Our Product Pick

SmartMetric (Las Vegas, NV) has showcased its biometrically-secure credit card. A sensor on the card's surface enables sub-second scanning of the end-user's fingerprint, which is then compared with his or her pre-stored fingerprint inside the card. A match turns on the card. Significantly, the card carries its own internal power source, which gets recharged by the credit/debit terminal or ATM. As "dual-interface," the card accommodates both contact and contactless. "We see the future of the credit card as a multi-function and multi-application platform that can be used in a variety of combined situations such as storing a person's vital medical records while also being used as a day-to-day credit card," stated Chaya Hendrick, President and CEO of SmartMetric.

SmartMetric's Biometric Credit Card

COMPANY BUSINESS

A New Equation at Lightspeed

A change at the top of Lightspeed POS (Montreal, QC, Canada) with JP Chauvet, current President, named CEO, and Founder and CEO Dax Dasilva moving to Executive Chair of its Board of Directors. As Executive Chair, Dasilva will focus in the area of "corporate social responsibility, diversity, and global sustainability." He started Lightspeed in 2005.

Chauvet joined Lightspeed in October 2012 as Chief Revenue Officer and entered the Board of Directors in September 2013. He became President in April 2016. An interesting several years for Lightspeed, with rapid growth, major acquisitions in e-commerce and POS (i.e., Ecwid, NuOrder, ShopKeep, Vend), introduction of new products (e.g., Lightspeed Restaurant, Lightspeed Payments), and public offering of stock (which has come down to earth after reaching $159 in September 2021). In its latest earnings call for Q3 2022, it raised its revenue outlook for the fiscal year to $540-$544 million, up from $520-$535 million.

"As Lightspeed accelerates its One Lightspeed integration efforts--bringing the most innovative companies in the digital commerce space together under a shared goal to drive merchant value--we will advance our efforts to become the leading global omnichannel platform," proposed Chauvet. "I'm committed to executing the next step of our journey, including the expansion of our global footprint through our retail and hospitality flagship products, and redefining how our customers do business." A former Google CFO, Patrick Pichette, will be the Lead Independent Director on the Board.

At Lightspeed, JP Chauvet (At Left) Becomes CEO, and Founder and CEO Dax Dasilva (At Right) moves to Executive Chair

An Apple Falls in POS

As long expected, Apple (Cupertino, CA) will enable businesses to accept contactless payments through "Tap to Pay" on its iPhone. Starting this spring, payment platforms and app developers may integrate this function into iOS. It will be supported with iPhone XS (but not iPhone 6, 7, 8), and will be first offered by Stripe, including Shopify.

It builds upon technology from Mobeewave, which Apple bought in 2020. At checkout, the merchant will prompt the customer to hold their iPhone or Apple Watch to pay with Apple Pay, their contactless credit or debit card, or another digital wallet near the merchant's iPhone (or, one assumes, iPad). All transactions made using Tap to Pay on iPhone are encrypted and processed using the Secure Element, similar to Apple Pay, with no identification of what is being purchased, or by whom.

"As more and more consumers are tapping to pay with digital wallets and credit cards, Tap to Pay on iPhone will provide businesses with a secure, private, and easy way to accept contactless payments and unlock new checkout experiences," postulated Jennifer Bailey, Apple's VP of Apple Pay and Apple Wallet. "In collaboration with payment platforms, app developers, and payment networks, we're making it easier than ever for businesses of all sizes--from solopreneurs to large retailers--to seamlessly accept contactless payments and continue to grow their business." In making its announcement, Apple reported that Apple Pay is now accepted by 90% of retailers in the U.S.

Apple to Offer Tap to Pay for iPhone

Worth Your While

Bar & Restaurant Expo
Questex LLC
March 21-23
Las Vegas, NV

Shoptalk
Shoptalk Commerce LLC
March 27-30
Las Vegas, NV

Modex
Modern Materials Handling
March 28-31
Atlanta, GA

Transact
Electronic Transactions Association
April 12-14
Las Vegas, NV

NRA Show
National Restaurant Association
May 21-24
Chicago, IL

NRF Supply Chain 360
National Retail Federation
June 20-21
Cleveland, OH

RetailNOW
Retail Solutions Providers Association
July 24-26
Orlando, FL

FSTEC
Winsight
September 19-21
Dallas, TX

MJBizCon
MJBizDaily
November 15-18
Las Vegas, NV

ALL IN THE FAMILY

Epson Raises Its Colors

Epson America (Los Alamitos, CA) has debuted its newest on-demand color label printer, the ColorWorks C4000. Employing ink-jet technology, the ColorWorks C4000 features maximum print width of 4.25"/108 mm and maximum print speed of 4"/102 mm per second at resolution of 300x600. Also, it has the capability to produce photo-quality images and barcodes with resolution of up to 1200 dpi.

In near-cube dimensions of 12.2"/310 mm (W) x 11.1"/283 mm (D) x 11.2"/285 mm (H), weighing 28.7 lbs./13 kg, the ColorWorks C4000 has 2.7" full-color graphic display and 9-key pad for local configuration and operation. It furnishes compatibility with Zebra ZPL II, SAP, Windows, Mac, and Linux. As interfaces, there's standard USB 2.0 and Ethernet 1000BASE-T/100BASE-TX/10-BASE-T. (Also, optional WLAN.)

"Our ColorWorks C4000 brings a comprehensive suite of features and tools into a compact, easy-to-use label printer. This new model is a dynamic solution for a range of labeling applications, from product or packaging labels to barcode and shipping labels," flourished Bonny Rindahl, Product Manager, Commercial Label Printers, Epson America. "It is designed to integrate seamlessly into a variety of workflows and produce high-quality, durable labels at a competitive price point to existing thermal transfer printers."

ColorWorks C4000 Color Label Printer by Epson

DTG: RFID on Wheels

Definitive Technology Group (Wilmington, MA), which provides industrial power systems and mobile workstations, and also goes by the tag DTG, has rolled out its new Fixed RFID PowerStation. A Premier ISV in Zebra Technologies' PartnerConnect Program, DTG has chosen Zebra's FX9600 Fixed RFID Reader. A configuration developed for an unspecified major retailer, it now becomes commercially available.

With full-metal industrial design and construction, weighing 75 lbs./34 kg, DTG's Fixed RFID PowerStation has 10 ft./3 m telescoping antenna pole for side and top-down reads. It includes DTG's hot-swappable Lithium-Ion-Phosphate Battery Management System. It welcomes laptop, printer, and monitor. It also facilitates wireless Bluetooth or WLAN.

"The growth of RFID technology for asset tracking, inventory management, and order fulfillment is gaining huge traction as retailers, manufacturers, and others look for greater accuracy, efficiency, and speed," observed Steve Shaheen, Founder and CEO of DTG. "Through our collaboration with Zebra, we developed a mobile workstation that can automate the identifying and tracking of data in warehouses, fulfillment centers, and other locations." In addition to Zebra's FX9600, DTG provides its PowerStation for use with most RAIN UHF Readers.

DTG's Industrial Fixed RFID PowerStation

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Week of January 24

Week of January 10

Year in Review 2021

ALLIANCES

A Flyover for Flybuy (at ParTech)

An interesting integration for ParTech (New Hartford, NY), in the form of location technology platform, Flybuy from Radius Networks (Washington, DC). It comprises four elements: Flybuy Pick-Up, Flybuy Drive-Thru, Flybuy Pay, and Flybuy Tableside. In conjunction with ParTech's Brink POS, it has been deployed at sizeable brands such as El Pollo Loco, Tropical Smoothie Cafe, and Pizza Patron.

"ParTech and Flybuy have a very collaborative, innovative partnership that touches all aspects of the customer experience," relayed Dan Estrada, Chief Strategy Officer at Flybuy. "We both want to give restaurants powerful, easy-to-use, future-proof solutions that reduce headaches for customers, staff, and everyone else involved so everyone gets the best experience out of every order." With over 30,000 deployed locations, Flybuy is delivered as Software-as-a-Service (SaaS).

"The Flybuy team has built an intuitive, surreptitious cost-saving integration that can make a huge difference in day-to-day operations for both sides of the counter, and we couldn't be more pleased to welcome them to the ParTech ecosystem," remarked Chad Horn, Senior Manager of Partner Sales Enablement at ParTech. "Anyone who uses Brink POS and its related products can now turn on their end-to-end location services at the flip of a switch and immediately enjoy all the benefits." Another pair of new partners for ParTech: operations management software, Jolt (Lehi, UT), and customer intelligence and market basket analysis, GoGoGuest (San Francisco, CA).

Location Technology Added to Brink POS

Chasing the Phantoms in Supply Chain

A pair of ISVs have joined forces to address critical issues of inventory and supply chain: 4R Systems (Berwin, PA) and Frogmi (Cambridge, MA). A Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), 4R furnishes core functionalities of Demand Planning, Replenishment, Assortment, Allocation, and Markdown. A web-mobile task management solution provider, also delivered by SaaS, Frogmi offers its StoreBeat, StoreWork, StoreComm, and Shelf Management. An impressive list of retail customers for both.

A combined solution brings multiple benefits, according to the two parties, including: identification of phantom inventory, more efficient workflow, automatic synchronization of the SKU and POS, and real-time communication between store operations and corporate headquarters. "Partnering with Frogmi really gives our clients an advantage by improving data at the store level, thereby improving product in-stock positions while enhancing store operations," declared Mark Garland, President and CEO at 4R. On its website, 4R solicits channel categories of Referral Partners, Resellers, and Technology Partners.

"At Frogmi, we aim to empower store associates with new capabilities, simplify and automate processes, and provide visibility," espoused Pablo Godoy, CEO of Frogmi. "Thanks to the integration of our task management platform with the robust analytics provided by 4R, retailers can identify operational gaps in their stores, create a data-based decision-making process, and focus efforts on actions that generate the most significant impact." Of course, both 4R and Frogmi cite the power of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML).

A Partnership Between the Teams of 4R and Frogmi

Code Corner

Innovative Payment Solutions (Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA) has launched its IPSIPay App. Addressing the "unbanked and underbanked," it allows end-users to send money to nearby Mexico, in particular, which is the third largest remittance recipient in the world, representing over $50 billion. In addition to its functionality to send and receive funds, the IPSIPay App also acts as a digital wallet, enabling end-users to perform many banking related functions, including the ability to use a Visa debit card to execute financial transactions, such as ATM. It also enables end-users to invest in crypto-currencies, gold, and silver, if desired.

"Official launch of our IPSIPay App is an important milestone for our company," celebrated William Corbett, CEO of Innovative Payment Solutions. "In addition to Mexico, we are also targeting India and the Philippines, representing three of the top four remittance recipients in the world. Relative to alternatives in the marketplace, our IPSIPay App provides remittance and bank-like services at a discount, providing a viable alternative with lower costs and greater functionality."

[Editor's Note: In case you're wondering, in terms of remittance from the U.S., here's the top five: India, China, Mexico, Philippines, Egypt.]

IPSIPay App for Foreign Remittance by Innovative Payment Solutions

A Message From the Editor

As we enter another year--our 18th!--our mission remains constant: to fill the need for timely, focused, non-biased news in the channel for POS & Auto ID (and now Mobility). If anything, that need grows more pressing in the face of new technologies, go-to-market strategies, business models, and consumer expectations. We look forward to continuing our mission, and welcome your suggestions and thoughts on improvements. Happy New Year.

Michael Kachmar, Editor

ENVIRONMENTS/PLATFORMS

NMI Eyes CRM With IRIS

A step further into the commerce value chain for payment processor NMI (Schaumburger, IL), which has acquired IRIS CRM (Brooklyn, NY). As the result of its payments-centric Customer Relationship Management (CRM), addition of IRIS will enhance merchant prospecting, onboarding (direct-to-processor via "TurboApp"), and management for VARs, ISVs, and ISOs. As further benefits: sophisticated lead management, electronic signature capture, and integrated portfolio reporting.

"NMI believes in creating solutions that enable our partners far beyond the boundaries of traditional payments and focuses on the full commerce experience that they provide," expounded Vijay Sondhi, CEO of NMI. "We define full commerce as providing a seamless solution from sign-up to pay-out. By bringing these two companies together, it accelerates the former part of that vision by delivering a more seamless, swift onboarding experience and additional touchpoints through all stages of the commerce lifecycle."

"We are excited to join forces with NMI and enter this next chapter by combining our expertise and teams to provide mutual clients with greater value amid the evolving payment processing technology landscape," contributed Dimitri Akhrin, President of IRIS CRM. "We worked hard to build a payments-centric CRM, and that expertise, combined with NMI's depth and breadth of partners and solutions, will be incredibly powerful for our clients and their direct-merchant customers to scale." Akhrin will continue as President of IRIS CRM.

NMI Acquires IRIS CRM

On "World" Tour With ePN

A certification of ISV eProcessingNetwork (Houston, TX) by Worldpay from FIS (Atlanta, GA). It includes brick-and-mortar retail, e-commerce, and QuickBooks, covering contact and contactless acceptance of all major card brands, as well as mobile wallets of JCB, UnionPay, Google Pay, and Apple Pay. In pursuing the payments market in small-to-midsized business (SMB), it naturally employs the channel for POS.

As hardware, eProcessingNetwork, which also goes by ePN, offers its resellers the Chipper 2X BT payment module from BBPOS (Roseville, CA and Hong Kong). It has been rebranded by ePN, for Worldpay, as the PremierVerify SCN. As benefits, the three parties cite transaction speed, affordability, security (via PCI and PA-DSS), and compatibility with the cash discount functionality from ePN. The Chipper BT and WisePad S3 by BBPOS are also supported by ePN and Worldpay from FIS.

"By offering more options to our resellers and their merchants, eProcessingNetwork can ensure that they integrate next-gen solutions like contactless, BOPIS (Buy-Online/Pickup-in-Store), cash discounts, and subscription-based services to help elevate the consumer experience and stay ahead of the competition," explained Steve Sotis, President of eProcessingNetwork. "By utilizing the advanced security features that Worldpay provides, and the power and flexibility packed into the PremierVerify SCN through BBPOS, ePN can offer true end-to-end payment options to their VARs, ISVs, ISOs, MSPs." (FYI: In January, Stripe announced it has entered into an agreement to buy BBPOS.)

As Its Payment Terminal for Worldpay, eProcessingNetwork Offers the Chipper 2X BT From BBPOS

Key Advertiser Links

Be sure to visit these vendors for the latest in channel products and offers for resellers.

POS & Peripherals
Aldelo
Electronic Payments
Elo
Epson America
FEC USA
HP
Ingenico
Pioneer Solution
POSBANK USA
Posiflex
Revel Systems
Shift4
Star Micronics

Barcode Printers
Bixolon America
Brother Mobile
Godex Americas
Woosim Systems

Cash Drawers
apg/APG Cash Drawer
Star Micronics

Cash Handling Systems
apg/APG Cash Drawer
CIMA America

Data Collection
CipherLab
Code Corporation
Janam Technologies
Unitech America

Integrated Payment Solutions
Datacap Systems
Electronic Payments
Ingenico
PAX Technology
Payment Logistics
Shift4

Receipt Printers
Bixolon America
Brother Mobile
Epson America
Star Micronics
Woosim Systems

Stands, Mounts, Cradles
Gamber-Johnson

Touchscreens & Monitors
Elo

INSTALLATIONS

Shift4 Makes Its Connection

Shift4 (Allentown, PA) has deployed its "end-to-end payments ecosystem" for airport dining leader, Concessions International. With headquarters in Atlanta, GA, Concessions serves nearly 40 locations, and more than 30 national, regional, and proprietary brands, including quick service, casual dining, bars, delis, snack, and cafe formats. It now draws on Shift4 for its software integration, payment devices, PCI-validated Point-to-Point Encryption (P2PE), mobile and contactless technology solutions, advanced reporting, and business intelligence.

"We initially started with Shift4's gateway services in 2020 and have been so pleased, we decided to expand the relationship to utilize the company's end-to-end payment solution," related Donata Russell Ross, CEO of Concessions International. "By using Shift4 to power the entire payments process at all of our locations, we have been able to significantly reduce costs and complexity across our operations."

"Our end-to-end payments will improve daily operations for all of the restaurants, bars, and coffee shops across all of the Concessions International managed airports," projected Michael Isaacman, Chief Commercial Officer for Shift4. "We are thrilled to partner with the amazing team at Concessions International." Earlier, in January, Shift4 began powering payments for the T-Mobile Arena, home of the NHL's Vegas Golden Nights, established in Las Vegas, NV in 2017.

Shift4's End-to-End Payments Ecosystem Deployed for Concessions International's Airport Dining Locations

NRS Wields eWIC

National Retail Solutions, a subsidiary of IDT Corporation (Newark, NJ), has introduced its NRS eWIC. In keeping with the company's focus, it brings card-based payment functionality for the program of eWIC (Women, Infants, and Children) and EBT (Electronic Benefits Transfer) specifically for small-to-midsized business (SMB). So far, NRS eWIC has been extended to merchants in New Jersey and New York, with 15 more states to be added (mostly in the Eastern and Central U.S.).

"NRS eWIC is a breakthrough integrated payments solution," proclaimed Michael From, Manager of NRS Government Programs. "It does away with the need for expensive, dedicated equipment and laborious manual paperwork. It's integrated with the NRS POS and NRS Pay, our popular credit-card processing service, to provide an holistic solution that processes every sale and seamlessly accepts eWIC and other popular forms of payment." According to the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, there are more than 500,000 WIC beneficiaries in New Jersey and New York, and more than six million in the U.S.

"We continue to develop the technology behind our platform to help independent retailers grow their businesses," noted Elie Y. Katz, Founder and CEO of NRS. "For many years, large retail chains were able to leverage technology and scale to take business away from neighborhood retailers, bodegas, and convenience stores. NRS gives independent retailers the tools and technologies--now including NRS eWIC--that they need to expand their markets and take back market share from the large retail chains."

Bringing eWIC/EBT Payments to the SMB Merchant

Channel Factoid

A Special Someone

-Spending on Valentine's Day is expected to reach $23.9 billion in 2022, up from $21.8 billion in 2021, and the second highest year on record.

-More than half (53%) of consumers in the U.S. plan to celebrate Valentine's Day in 2022, about the same as 2021 (52%).

-More than three-quarters (76%) of those celebrating Valentine's Day believe it's important to do so given the current pandemic of Covid-19.

-In 2022, shoppers expect to spend an average of $175 per person on gifts for Valentine's Day, up from $165 in 2021.

-Candy (56%), greeting cards (40%), and flowers (37%) remain the most popular gift items on this Valentine's Day.

-Nearly one-third (31%) of consumers plan to gift an "evening out" this year, up from 24% in 2021, and just slightly below pre-Covid-19 levels, for a total of $4.3 billion.

-Almost one-quarter (22%) of consumers will opt to give jewelry on Valentine's Day. Total spending on jewelry is estimated at $6.2 billion, up from $4.1 billion in 2021 and the highest in the survey's history.

-Online continues to be the most popular shopping destination for Valentine's Day in 2022, visited by 41%, followed by department stores (32%), discount stores (28%), local small businesses (18%), and florists (17%).

Survey by National Retail Federation (Washington, DC).

Americans to Spend $23.9 Billion on Valentine's Day

HELLO GOODBYE

A Whopper at Acrelec

Acrelec has named restaurant industry veteran John Owen to the newly created role of President, Acrelec Americas. His 30-year career at McDonald's began as crew member and culminated as Corporation VP of Strategy and Execution. He subsequently became President and CEO of Subway in Russia, eventually overseeing more than 700 sites. Most recently, Owen was the Principal of consulting firm, Owen & Associates.

"I'm honored to have been chosen to lead such an exceptional brand to the Americas," shared Owen. "I'm especially excited to be working with a team of people who are so passionate about developing and supporting an ecosystem of technology solutions in the drive-thru as well as in-store and look forward to working closely with our customers to elevate their brand experiences while accelerating their growth." Headquartered in France (with offices in Pittsburgh, PA), Acrelec recently purchased drive-thru brand OrderMatic (Oklahoma City, OK). It adds to self-checkout, kiosk, and click-and-collect offered by Acrelec.

John Owen, President, Acrelec Americas

Ms. COO at Olo

At online restaurant ordering platform Olo (New York, NY), Nithya B. Das, the company's Chief Legal Officer, also assumes the role of COO. In addition, Matthew Tucker, President and COO, has announced his retirement, effective March 31, 2022. "I want to congratulate Matt on his retirement, as well as thank him for his valuable contributions to our company's success, including playing an important role in our growth and our transition to a public company," commented Noah Glass, Founder and CEO of Olo. Tucker served as Olo's COO since September 2013 and as President since January 2020.

Ms. Das joined Olo in 2019 and currently serves as Olo's Chief Legal Officer and Corporate Secretary. Previously, she served as Chief Legal and People Officer at advertising technology provider, AppNexus. Prior to AppNexus, Ms. Das represented technology growth companies as an attorney at Goodwin Procter, LLP.

"I have been fortunate to have Nithya as a trusted advisor to me over these last two years, and I'm confident she will lead us through the next phase of Olo's growth as our COO and CLO," furthered Glass. "I asked Nithya to step into this role as she has a strong operating background and experience in building and scaling high growth tech companies."

Nithya B. Das, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Legal Officer, Olo