The Platform Group – executive interview

The Platform Group, based in Düsseldorf, Germany, provides platform solutions that bring together suppliers and customers, both B2B and B2C, in the ecommerce world across more than 20 industries in Europe, with aspirations to grow to beyond Europe in the medium term. In FY23, the company reported pro forma gross merchandise volume (GMV) of €705m, revenue of c €441m and adjusted EBITDA of €22.6m (a margin of 5.1%). Management has recently increased its FY25 financial guidance to GMV of €1.1bn, revenue of €550m and an adjusted EBITDA margin of 7–10%, which would represent CAGRs of 25%, 12% and at least 31%, respectively.

In this interview, Dr Dominik Benner, chairman of the board of directors and CEO, provides an overview of how The Platform Group has evolved, the services it provides for its partners, and how these services are differentiated versus its competitors and peers. He then discusses the structural drivers for the group. Management has been clear that M&A will continue to be a key growth driver as the company seeks to develop a presence in other industries, with the aim of covering 30 industries by FY25. Dominik outlines how the company approaches M&A. He concludes by reviewing the company’s financial results and forward financial guidance.