2024 Automotive News All-Stars | Digital retail: Devin Daly
When dealership software company Impel raised a $104 million growth equity financing round in January 2023, it had previously undertaken two acquisitions. CEO Devin Daly was looking for a third — or more.
“We wanted to have some dry powder to be able to acquire businesses,” Daly, 34, told Automotive News.
In the interim, some of that money fueled research and development. But the bulk of it — more than $100 million in cash — went toward buying software rival Outsell in July with an eye on building a bigger offering that could reach more dealerships. Impel, of Syracuse, N.Y., was known up to that point as an artificial intelligence-centered digital marketing platform for dealerships. Outsell, launched in Minneapolis in 2004, used first-party data, machine learning technology and predictive AI to automate and maximize customer engagement.
The combined company uses AI to drive sales and marketing automation, something Daly said is filling a vital role at dealerships as they seek to boost efficiency, cut costs and improve the customer experience. It employs roughly 500 people, including 170 from Outsell, with a market that includes more than 8,000 dealerships in 51 countries.
Combining each side’s technology has gone well so far, he said.
“The teams are fully integrated,” Daly said. “We delivered several quick wins from a product integration standpoint.”
Further details are coming at the NADA Show in New Orleans in January, where Impel will unveil the combined company plus enhanced or new products stemming from the acquisition.
“Every day we realize how much more value there is in the Outsell deal than was initially anticipated,” Daly said. “We’ve been pleasantly surprised and no buyer’s remorse.”
