Our Product Pick

ProGlove (Chicago, IL and Munich, Germany), manufacturer of wearable industrial computing, has unwrapped its new multi-range barcode scanner, the Mark 3. In matchbox size, weighing 1.4 oz./40 g, the Mark 3 processes all common 1D/2D barcodes at distances from 4 in./10 cm to 20 ft./6 m. It also covers longer scanning ranges with bigger barcodes. In addition to adapting to the range requirements of the end-user, the Mark 3 extends new use cases such as scanning from vehicles or from ramps into trucks. It can perform up to 12,000 scans per battery charge and can be recharged in less than two hours. It carries wireless communications and an environmental rating to IP-65.

ProGlove's Multi-Range Scanner

COMPANY BUSINESS

Bixolon: Our House

A new, expanded home for Bixolon America, which will move its operations to Torrance, CA, on June 1. With additional office and meeting room capacity, the two-story building also doubles the warehouse space of its current facility in Gardena, CA. It will enable the printer vendor to increase inventory levels, provide enhanced custom modification areas, and increase shipping capabilities.

"Expanding Bixolon America's footprint is an exciting development," relayed Paul Kim, President of Bixolon America. "This new location will allow us to continue to grow." All phone numbers and e-mail addresses will remain the same, according to Bixolon America, with its new address: 2575 W 237th Street, Torrance, CA 90505.

"Bixolon has been growing steadily year after year and this beautiful new property is not only deserved but very much needed to properly serve and receive our valued partners," related David Roberts, EVP of Bixolon America. Bixolon began life as the Samsung Mini Printer Division in the 1990's before its buy-out in 2002. It has headquarters in South Korea and an international network of distributors and resellers.

Bixolon America Expands to New Facility

Star's Silver Lining

Star Micronics America (Somerset, NJ) has revamped its Star Micronics Cloud Services. A range of functionality has been added or enhanced. In the case of developers, the Star Device Manager API (Application Programming Interface) enables remote configuration, monitoring, and management of deployed printers and peripherals by applications with online access to these printers and peripherals. Additionally, the Star Document Markup Designer, currently available with Star CloudPRNT, facilitates creation and customization of receipts, tickets, and labels, with easy exporting into the code of cloud-based third-party software.

In the case of retailers and their resellers, the Star Device Manager displays the status of printers and peripherals by Star Micronics, with reporting on printer use and consumable consumption. A Star Digital Journal compiles electronic copies of all printed receipts. Available through the same portal, Star's PromoPRNT allows users to design and add promotions (coupons, reminders, etc.) to their printed receipts.

Star Micronics Cloud Services remains free to use, according to Star. Using Star's Quick Setup Utility App, users may register and connect their printers by Star Micronics. It supports the following models of receipt printers by Star: mC-Print2, mC-Print3, and TSP100IV Series. In addition to its family of printer products, Star Micronics supplies cash drawers, scanners, scales, stands, and health/safety labels and guards.

A Revamp for Star Micronics Cloud Services

Worth Your While

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

VARTECH
BlueStar
September 12-14
Orlando, FL

FSTEC
Winsight
September 19-21
Dallas, TX

Channel Connect
ScanSource
October 2-5
Nashville, TN

MJBizCon
MJBizDaily
November 15-18
Las Vegas, NV

Channel Correction

In our last edition, we misstated some specifications for the new "Sticky Media Zero" Linerless Labels by Iconex (Duluth, GA). They are permanent--not repositionable--thermal label media, and come in standard 4"/102 mm width and roll length of 400 ft./121 m.

"Sticky Media Zero" Linerless Labels by Iconex

ALL IN THE FAMILY

Epson "Weighs" Grocery

An integrated grocery weigh and label solution has been presented by Epson America (Los Alamitos, CA) and Rice Lake Weighing Systems (Rice Lake, WI). It combines the ColorWorks CW-C6000P and C4000 on-demand color label printers by Epson America and the Ishida UNI-9 weigh scale, distributed in the U.S. by Rice Lake Weighing Systems. With inkjet technology, Epson's ColorWorks CW-C6000P and C4000 Series produce durable, photo-quality images. Also, the Epson C6000 Series offers an option for "peel-and-present" functionality, suitable for use in groceries, bakeries, and delis, where workers wear gloves.

In this system, the scale plugs into the USB port on the ColorWorks printer. A native ZPL capability allows the printer and scale to communicate, allowing end-users to set an item on the scale and print the label in three taps. All necessary information is included on the label, each of them customizable: item, weight, price, ingredients, barcode, safe handling info, and address. Also, in color, photo of the product, seasonal branding, freshness, and expiration dates.

"For the first time, grocers can weigh an item and print a full-color label incorporating key information," enthused Bonny Rindahl, Product Manager, Epson America. "Millions of Americans who suffer from food allergies rely on labels for allergen information, and it is easier and quicker to locate when this information is presented in color. The Epson and Ishida labeling solution gives businesses the capability to create prepared food labels that not only help a product stand out on the shelf but also help ensure consumer safety."

Integrated Grocery Weigh and Label Solution From Epson America and Rice Lake/Ishida

Zebra Measures Up

Zebra Technologies Corporation (Lincolnshire, IL) has unveiled its new handheld mobile computer, designated the TC53/TC58. It offers several enhancements, including 6" edge-to-edge capacitive touchscreen (1080x2160, 600 NITS), 16 MP rear camera (8 MP front camera), and notably, "Time-of-Flight" (ToF) depth sensor to capture parcel dimensions and calculate shipping charges "with the press of one button." Later this year, Zebra will release its accompanying software, entitled "Zebra Dimensioning - Certified Mobile Parcel."

In phablet format of 6.5 in./165 mm (L) x 3 in./77 mm (W) x 0.7 in./17 mm (D), weighing 10.3 oz./293 g, the TC53/TC58 has Qualcomm 6490 Octa-Core CPU at 2.7 GHz, up to 8 GB RAM and 128 GB Flash, and Android 11 O/S. As data collection, it includes the SE4720 1D/2D Scan Engine or SE55 1D/2D Advanced Range Scan Engine with IntelliFocus, RFID Sleds, and Tap-to-Pay NFC. As wireless, the TC53 has Bluetooth and Wi-Fi 6E, while the TC58 has 5G WWAN. Also, there's Push-to-Talk (PTT).

As ruggedness, the TC53/TC58 holds an IP65/68 environmental rating with 5 ft./1.5 m drop resistance (with boot, 6 ft./1.8 m). As battery, there's 4400 mAh or 6600 mAh Li-Ion. In the second half of this year, Zebra will offer select models built with composite materials with additive fiber to strengthen the device while maintaining its design. "Our new flagship TC53/TC58 mobile computers represent the first in a new generation of Zebra devices that will help organizations redefine service and support levels while giving their mobile workers faster and more reliable access to the information they need," proclaimed Julie Johnson, VP and GM of Enterprise Mobile Computing for Zebra.

Zebra's TC53/TC58 Handheld Mobile Computer

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Week of April 25

Week of April 11

Week of March 28

ALLIANCES

A Wide, Wide World (ISVs)

A further consolidation in electronic payments, with Payroc WorldAccess (Tinley Park, IL) buying Worldnet (New York, NY). It further propels the two entities into the realm of embedded payments and ISVs. With backing by private-equity firm Parthenon Capital, Payroc WorldAccess also has announced its purchase of ISO Iroquois Merchant Services (Nashville, TN). At present, Payroc WorldAccess serves 125,000 merchants with $46 billion in annual payments volume worldwide.

"We're exhilarated about the acquisition of Worldnet," shared James Oberman, CEO of Payroc. "Our joint offerings and capabilities will drive more value for partners and developers, and enable more flexibility to create unique payment solutions for consumers. Addition of Worldnet complements our existing products and brings additional payment facilitation capabilities to our team as we focus on delivering flexible, white-labeled solutions."

"We're ready for this next chapter in the Worldnet story because ISVs and developers deserve a better way to integrate payments into their software," added John Clarke, CEO of Worldnet. "With Payroc's muscle, we're positioned to deploy our leading-edge technology on a global scale to help ISVs unify their payment channels into a single platform. Our online, in-store, unattended, and mobile solutions [combine to] offer an all-in-one embedded payment platform for scale."

Payroc WorldAccess Scoops Up Worldnet

NRS Goes WAM!

National Retail Solutions (Newark, NJ) has joined forces with OnPoint, an entity owned by the network of c-store distributors, WAM (Pittsburgh, PA), to provide scan data programs for the independent and small chain convenience store (c-store) market. Via this partnership, OnPoint, which focuses on tobacco, center-store promotions, and foodservice, will promote the payment processing and POS by NRS, the subsidiary of IDT Corporation. OnPoint's scan data will allow retailers with NRS to take advantage of promotions, coupons, and special offers from such consumer goods manufacturers (CGM).

"NRS and OnPoint provide complementary, synergistic offerings to help independent retailers successfully compete against larger retail chains," declared Elie Y. Katz, CEO of NRS. "Our partnership positions both companies to expand our respective networks while providing independent retailers with powerful tools to enhance profitability and extend market research." At present, NRS serves over 16,000 retailers, with NRS Pay now utilized by over 8,000 retail stores.

"A significant portion of the retailers throughout the WAM network are looking for an affordable and easy-to-use POS system that is compatible with OnPoint, so that they can take advantage of all the value-added services that we provide," proclaimed Win Schiller, President of OnPoint. "Our partnership with NRS provides a best-in-class turn-key solution for this." Encompassing 25 c-store distributors serving over 13,000 Zip Codes, WAM serves 23,000 stores with $10.8 billion in aggregate sales annually--acting as the third largest such distributor.

National Retail Solutions Offers C-Store Scan Data

Code Corner

Qu (Bethesda, MD) has expanded its Unified Commerce Platform for multi-unit restaurant operations. A native kitchen solution, or "Compass," provides in-kitchen and above-store visibility to all orders irrespective of their source. A native kiosk, or "Flex," may serve two distinct order-entry roles: staff-facing or guest-facing. Lastly, an "In-Store Cloud" supports edge computing, thereby delivering greater network stability and uptime, faster transaction processing, and enhanced data redundancy. It also completes Qu's Commerce Cloud. "All three of these new products and platform enhancements were developed to provide restaurant operators with the flexibility to run their businesses their way, while dealing with labor and supply chain challenges," remarked Amir Hudda, CEO of Qu. "Operators now have more options and can focus on increasing revenues and improving store operations."

Qu Expands Its Restaurant Platform

A merchant account provider and processor, Revolution Payments (Ashburn, VA) has announced software that automatically identifies the lowest interchange rates for credit-card transactions. Revolution compares the technology to spell-check in word processing, and reminds merchants and their resellers that card brands change rates and rules every April and October, not to mention that there are over 700 different interchange rates that vary depending on factors including the type of card, how it's processed, industry segment, and size of transaction. So, companies that are using the Revolution Payments "Interchange Optimization Service" need not track all of such updates. As testing, it follows EMV Level II and Level III. "Our software automatically adjusts based on market value, keeping merchants processing at the best rates 100% of the time," stated Sean Jones, President of Revolution Payments.

Revolution Payments: A Spell Check for Interchange Rates

ENVIRONMENTS/PLATFORMS

Don't Forget Your Lunchbox

Addressing integration of multitudinous third-party online ordering platforms for restaurants, Lunchbox Technologies (New York, NY) has debuted its Lunchbox Rails. It consolidates such third-party marketplace orders--from DoorDash, Grubhub, ezCater, Uber Eats, Postmates, Skip the Dishes, etc.--and for simplicity, pulls order information directly into the restaurant's POS. It also charges via flat fees, not monthly billing.

"Restaurants need to make quick changes, keep track of orders, and manage everything in one place," observed Nabeel Alamgir, Co-Founder and CEO of Lunchbox. "We've created the solution that eases the pain that all operators are experiencing today by streaming in-store operations and reducing tablet hell. With Rails, operators will gain valuable time back and be able to concentrate on delivering the best guest experience."

As features, Lunchbox Rails furnishes: editing of menus across the enterprise or on a store-by-store basis; automated posting of the restaurant's business hours, including seasonal variations; and so-called "global throttling" to modulate the volume of such third-party orders. In making its announcement, Lunchbox pledged that all proceeds from sign-up for Lunchbox Rails in May will go toward its new Lunchbox Scholarship Fund. Established in 2019, now with 2,500 customers, Lunchbox Technologies has received $50 million in Series B Funding.

Integration of Third-Party Restaurant Online Ordering Platforms Via Lunchbox Rails

EVO in the ERP

EVO Payments' gateway, dubbed PayFabric, has been certified by Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) player, Acumatica (Kirkland, WA). In becoming an Acumatica Certified Application (ACA), EVO has passed software compatibility testing and has aligned itself with future roadmap releases from Acumatica. A cloud-based solution, focusing on small and midsized companies, Acumatica recently indicated its interest in developing relationships with VARs and ISVs in POS/Auto ID by joining the Retail Solutions Providers Association (RSPA, Charlotte, NC).

"Customers who want to stay competitive need flexible, responsive technology to execute their long-term business strategies," stressed Christian Lindberg, VP of Partner Solutions at Acumatica. "Our ACA label was built to help customers find applications capable of delivering that. We're proud to recognize EVO's payment integration as an Acumatica Certified Application. It will [further the efforts of] the Acumatica platform to meet customers' evolving business needs."

"We are very pleased to be able to offer our PayFabric gateway and acquiring services to existing Acumatica users, which will help them simplify and improve their accounts receivable process," expressed Brendan F. Tansill, EVO's President, the Americas (Atlanta, GA). "Further, our certified Acumatica integration will allow reseller partners to offer new merchants a single bundled solution, including Acumatica's ERP and EVO's payments and receivables automation services." Earlier, in March, EVO Payments achieved Oracle Validated Integration with Oracle E-Business Suite Expertise.

Christian Lindberg, VP of Partner Solutions, Acumatica

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
National Retail Solutions
Pioneer Solution
POSBANK USA
Posiflex
Revel Systems
Shift4
Star Micronics
Toshiba
Tri-Tech Retail

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
MobileDemand
Unitech America

Integrated Payment Solutions
Datacap Systems
Electronic Payments
Ingenico
North American Bancard
Payment Logistics
Shift4

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

Stands, Mounts, Cradles
Gamber-Johnson

Touchscreens & Monitors
Elo

INSTALLATIONS

At the Car Wash (P2PE)

A band of vendors has addressed Point-to-Point Encryption (P2PE) for the car wash industry, and the overall convenience-store segment: Bluefin Payment Systems (Atlanta, GA), DRB (Akron, OH), and Datacap Systems (Chalfont, PA). As one of the leading players in car wash systems, with three decades of experience, DRB also furnishes POS. A major c-store brand is rolling out this newest bundle in two stages: the car wash in Phase 1, and the pump and in-store in Phase 2. Approximately 1,000 sites were on schedule for deployment by May.

"This solution will provide our customers with the benefit of up to 90% Payment Card Industry (PCI) scope reduction while providing the highest level of date protection for consumer credit-card data," declared Sean Gately, VP of Security Solutions at Bluefin. "Once Phase 2 deployment is complete for both indoor and the forecourt, it will be the first-ever market-ready enterprise PCI-validated P2PE solution for the c-store/petro industry." One of the first companies in North America to receive PCI Validation for P2PE, back in 2014, Bluefin partners with many players in POS.

Bluefin addresses security through its stand-alone solution for P2PE, called Decryptx, which is connected to Datacap Systems, which processes the payments via its popular omnichannel payments gateway, called NETePay Hosted. With this installation, payments will be immediately encrypted upon swipe, dip, or tap in the Model VP6800 Unattended Payment Terminal from ID Tech (Cypress, CA). As level of certification, there's PCI PIN Transaction Security (PTS) 5.x SRED.

An Industry Team Brings P2PE to C-Stores/Petro

Duluth Says "Tata"

A growing apparel retailer, Duluth Trading Co. (Mount Horeb, WI), has chosen OmniStore by Tata Consultancy Services (New York, NY and Mumbai, India). It will be deployed to the 60 stores of Duluth Trading Co. in the U.S., and will serve as the single platform for all in-store (with ties to online) commerce: POS, MPOS, Scan-and-Go, and Curbside Pickup. A part of the TCS Algo Retail Suite, powered by AI, TCS OmniStore drives faster checkout and returns, and employs micro-services for readily adding new functions, services, and applications.

"Our retail and IT leadership are very complimentary of how OmniStore has performed through the peak holiday season," reported Christopher Teufel, SVP of Information Technology and Logistics at Duluth Trading Co., "especially in its ability to sell products regardless of the location. Within a single customer interaction, we're able to provide a broader offering at the register, and this was an important part of our successful selling approach this past holiday season. We're eager to roll out our mobile solution across the retail chain in early 2023."

"As a leader in retail business transformations, TCS has a unique insight into the omnichannel needs of the industry and constraints with traditional POS," maintained Shankar Narayanan, Business Group Head, Retail Cluster, TCS. "We are happy to partner with Duluth Trading Co. in their strategic initiative to reimagine in-store customer experiences. TCS OmniStore enables a seamless omnichannel customer journey while laying a solid foundation for future retail."

Duluth Trading Co. Deploys OmniStore by Tata Consultancy Services

Channel Factoid

An Upbeat SMB

A Survey Finds Resilience
and Optimism in the U.S.

-Workforce: About two-thirds of small business owners say they are likely to invest in each of the following: training and development for their workforce (66%); increasing employee pay (66%); hiring additional staff (65%); and expanding benefits to their workforce (64%).

-Financial: More than half of small business owners (55%), new and established, feel they have adequate access to new funding or credit should they need it.

-Operations: Six out of ten small business owners (60%) feel strongly that they have the right technology in place, with three in four (73%) likely to adapt new technology in the year ahead. In terms of future-proofing their businesses, almost half (48%) say they have an explicit contingency plan in place (partly due to Covid-19).

-Convenience: A large majority of small business owners (83%) say being easy to work with is an important attribute in a financial services partner, closely followed by easy-to-use online platforms (82%) and easy-to-contact live support (81%). When it comes to business checking accounts, another 82% of small business owners say an easy-to-use online/mobile banking interface is important.

-Advice: Almost two-thirds of small business owners (65%) say they are likely to work with a financial or business advisor in the next year, while four in ten (40%) say they seek advice from other small business owners.

-Business Credit Cards & Rewards: About half of small business owners with a business credit card (53%) say it allows them to more closely monitor business expenses. A somewhat smaller number look for good cash-back rewards.

-Payment Solutions: Another large majority of small business owners (83%) say reliability is an important attribute of any payment processing solution, as well as security of both customer data and company data (82%), and ease-of-use for customers and themselves/their employees (84%).

-Customer Analytics: More than two-thirds of small business owners (69%) say it's important for a financial services partner to offer customer insights and business intelligence services.

Source: Small Business Pulse Survey, Chase (New York, NY)

Nearly Half of Small Business Owners (48%) Are Feeling More Upbeat About Their Company's Performance

A Message From the Editor

As we progress through 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.

Michael Kachmar, Editor

HELLO GOODBYE

Galvin-ized at NMI

NMI (Schaumburg, IL), standing for Network Merchants, Inc., has enlisted Peter Galvin as its new Chief Marketing Officer (CMO). He joins the payment facilitator from Entrust, where he served as CMO for Digital Security Solutions. Earlier experience includes senior marketing roles at technology companies such as Proofpoint, nCipher (the former Thales e-Security), Openwave, Inktomi (acquired by Yahoo), and Oracle.

"Peter's extensive background and experience in leading high-growth software companies makes him the perfect fit to lead NMI's marketing strategy in our mission to enable the best payments experience for our partners and their merchants across the full commerce lifecycle," commented Vijay Sondhi, CEO of NMI. "As we expand our depth and breadth of services and offerings, Peter's expertise will be vital to growing NMI." With 267,000 merchants served, and $2 billion in annual payments volume, NMI partners with ISVs, ISOs, and FinTech.

"I am delighted to join NMI as it provides innovative and intuitive omnichannel commerce solutions to a complex payment industry," remarked Galvin. "By transforming the payment experience to meet the ever-changing landscape of online, in-app, mobile, and 'what's next,' NMI allows our partners to provide the latest technology for their businesses to run successfully. I'm looking forward to working with Vijay and the experienced leadership team to accelerate growth and reimage the future of payments."

Peter Galvin, Chief Marketing Officer, NMI

Epicor Elects Pope

Epicor (Austin, TX) has elevated Lisa Pope, its EVP of Americas Sales and Marketing since joining in 2017, to the role of President. Her two decades of experience in relevant technology includes SVP-Cloud for Infor, SVP-Global Sales Strategy for QAD, VP-Strategic Accounts for Oracle, and Senior Software Sales at NCR. She recently won the 2022 "Woman of the Year in Sales Award" from the Stevie Awards.

"Lisa has been a major force for growth, scale, and profitability over the last five years as we pursue our mission to be the 'cloud vendor of choice' for the make, move, and sell economy," reflected Steve Murphy, CEO of Epicor. "Her deep partnership and commitment to customers, as well as unique understanding of the markets we serve, have been hallmarks of her leadership at Epicor, and will continue to set a high standard for how we accelerate momentum and drive results for companies we work with."

"Epicor is on a journey to help the hard-working companies we serve take advantage of cloud-based technologies to boost profitability and growth," contributed Pope. "I am thrilled to continue driving our work with customers and colleagues around the globe to create a world of better business." A longtime provider of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software for many vertical markets, Epicor Software Corporation.

Lisa Pope, President, Epicor

Temko Sets Tempo

ParTech (New Hartford, NY) has named Seth Temko as its new Chief Marketing Officer (CMO). He most recently served as CMO of TouchBistro. Other experience includes VP of Go-to-Market Strategy at marketing technology firm, Yext, and VP of Marketing at Xenial, the restaurant technology division of processor, Global Payments.

Also, ParTech has engaged Acrelec (Chicago, IL and Paris, France) to upgrade its kiosk, drive-thru, and digital menu board capabilities. "We're confident that customers of ParTech will greatly benefit from accessing Acrelec's technology as an additional option for serving their guests," asserted Thibaud Denolle, Innovation and Marketing Director at Acrelec. Finally, CKE Restaurants Holdings (Carl's Jr., and Hardee's) has selected ParTech's Punchh for customer loyalty and engagement.

Seth Temko, Chief Marketing Officer, ParTech