Mindshare Raises Funds to Buy Empathica

US-based customer feedback specialist Mindshare Technologies has raised an undisclosed amount of new capital, and used it to fund the acquisition of Canadian social media customer experience management (CEM) firm Empathica.

Empathica is headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, with an office in Birmingham, UK, and consultants based in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Bozeman, Montana. The company says it collects thirty million completed customer surveys each year, in 25 languages, and its surveying and dashboard reporting software provides clients with marketing insights and performance-improvement solutions.

According to Mindshare, the acquisition will establish it as the 'leading provider' of voice-of-customer (VoC) feedback solutions to clients across the food services and retail industries, as well as expanding its contact centers, its presence in hospitality and other sectors, and its footprint in both North America and Europe.

Funding for the deal was led by Peterson Partners, with support by previous investor Sorenson Capital, which provided Mindshare with a $20m investment back in 2011.

CEO John Sperry (pictured) comments: 'This acquisition gives the world's leading brands access to the most comprehensive customer feedback solutions on the market, and we are thrilled to have the support of these two premier private equity firms.'

Web sites: www.mshare.net and www.empathica.com .