PrestaShop: From Student Project to European E-commerce Leader - The Complete Epic (2005-2025)

PrestaShop: From Student Project to European E-commerce Leader - The Complete Epic (2005-2025) PrestaShop embodies one of the finest French entrepreneurial successes of the digital era. From an Epitech student project in 2005 to an e-commerce platform generating 22 billion euros in sales for 300,000 merchants worldwide, this 20-year success story perfectly illustrates French innovation capacity against American industry giants. With the recent launch of PrestaShop 9.0 in June 2025, the company begins a new chapter in its history, marked by ambitious technical modernization and renewed competitive challenges.

The Roots of a Digital Revolution (2005-2007)

PrestaShop’s story begins in 2005 in the corridors of Epitech, where Bruno Lévêque, then 19 years old and already a prodigy developer since age 12, initiates a student project that would change the landscape of French e-commerce. Accompanied by four Epitech classmates - M. Morel, M. Saintot, M. Da-Silva, and M. Borde - and guided by his mentor Igor Schlumberger, serial entrepreneur and founder of LeGuide.com, Bruno Lévêque transforms a simple end-of-studies project into a commercial empire.

The French context of 2005 was conducive to e-commerce innovation. The French market had only 5,800 active sites, computer equipment rate reached 44.7% of households, and existing solutions like osCommerce showed their limitations. “In 2007, I wanted to democratize access to e-commerce: make it easier for online sellers to get started and help them create an online store,” explains Bruno Lévêque, revealing a vision that would prove prophetic.

The team dedicates over 3,000 hours of development between November 2005 and February 2007, collaborating directly with real merchants to create a solution truly adapted to market needs. This collaborative approach, revolutionary for the time, lays the foundation for the community DNA that would make PrestaShop successful.

The Open Source Explosion that Conquers Europe (2007-2015)

The official launch in 2007 marks the beginning of phenomenal 40% annual growth that propels PrestaShop to European reference status. The numbers speak for themselves: 1,000 downloads in the first month, spontaneous translation into 13 languages by the community in three months, then explosive expansion reaching 165,000 active shops in 2013.

The open source strategy proves to be a competitive masterstroke. While Magento doesn’t yet exist and osCommerce stagnates, PrestaShop revolutionizes the sector with its freemium model - free software funded by a marketplace of paid modules and themes. This approach allows the company to raise $9.3 million in 2014 and reach $5 billion in sales generated by its merchant community.

International expansion accelerates with the opening of a Miami office in 2011, targeting the American market. The community explodes to reach 1 million members in 2015, creating an ecosystem of 3,200 modules and themes that constantly enriches the platform. This period sees the birth of strategic partnerships with eBay, PayPal, and Google that position PrestaShop as a professional solution.

The Technical Transformation that Forges Maturity (2016-2022)

The 2016-2022 period marks a radical transformation with migration to Symfony, a major technical challenge that modernizes PrestaShop’s architecture. This overhaul, announced in December 2015 and realized with PrestaShop 1.7 in November 2016, represents a crucial turning point in the platform’s technical history.

The business model evolution accelerates with the development of PrestaShop Cloud in 2015, quickly abandoned in favor of a paid premium approach. The company generates over 20 million euros in revenue in 2020 through its marketplace and strategic partnerships with PayPal (PrestaShop Checkout), Google, Meta, and Microsoft.

Competitive challenges intensify with Shopify’s emergence and WooCommerce’s growing dominance. PrestaShop maintains its European position - 35% French market share - but struggles to establish itself against SaaS giants in the global market. This period reveals the limits of the open source model against the ease of use of all-in-one solutions.

The MBE Worldwide Acquisition: New Industrial Era (2021)

Contrary to persistent rumors, PrestaShop was never acquired by PayPal. The reality is different: in November 2021, MBE Worldwide, an Italian group specializing in logistics and business services, acquires PrestaShop to create a global commerce platform integrating digital e-commerce and physical logistics services.

This strategic acquisition, supported by Intesa Sanpaolo and Banco BPM, aims to combine “atoms and bits” - digital and physical - to serve MBE’s 700,000 professional clients and PrestaShop’s 300,000 merchants. Paolo Fiorelli, MBE CEO, explains this vision: “By combining atoms and bits, we will further differentiate our unique market positioning.”

Alexandre Eruimy is maintained as Managing Director, preserving PrestaShop’s operational autonomy while benefiting from the Italian group’s resources. This transition marks the passage from a French tech startup to a subsidiary of an international industrial group, with major implications for the European e-commerce ecosystem.

PrestaShop 9.0: Ambitious Technical Modernization (2025)

PrestaShop 9.0, officially launched on June 10, 2025 after more than two years of collaborative development, marks a major architectural evolution for the platform. This version introduces modern technical foundations with Symfony 6.4 LTS, PHP 8.4 support, a new administration API, and significant performance improvements.

The technical modernization is complete, migrating from Symfony 4.4 to Symfony 6.4 LTS, guaranteeing security updates until November 2027. This overhaul represents a major strategic investment, significantly reducing technical debt accumulated since previous versions.

The new administration API, based on API Platform 3.4.8, introduces an OAuth authorization protocol and CQRS (Command Query Responsibility Segregation) architecture, facilitating integrations with third-party CRM, ERP, and marketing tools. This API marks a break with the old WebService system, offering modern integration capabilities conforming to REST standards.

Performance gains are substantial thanks to rendering optimization by presenters. TTFB (Time To First Byte) shows a 50% improvement compared to previous versions, while concurrent request handling is optimized for large catalogs.

The Statistical Legacy of a French Success Story

PrestaShop’s 2025 figures testify to considerable economic impact. With 22 billion euros in facilitated sales, 300,000 active shops in 60 languages, and a dominant position in Europe, PrestaShop has democratized e-commerce for millions of SMEs.

Geographic distribution reveals European anchoring: 32% French clients, 23% Spanish, 13% Italian, confirming continental leadership. This concentration contrasts with Shopify’s global ambitions (26% global market share) and WooCommerce (39% global market share), revealing both the strength and limits of the PrestaShop model.

The ecosystem directly employs 413 employees and generates thousands of indirect jobs via its network of 250,000 developer partners and agencies. The impact on the French economy is notable: with 35% national market share, PrestaShop has contributed to the digital transformation of 99.8% of French companies that are SMEs.

Competitive Positioning and Contemporary Challenges

PrestaShop maintains a niche position against WooCommerce’s dominance (66.48% to 69.89% of the market) and Shopify (17.72% to 29% depending on regions). With 0.29% to 0.49% global market shares, PrestaShop nevertheless maintains a solid base of 183,767 active shops using the platform.

PrestaShop 9.0’s reception reveals a dichotomy between technical enthusiasm and practical concerns. Developers welcome architectural modernization but express major concerns about existing module compatibility. Specialized agencies adopt a cautious position, advising against immediate migration for production sites.

Over 65 contributors participated in version 9.0 development, with approximately 80% of contributions from PrestaShop SA. This intense community collaboration testifies to ecosystem engagement, despite adoption challenges.

Strategic Vision and Future Perspectives

Leadership articulates an ambitious vision. Éric Sénéchal, Managing Director, states: “Our ambition is to become the leading commerce platform enabling businesses worldwide to accelerate their growth through a perfectly integrated PrestaShop/MBE offering.”

The official development cycle plans major versions every 12-18 months. PrestaShop 9.1 is expected late 2025/early 2026, while PrestaShop 10.0 is already in planning for 2026-2027. Technological commitment relies on Symfony 6.4 LTS, guaranteeing stability until November 2027.

Integration with MBE Worldwide opens new perspectives with MBE eShip plugin development, logistics services integration, and global commerce offering creation. Maintained partnerships with PayPal, Google, and Microsoft, completed by new agreements with Klaviyo and Wish, position PrestaShop to face the 2025-2035 decade.

Ecosystem Challenges and Opportunities

Adoption challenges remain significant. Migration complexity from PrestaShop 8.x requires deep technical expertise, limiting immediate adoption to experienced developers and new projects. Update Assistant 7.0, completely redesigned, aims to simplify this process.

Strategic opportunities emerge from technical modernization. The new API facilitates headless and API-first integrations, responding to modern commerce trends. Support for WebP and AVIF image formats, mobile-first optimization, and TypeScript architecture position PrestaShop for future evolutions.

The module ecosystem undergoes a critical transition phase. PrestaShop Addons Marketplace introduced new fees (€99/year/module) since May 2024, impacting economic dynamics. This evolution, combined with compatibility challenges, generates a wait-and-see attitude among module publishers.

Conclusion: The Legacy of an Entrepreneurial Epic

PrestaShop perfectly embodies French entrepreneurial spirit in tech: a bold vision carried by young talents, remarkable execution based on open source, and adaptation capacity against international giants. From Epitech student project to European e-commerce leader, this 20-year epic has transformed the French and European commercial landscape.

The acquisition by MBE Worldwide and PrestaShop 9.0 launch mark not an end, but a transformation toward a hybrid industrial model combining technology and logistics. This evolution illustrates French tech ecosystem maturity, capable of creating European champions even against American GAFAM dominance.

PrestaShop 9.0 represents a major strategic investment in technical modernization, laying foundations for a competitive platform for the next decade. While immediate adoption is slowed by compatibility challenges, this version establishes the necessary technological bases to compete with market leaders.

PrestaShop’s story demonstrates that with clear vision, impeccable execution, and constant adaptation capacity, it is possible to create from France technological solutions of global scale. This lesson inspires an entire generation of French entrepreneurs who continue to innovate in the European digital economy, proving that French technical excellence can prevail against global sector giants.