Web Services Firm Preation Acquires eWeb Designs

Durham, N.C. — Preation, a provider of website services that is owned by iContact co-founder Aaron Houghton, has acquired eWeb Designs.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Preation will add more than 100 clients to its customer base as part of the deal. Operations for the combined company will be based in Durham, said Preation senior web strategist Neil Lancia.

Lancia would not comment when asked if Timothy Seward, eWeb Designs’ founder and chief executive officer, would join Preation.

Preation offers Web services ranging from site development to custom applications and marketing. Following the acquisition, the 11-year-old company has 10 full-time employees.

“Business is really good for us,” Lanica said in a phone interview. “We have expanded staff to handle the inflow of business. Companies are interested in Web application development and e-commerce – things that go beyond a basic Web site.”


The companies had worked together before, partnering to provide eWeb Design clients with Preation’s content management system.

“Over the last five years the eWeb Designs team has built an impressive national client base, helping businesses and organizations of all sizes get a professionally designed website and begin acquiring customers online,” Lanica said in a statement.

Houghton co-founded iConact, an e-mail communications and services firm, along with Ryan Allis. iContact recently landed more than $5 million in venture capital funding. He is the sole owner of Preation, Lanica said.

The eWeb deal may not be the last for Preation.

“We are actively seeking both strategic partnerships and acquisitions that will allow us to accelerate the influence of our Web content management and e-commerce platforms and we are encouraged with the response we have seen in just the third quarter of this year,” Houghton said in a statement.