AussieCommerce acquires LivingSocial Australia; Recruitment platform Rision to list on ASX; Breville names new chief executive: Midday Roundup

Smart50 finalist AussieCommerce has acquired the Australian and New Zealand operations of deals website LivingSocial for an undisclosed sum.

LivingSocial has more than one million active regional subscribers and AussieCommerce said in a statement this morning the acquisition will boost its reach to more than eight million members in Australia and New Zealand.

LivingSocial’s local operations are based in Sydney and employ 95 staff.

It’s the latest in a string of acquisitions for AussieCommerce, which snapped up the Australian arm of PINCHme last week and New Zealand e-commerce group DailyDo in December 2014.

AussieCommerce now counts 15 brands in its portfolio and is forecasting turnover of more than $200 million for the 2015 financial year.

Recruitment platform Rision to list on ASX

Cloud-based recruitment platform Rision is readying to list on the Australian Securities Exchange in a reverse takeover planned for next month.

The startup, founded by 67-year-old app developer Robert Day, plans to raise $4 million in fresh capital to accelerate its local and international growth after it takes over listed company Reclaim Industries Limited (RCM) in mid-May.

Day has spent 15 years developing the platform, which enables companies in industries such as retail and hospitality to recruit and manage shift-workers.

“With the number of workers employed on a contingent, part-time or project basis predicted to grow to more than half of the US and Australian workforce by 2020, the market has been crying out for a solution to the HR headache of hiring and managing such a fluid workforce,” Day said in a statement.

Rision has already raised a total of $3 million since late 2014 and has customers in Australia and the US.

Breville names new chief executive

Appliance manufacturer Breville Group, which is part owned by retail magnate Solomon Lew, has appointed former LG Electronics executive Jim Clayton as its chief executive officer.

Breville has been conducting an “extensive search” for a new boss since its previous chief executive, Jack Lord, suddenly stepped down from the role in August last year.

Breville chairman Steven Fisher told shareholders in a statement Clayton was “an experienced executive with a strong background in consumer products, technology and innovation”.

“Breville’s Food Thinking strategy is to make the home cooking experience a premium experience through a combination of innovation and superior quality products. Jim’s mandate will be to build on this strategy by expanding both our culinary touch points with the consumer and our global presence,” said Fisher.

Clayton, who will take over the role on July 1, said he was “excited by the opportunity to lead Breville, an iconic brand in Australia which has established a solid foundation for growth, both domestically and internationally.”

Shares up on open

Aussie shares have traded higher this morning, as investors wait the release of the latest retail sales data and the outcome of this afternoon’s meeting of the Reserve Bank of Australia.

Michael McCarthy, chief market strategist at CMC Markets, said in a statement there is still a chance the RBA may opt to leave official rates unchanged today.

“Short-term interest futures have backed away slightly but are still implying a 60% probability of a cut today,” McCarthy said.

“With a cut ‘baked in’ to current levels, a decision to hold could bring disappointment in trading this afternoon.”

The S&P/ASX 200 benchmark was up 72.5 points to 5971.1 points at 11.53am AEST. Last week, the Dow Jones closed 117.61 points higher, up 0.66% to 17880.8 points