About JTL

Community-driven
eCommerce for the
retail of tomorrow

It sounds like a Silicon Valley story – made in Germany: two brothers from the Heinsberg district program computer games while at school and university and develop an ERP system for friends that is now used by thousands of retailers in German-speaking countries.

JTL, founded in 2008 and headquartered in Hückelhoven, is growing from NRW into a Europe-wide tech company and is working to help shape the digital retail of the future – supported by a 360-degree portfolio, SaaS applications, community-driven development, reliable in-house support and fair cooperation.

Über JTL

About the company

  • Name

    JTL-Software-GmbH

  • Managing Director

    CEO: Sebastian Evers | CFO: Dario Tato

  • Industry

    Software / eCommerce

  • Best known product

    JTL-Wawi

  • Locations

    Hückelhoven (head office), Hürth, Halle an der Saale, Kassel

2008Founding year
460Employees in the group
500+Partner
50000+

Customers

Founding years

From game programming to ERP

Two brothers, one hobby: Janusch and Thomas Lisson have been programming computer games since their school days. Their first game, published online in 1996, was discovered by a computer magazine and was to be published as a CD supplement. A company name was needed on the spur of the moment. Without further ado, they threw their initials together – and JTL-Software was born. In 2001, the first JTL homepage goes online, initially as a free platform for their PC games. The foundation stone for JTL is laid.

What begins as a playground becomes a game changer: word gets around about the brothers’ coding talent. An acquaintance asked them to develop a merchandise management system for his business. They agreed, delivered – and opened the first chapter of the JTL growth story.

Development of the JTL community

Freeware and forum as the engine of product development

Shortly afterwards, Thomas and Janusch made their first ERP system available as freeware on their platform under the name “eazySales” – just like their games before them. The first requests quickly followed, especially from the up-and-coming eCommerce sector. An ERP system specifically for mail order meets the requirements of the still young industry.

In order to help many users at the same time, the brothers set up their own forum. A lively community emerges, which continues to shape the course of JTL to this day: Features are developed in close exchange – in the spirit of community-driven development. By popular demand, the brothers develop a self-hosted store system and an interface to eBay in night and weekend shifts. This is how JTL grows together with its merchants.

In 2007, the JTL brand is integrated into the product names: eazySales becomes JTL-Wawi. 2008 sees the official founding of JTL-Software-GmbH – the hobby project becomes a company.

Joint growth

The eCommerce and JTL
on course for expansion

Online business is growing – and with it the requirements of retailers. In order to keep pace, JTL is continuously expanding its product portfolio: in 2011, JTL-Wawi will receive an interface to Amazon. What retailers are still missing are optimized warehouse processes. JTL gets to work and launches the JTL-WMS warehouse management system in 2013, followed two years later by the JTL-Packing Bench+. JTL thus established itself as a pioneer of holistic eCommerce solutions.

Not only the portfolio, but also the company grows. In 2012, JTL opens a second location in Hürth, just outside Cologne, in addition to its headquarters in Hückelhoven. Further branches are added in the following years: store development is now based in Halle (Saale) and the new partner management team sets up a branch near Kassel.

Another milestone follows in 2015: the in-house trade fair JTL Connect celebrates its premiere in Düsseldorf – with almost 1,000 visitors. Since then, the event has become a permanent fixture in German-speaking eCommerce. It takes place every two years; the eighth edition is planned for 2026.

Clear strategy and structures

JTL lays the foundation for the
next era

Today, JTL is a leading provider in German eCommerce – with more than 50,000 customers, including TEDi, Pustefix, Fynch-Hatton, Ankerkraut and Seeberger. At the same time, small retailers and start-ups remain in focus: They can get started quickly and cost-effectively with JTL. The coronavirus pandemic has shown just how important this is: During the lockdowns, inexpensive, easy-to-set-up eCommerce software gained existential importance, especially for retailers.

In order to put the rapid growth on a sustainable footing and to bundle the expertise in a team of several hundred employees, JTL is setting up new specialist departments and management structures from 2020. Thomas and Janusch retire from the operational business after more than fifteen years.

In 2023, JTL sets a new course: a strategic partnership with the international software investor Hg creates the basis for European expansion and further product development. Since then, JTL has been gradually expanding its portfolio by acquiring specialized solution providers in order to comprehensively cover as many customer needs as possible. The company is headed by Sebastian Evers as CEO and Dario Tato as CFO.

JTL customers already benefit from a high level of innovation, a comprehensive product portfolio and a great partner community. Our common goal is to further strengthen the performance for our customers and to powerfully expand our position in the market with a view to the entire DACH region.

Sebastian Evers
Managing Director JTL-Software-GmbH
Everything from a single source

Holistic solutions for the retail of tomorrow

The JTL ecosystem offers merchants everything they need for success in eCommerce. JTL-Wawi is the centerpiece and remains free of charge in the “JTL Start” edition. All products interlock seamlessly and are continuously developed further.

Customer orientation continues to be the driving force in the company. With the POS solution JTL-POS for retailers, the JTL-Fulfillment Network and the manufacturing software JTL-Plan&Produce for manufacturing and finishing retailers, JTL has opened up new business areas in recent years. Further projects are being planned and implemented.

By merging under the umbrella of the JTL Group, customers benefit from a holistic and constantly expanding range of solutions that already includes automated customer communication, document management, international VAT processing, financial accounting integration, returns management, price optimization and intelligent shipping tools – so that retailers can map their end-to-end processes centrally.

Our roadmap keeps you up to date on JTL’s current direction of travel.

Apply to JTL
Career & Jobs
Would you like to play an active role in shaping the future of eCommerce and are you looking for a long-term perspective with one of the leading software providers in the DACH region? Then you've come to the right place. Become part of our agile and young JTL team at our locations in Hückelhoven, Hürth (Cologne), Lohfelden (Kassel), Halle (Saale) - or work completely remotely.
Learn more
What is JTL?
JTL is the short form of the company name JTL-Software-GmbH. JTL supports you in all areas of eCommerce. The core product is the ERP system JTL-Wawi, with which you can automate and flexibly scale the majority of your daily tasks - the optimal solution for all sales order volumes, warehouse sizes and sales channels.