerings include MRMW (Market Research Made Weird) conference series, QUAL360 (dedicated to qualitative research), and UX360 (for UX research professionals), spanning global regions including MENA, Europe, APAC, and North America. Supporting these events are digital products including webinar series, event video archives, photo galleries, and LinkedIn professional communities. Merlien also publishes white papers and industry news/blog content covering AI applications in research, consumer insights, and market research methodologies. The company positions itself as 'Leading the Technology Revolution in Market Research and Qualitative Techniques' and runs the Merlien Institute as a registered trademark.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- MRMW: Market Research Week conference series covering market research and consumer insights
- QUAL360
- UX360
- CIEX
Products and services
- MRMW MRMW (Market Research in the Mobile World) is a recurring B2B conference for research professionals covering mobile, digital, and online market research methods, targeted at enterprise research and insights teams.
- QUAL360 QUAL360 is a recurring conference dedicated to qualitative research methodologies, serving insights, brand, marketing, and UX research professionals who need to deepen expertise in qualitative techniques.
- UX360 UX360 is a recurring conference for UX research practitioners and leaders, covering UX research methods, tools, and operating models inside consumer-facing organizations.
- CIEX CIEX (Consumer Intelligence Exchange) is a recurring conference for senior consumer-insights and market-intelligence leaders to exchange best practice on consumer intelligence programs.
- Research training workshops Paid, in-person and/or virtual training workshops covering qualitative, UX, and mobile research methods, sold to individual research professionals and enterprise teams attending the conferences.
- Industry webinars Recurring webinar content sessions for the market-research and consumer-insights community, offering shorter-form online programming as a complement to the in-person conferences.
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 200 attendees from 25+ countries at MRMW EU 2024
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Merlien
Customer profileNamed customers35 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Merlien technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Merlien partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
14 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Human8coreHuman8 contributes thought leadership content including white papers on human understanding in AI-driven marketing. Chief Growth Officer Tom De Ruyck co-authored content featured on Merlien platforms about balancing AI with human insight in marketing.
- Bolt InsightcoreBolt Insight provides white papers and content on AI-enhanced research, video intelligence, and insight infrastructure. Featured speaker at conferences discussing AI transformation in qualitative research.
- Listen LabsminorListen Labs contributed white paper on The Future of Research Requires Human-AI Partnership, featured in Merlien's white paper archive.
- BilendiminorBilendi contributed white paper on Why AI-Enhanced Research Works and How to Get It Right, published in Merlien's white paper section.
- InQognito InsightsminorInQognito Insights contributed white papers on decoding Gen Z values in India and cosmic code of consumer behaviour, presented at QUAL360 APAC.
- SagominorSago contributed white paper on The State of Client Engagement in Digital Qualitative Research: A 2025 Perspective.
- KnitminorKnit contributed white paper on Why qualitative UX research is one of the best use cases for AI, featured ahead of UX360 EU Berlin.
- MMRminorMMR contributed white paper on Beyond Advertising: How Market Research Fuels Antifragile Brand Portfolios in CPG.
- MarketLogicminorMarketLogic contributed insights on How Will AI Shape the Future of Consumer Insights, featured at MRMW EU 2024.
- ConvotrackminorContributed white paper on How Video Intelligence is Transforming Science Storytelling in a 30-Second World.
- PrelaunchminorContributed white paper on Moving Beyond Paid Panels: Bullet-Proof Insights from Ready-to-Buy Customers.
- SemrushminorContributed white paper on Mapping the Buyer's Mind: Crafting Data-Driven Personas for AI-Powered Marketing.
- IRB (Indian Research Bureau)minorPartner for QUAL360 APAC 2025 spotlight content on Decoding User Behaviour in Indian Fintech Ecosystem, exploring human-centered design in India's fintech landscape.
- Human8coreFeatured speaker at QUAL360 EU with content on AI-human synergy in innovation. Thomas Troch and Annelies Verhaeghe presented on balancing human intuition and AI power in supercharged innovation.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Merlien competitors and assessment
Company assessmentRegional players
- Money20/20: Money20/20 is a large-scale B2B conference series for the financial services and fintech industry, comparable as a large, content-rich B2B event brand, though focused on a different vertical than Merlien.
Direct peers
- Market Research Society (MRS): MRS is the UK's professional body for market researchers and runs conferences, training, and awards targeting the same European insights professional audience as MRMW Europe and QUAL360 Europe.
- ESOMAR: ESOMAR is the global market research industry's primary professional association and runs annual congresses and research conferences worldwide that directly overlap Merlien's MRMW and QUAL360 audience of market research and insights professionals.
- Quirks Media (QRCA): Quirks Media publishes industry content and runs events for the qualitative research community, making it a direct peer in the niche that QUAL360 serves.
- Insights Association: Insights Association is a US-based market research trade body that runs annual conferences serving the same corporate insights and research buyer audience that attends Merlien's MRMW events.
- UXPA International: UXPA runs international and regional UX conferences that overlap with Merlien's UX360 Europe and UX360 Virtual events, serving the same UX research professional audience.
- GreenBook (IIEX): GreenBook's IIEX (Insight Innovation Exchange) is a direct competitor: a B2B conference series serving the market research and consumer insights industry with global events, very similar in audience and value proposition to Merlien's MRMW and QUAL360.
- NN/g (Nielsen Norman Group): NN/g runs UX training and conferences worldwide, competing directly with Merlien's UX360 series for UX research and design practitioners seeking professional development.
Broad incumbents
- Informa Markets: Informa is one of the world's largest B2B events organizers, with hundreds of conferences across industries including research, technology, and design; it is a broad incumbent that competes for sponsor and attendee attention even where Merlien owns its niche.
- Emerald (Emerald X): Emerald runs a large portfolio of B2B events and conferences across multiple verticals, comparable as a broad incumbent event organizer whose scale competes for enterprise sponsor mindshare.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Merlien social profiles
Digital presenceMerlien financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Merlien leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Merlien funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Merlien 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 Merlien
What does Merlien do?
Merlien (Merlien Live Pte. Ltd.) is a Singapore-based B2B conference organizer that produces a portfolio of niche research-industry events including MRMW (mobile and market research), QUAL360 (qualitative research), UX360 (user experience research) and CIEX (consumer intelligence exchange), supported by training workshops, webinars, and content programs for the global market-research and consumer-insights community.
Is Merlien a public or private company?
Merlien is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Merlien founded?
Merlien was founded in 2008. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Merlien based?
Merlien is headquartered in Singapore, Singapore, in the Asia region.
How does Merlien make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Conference Registration is the primary driver. The others are training Programs and sponsorship and Exhibitor Fees.
Who are Merlien's main competitors?
Money20/20 is listed as a regional player. Direct peers are Market Research Society (MRS), ESOMAR, Quirks Media (QRCA), Insights Association, UXPA International, GreenBook (IIEX) and NN/g (Nielsen Norman Group). Broad incumbents are Informa Markets and Emerald (Emerald X).
Does Merlien have an API?
No public API is recorded for Merlien.
What industry is Merlien in?
Merlien's product category is Business Conference Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THACAFAA, Strategic Meetings Management (SMM) & Governance. Its NAICS code is 56192.