kendu

What kendu does

Kendu (legal entity KENDU RETAIL S.L.) is a Spain-headquartered, privately held manufacturer and service provider specializing in in-store visual communication solutions for global retail brands. Founded in 2004 in Donostia-San Sebastián, the company operates across 7 offices and three manufacturing facilities (Spain, USA, Mexico), employing approximately 169-180 staff and serving customers in 130+ countries with installations in 4,436 cities across 19,755 stores.

The company's offering is anchored by two proprietary hardware platforms: Smartframe, a patented tension fabric lightbox and SEG (Silicone Edge Graphics) frame system with multiple format variants, and Flowbox, an award-winning dynamic LED lightbox that renders animated visuals through plug-and-play SD card playback. These are produced in-house using Durst digital printing (up to 5m width) and Zund cutting machinery. Kendu extends beyond hardware into digital printing services, interactive retail experiences (RFID lift-and-learn, Intel-integrated interactive displays, video mapping), campaign management software (SDS Smart Delivery System), and sustainability-focused materials under the ked.eco line (recycled PET textiles, water-based inks, FSC/PEFC certified packaging).

Kendu sells primarily to large enterprise retailers through a direct field-sales motion with regional Key Account Managers covering France, UK, Northern Europe, Iberia, Italy, North America, and LATAM, plus an APAC commercial presence. Pricing is custom and project-based under multi-year contracts. Revenue streams include hardware sales of Smartframe and Flowbox units, professional services for digital printing and campaign rollouts, and recurring campaign management. The customer base spans 35+ named enterprise brands including Primark, Galeries Lafayette, Macy's, Columbia, Sephora, OVS, and El Corte Inglés, with revenue undisclosed. Kendu has no external private equity or venture capital backing identified, operating as a founder-led independent company (CEO Joseba Egaña) with ISO 9001, ISO 14006, CE, UL, and Oeko-Tex certifications.

Name

kendu

Legal name

KENDU RETAIL S.L.

Website

https://kendu.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Kendu is a Spain-headquartered manufacturer and service provider of in-store visual communication solutions for global retail brands, producing proprietary tension fabric lightboxes (Smartframe) and animated LED displays (Flowbox) across facilities in Spain, the USA, and Mexico for customers in 130+ countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Retail Visual Merchandising

NAICS

Graphic Design Services (541430), Industrial Design Services (541420)

SIC

Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330), Electric Lighting & Wiring Equipment (3640)

akta.pro primary industry

Graphic Design & Visual Content Production (BPAFAIAC)

Keywords

• Retail visual merchandising
• In-store displays
• Lightbox solutions
• Retail campaign management
• Experiential retail design

Headquarters

HQ city

Donostia-san Sebastián

HQ country

Spain

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. In-Store Visual Communication Solutions: Design, manufacturing, and campaign management services for retail visual communications. Fully integrated offering including experience design, project execution, and campaign management.
2. Smartframe Products: Sale of tension fabric lightboxes and SEG frames. Products available in various formats including Original, Slim, Circles, Round Corners, Shapes, Volume, and specialized variants for columns, windows, and walling.
3. Flowbox Dynamic Displays: Sale of award-winning animated LED lightboxes. Includes accessories such as shelves, hangers, and display accessories. Standard sizes from 0.8x1.3m to 2x2m.
4. Digital Printing Services: Large-format fabric and digital printing for retail campaigns including global roll-outs. Pre-press services, color testing, cutting and sewing, handling and labeling included.
5. Campaign Management Services: Digital and graphic content creation, campaign delivery, and data control services. International rollouts and campaign management platform services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

kendu designs, manufactures, and manages in-store visual communication solutions for global retail brands. Its core products include the Smartframe tension-fabric lightbox system and Flowbox animated LED lightbox, complemented by digital printing, campaign management, experience design, and interactive retail technologies.

Product overview

Kendu offers a comprehensive in-store visual communication solutions platform for retail brands. Their core proprietary products include Flowbox (award-winning animated/dynamic LED lightbox with fabric graphics) and Smartframe (tension fabric SEG frames and lightboxes in multiple variants). These are complemented by digital printing services, interactive retail solutions (lift-and-learn, interactive displays, video mapping), and eco-friendly material options. Kendu provides end-to-end services including experience design, project execution, and campaign management with international rollout capabilities. The company operates manufacturing facilities in Europe, US, and LATAM with global partner networks.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Smartframe

Quantifiable outcome

• 40-80% less energy consumption compared to digital signage (Flowbox)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers40 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• DurstcoreTechnology or IntegrationKendu uses state-of-the-art Durst printing machinery for large-format SEG textile printing including direct and sublimation techniques for fabric graphics up to 5 meters wide. The partnership enables high-quality printed visuals for retail campaigns.
• ZundcoreTechnology or IntegrationKendu uses top-of-the-range Zund digital cutting machines for precise cutting of printed textiles before sewing silicone edges. Partnership enables accurate custom cutting for all product formats.
• Environmental Companies and Research CentresminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerKendu collaborates with environmental companies and research centres to develop new uses for recycled textiles and complete product life cycles. Partnership supports sustainability initiatives and eco-friendly material development.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Antalis: Antalis (now part of KPP) is a major European distributor of visual communication media (print substrates, signage, packaging) serving sign shops and retail display manufacturers. Its role as an upstream supplier/distributor of SEG textiles and graphic materials makes it a comparable commercial counterpart to Kendu's in-house printing and distribution operation.
• Miller Zell: Miller Zell is a US-based retail design, fabrication, and implementation firm delivering branded store environments for enterprise retailers end-to-end (design through installation). Its integrated offering and Fortune 500 retail customer base mirrors Kendu's positioning and KPI structure, including large multi-site program rollouts.
• Spandex: Spandex supplies a similar set of signage and visual communication materials (fabric, vinyl, frames) and sign-making equipment to retail graphics and POS display producers in Europe. Its sign-maker/installer customer base overlaps heavily with Kendu's enterprise retail clients and its product breadth is directly comparable to Kendu's Smartframe/SEG ecosystem.
• Dimensional Innovations: Dimensional Innovations (DIDI) designs and fabricates custom immersive brand environments, retail displays, and exhibits for enterprise customers. It is comparable in operating model (design + manufacture + install) to Kendu and serves many of the same sports, entertainment, and retail enterprise accounts.
• Dakota Display: Dakota Display is a UK-headquartered visual merchandising and retail display manufacturer serving global fashion and department-store brands. It directly competes with Kendu for the same European fashion-retail in-store communication budgets and offers similar design-to-installation project delivery.

Emerging players

• Vistaprint (Cimpress): Cimpress/Vistaprint operates a global custom printing platform including large-format fabric, signage, and POS materials relevant to retail display customers. It competes with Kendu's digital printing services arm on price-led multi-site retail campaigns, although it lacks Kendu's integrated design and proprietary hardware stack.

Broad incumbents

• Avery Dennison: Avery Dennison is a global incumbent in retail labels, RFID, and graphics materials with deep enterprise retail relationships. Its label and intelligent-label businesses overlap with Kendu's RFID Lift-and-Learn interactive retail offering, and its graphics materials footprint gives retailers an alternative one-stop supplier for in-store visual media.
• 3M Commercial Solutions: 3M is a broad incumbent offering graphics films, signage substrates, and modular display materials used across retail environments. While not vertically integrated like Kendu, 3M's retail graphics franchise competes for the same shelf space of in-store visual communication budgets and underwrites the technology base (e.g., adhesive vinyls) that Kendu spec-in to its Smartframe and Flowbox systems.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/kenduinstore
• Facebookfacebook.com/KenduInStore
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kenduinstore

Compliance7 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about kendu