Only have 1 minute? Here are 3 key takeaways:
- Bulgarian school management platform Shkolo.bg has been acquired by the UK-based Juniper Education, a leader in classroom solutions.
- Shkolo.bg is implemented in more than 1,800 educational institutions in Bulgaria to enhance communication among teachers, students, and parents.
- With plans to adapt to the UK market, this acquisition marks a strategic move for EdTech’s further expansion.
Shkolo.bg, the largest Bulgarian administrative and management software platform for schools, was acquired by the British company Juniper Education, a provider of solutions for classrooms. The price of the deal remains undisclosed.
The company, founded in 2016 is addressing key issues in schools such as minimizing bureaucracy and increasing parent and student engagement. More than 1,800 educational institutions in Bulgaria use their services. The software provides a space for communication between teachers, students, and parents, including digital class register learning content, testing materials, and other features.
Juniper Education works with over 14,000 schools in the United Kingdom, offering integrated software solutions for the classroom, administration, and human resource management. The company is backed by Horizon, a leading investor in fast-growing companies, with focus in the services field.
Shkolo will be soon adapted to the UK’s market as an integrated solution with leading market technologies for schools. The acquisition will strengthen the company for further expansion on other international markets.
“Our mission to help teachers and directors spend more time focused on children and less on administration aligns perfectly with what Juniper offers in the United Kingdom. With the additional resources and expertise of Juniper, we will further support directors, teachers, and students who use our innovative platform”, shares Lubomir Vanov, the manager of Shkolo.
Shkolo was established in 2016 by Lyubomir Vanyov (CTO), Miroslav Dzhokanov (CEO), Simeon Predov (CCO), and Alexander Stoyanov (Chief Mobile Division). It is the first company to have successfully completed two of Endeavor Bulgaria’s programs – Dare to Scale in 2021 and the Regional Support Program in 2022.
Update (18.01): After the acquisition was announced, thе Bulgarian Ministry of Education and Science issuеd an audit of the dеal by the State Agency for National Security, and the Commission for Personal Data Protection.
In a Facebook post the former CEO, Miroslav Dzhokanov, clarified that the data from the logs (grades, absences, addresses, names, etc.) is not property of Shkolo. Therefore, it is not subject to thе sale, and Juniper Education won’t be able to access it. The owners of the data are the school authoritiеs only.
He also added that Shkolo has engineers who have access to the database. Each of them has signed a special agreement related to the protection of personal data.
“The main objective behind the acquisition of Shkolo from the UK company is to implement the know-how into its existing infrastructure”, adds Dzhokanov.
