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Salesforce announced on June 1, 2016, that it would acquire Demandware for approximately $2.8 billion, net of cash acquired, in a deal offering $75 per share in cash. The acquisition closed on July 11, 2016, and Demandware became Salesforce Commerce Cloud. Salesforce later reported a total purchase price of approximately $2.9 billion in its fiscal 2017 annual report; that accounting figure is distinct from the announcement’s net-of-cash value.
What Salesforce agreed to buy
Demandware was an enterprise cloud commerce platform. Salesforce framed the acquisition as an extension of its Customer Success Platform into digital commerce, adding commerce to capabilities it described as including sales, service, marketing, communities, analytics, IoT, and its platform services. In practical terms, the combination was a strategic adjacency: Salesforce was extending a customer relationship platform into commerce through an established enterprise provider. That describes the announced rationale, not a measured result of the acquisition.
In the June 1 announcement, Salesforce said brands including Design Within Reach, Lands’ End, L’Oréal, and Marks & Spencer used Demandware for commerce across web, mobile, social, and in-store channels. Those examples and the company’s vision of connecting with customers across channels were presented by Salesforce and Demandware, not as an independent assessment of market position. [Salesforce and Demandware announcement]
How much Salesforce offered—and why two figures appear
| Figure | What it describes | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Approximately $2.8 billion | Announced transaction value, explicitly net of cash acquired | June 2016 announcement |
| $75 per share in cash | Cash consideration offered in the tender offer | Salesforce Form 8-K |
| Approximately $2.9 billion | Total purchase price reported later by Salesforce in its fiscal 2017 annual report | Salesforce fiscal 2017 annual report |
The $2.8 billion and $2.9 billion figures use different descriptions: the first is the announced value net of cash acquired, while the later filing reports total purchase price. The cited materials do not provide a full reconciliation, so the figures should not be treated as interchangeable or as evidence of a specific adjustment.
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From agreement to completed acquisition
- May 31, 2016: Salesforce entered into a merger agreement with Demandware and its acquisition subsidiary. The proposed cash tender offer was $75 per share and was subject to customary conditions, including tenders representing more than 50% of the shares and regulatory steps. (Form 8-K)
- June 1, 2016: The companies publicly announced the definitive agreement and described the transaction value as approximately $2.8 billion net of cash acquired. (Announcement)
- June 10, 2016: Salesforce announced commencement of the tender offer. (Announcement)
- June 17, 2016: The Federal Trade Commission’s early termination notice records the Salesforce/Demandware matter. (FTC notice)
- June 30, 2016: Salesforce said all required regulatory approvals had been received. (Announcement)
- July 11, 2016: Salesforce announced that the acquisition was complete and identified Demandware as the new Salesforce Commerce Cloud. (Completion announcement)
The original announcement forecast a close in Salesforce’s second fiscal quarter of 2017, ending July 31, 2016. That was a forecast; the actual completion date was July 11. [June 2016 announcement]
What Demandware became
After the acquisition, Salesforce described Demandware as Salesforce Commerce Cloud, part of its Customer Success Platform. The July 11 completion release stated the name and positioning at the time; it does not by itself establish later product naming, packaging, or integration outcomes. [Salesforce completion announcement]
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the deal does—and does not—show
The official deal materials establish the offer terms, stated strategic rationale, and completion date. Salesforce’s announcement referred to a “multi-billion dollar digital commerce market,” but the cited passage supplies neither a precise market-size estimate nor a methodology. It is company positioning, not an independently substantiated market statistic. The deal announcements also do not establish the acquisition’s later financial performance, realized synergies, or integration results.
Demandware was enterprise software, not a consumer product purchase. The acquisition therefore does not imply a relevant physical product recommendation for an individual shopper.
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