Acquisition Creates Direct Relationship with European Retailers, Establishes In-Region Expertise to Power Global Expansion, Cloud Deployments
ATLANTA, July 12, 2016 – Aptos, Inc., a recognized market leader in retail technology solutions, today announced that it has agreed to acquire BT Expedite, the exclusive reseller of Aptos solutions in the United Kingdom. The acquisition is expected to close in or around September 2016 subject to customary closing conditions.
As the retail specialist division within BT, BT Expedite is focused on enabling customer engagement and operational efficiency to help retailers thrive in today’s competitive UK environment and grow operations internationally.
With this acquisition, Aptos creates a direct relationship with BT Expedite’s customers – nearly 100 retailers with operations in 13 countries including WH Smith, Primark, Supergroup, Pets at Home and Mothercare. They also gain 200+ UK-based employees already familiar with the company, its solutions and the needs of its customers, extending Aptos’ global leadership as an end-to-end, software partner for Tier 1 and Tier 2 retailers.
“The acquisition fits into Aptos’ long-term global growth strategy, complementing steps taken over the last year or so that extended the footprint into analytics and omni-channel commerce with the QuantiSense and ShopVisible acquisitions, internationalized its product portfolio, and shifted the core business to cloud applications,” said Greg Girard, program director of omni-channel retail analytics strategies at IDC Retail Insights. “With BT Expedite Aptos is standing up a mature global services business with market expertise, account management skills, and capacity to serve global accounts.”
“The acquisition of BT Expedite is the natural progression of this decade-long partnership, and the next step in achieving our stated goal of global expansion,” said Noel Goggin, Aptos CEO and culture leader. “We welcome the BT Expedite customers to the Aptos family, and look forward to incorporating their input and vision into Aptos’ product roadmaps and overall strategy. For Aptos’ Americas-based customers, the acquisition creates a direct entry point to the European market, offering local expertise and an experienced technical team that is critical to their expansion efforts.”
With the acquisition establishing a strategic and immediate market presence for Aptos in the UK, the company plans to bring the power of the cloud to more retailers throughout Europe based on the success of its proven SaaS model in North America. Sales of Aptos’ cloud-ready solutions increased 283% year over year (from FY 2014 to FY 2015) with retailers indicating improved scalability, speed-to-value and innovation with Aptos’ Singular Commerce platform in the cloud.
In our preliminary discussions with BT Expedite customers, there is a lot of excitement around Aptos’ cloud-ready solutions and their ability to create personalized, seamless experiences for shoppers,” said Goggin. “UK retailers have also expressed growing interest in Aptos Enterprise Order Management and its ability to serve as a unified commerce hub connecting physical and digital channels to profitably manage all orders and establish one version of truth across the enterprise.”
“We are excited about the acquisition which immediately extends the Aptos customer base and European presence,” said Jason Wright, a senior partner at Apax Partners. “Aptos is well positioned for continued long-term growth through its leading retail technology, relentless focus on engaging customers differently, and a strong culture.”
Having successfully spun-off from Epicor Software Corporation more than a year ago to create a company 100% focused on retail, the Aptos leadership team is well-prepared to integrate British Telecom’s retail business into its company and culture.
“As the mainstay of BT Expedite’s business was focused on selling and servicing Aptos solutions such as POS, CRM, and Audit and Operations Management, the integration of the two companies and their respective product portfolios offers tremendous synergies and very low product overlap,” said Ian Rawlins, Aptos strategy leader. “The acquisition also presents a tremendous opportunity to introduce the latest versions of Aptos solutions such as Merchandising, Analytics and Order Management to BT Expedite’s customers while extending Aptos’ cloud leadership and proven SaaS model to the UK.”
Also included in the transaction is the transfer of proprietary BT Expedite technology to Aptos, including a Clienteling application currently resold by Aptos in North America; a retail learning management system; and an e-commerce platform, FrescaCommerce.
“Aptos is committed to a deep understanding of our customers’ strategic priorities, both now and in the future,” said Goggin. “This acquisition speaks to that commitment – many of our customers are interested in opening up new markets to fuel growth. The combination of BT Expedite and Aptos is better able to convey the global brand promise of helping retailers deliver seamless experiences to shoppers no matter when, where or how they shop. We’re focused on Engaging Customers Differently, and that applies to customers around the world.”
Aptos: Going Global for Growth
Direct Relationships: The acquisition creates a direct relationship with BT Expedite’s customers – nearly 100 retailers with operations in 17 countries.
Global Expansion: As retailers look to global expansion to fuel growth, the acquisition creates a direct entry point to the European market, offering an experienced technical team and regional expertise.
Cloud-Ready: Aptos will lead the emerging market shift to cloud-ready retail solutions in Europe, leveraging the success of its proven SaaS model in North America.
New Markets, In-Demand Solutions: Aptos will introduce the latest versions of its Merchandising, Analytics and Order Management solutions to BT Expedite’s customers and the broader European market.
About Aptos “Engaging Customers Differently”
In an era of virtually limitless choice, sustained competitive advantage only comes to retailers who engage customers differently – by truly understanding who they are, what they want and why they buy. At Aptos, we too, believe that engaging customers differently is critical to our success. We are committed to a deep understanding of each of our clients, to fulfilling their needs with the retail industry’s most comprehensive omni-channel solutions, and to fostering long-term relationships built on tangible value and trust. More than 500 retail brands rely upon our Singular Commerce platform to deliver every shopper a personalized, empowered and seamless experience…no matter when, where or how they shop. Learn more: www.aptos.com
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Aptos, the Aptos logo, “Engaging Customers Differently” and “Singular Commerce. Seamless Experiences” are trademarks of Aptos, Inc. All other trademarks referenced are the property of their respective owners.
Contact:
Kristen Miller
Aptos, Inc.
+1 678 695 6566
kmiller@aptos.com
Erin Lutz
Lutz PR for Aptos
+1 949 293 1055
erin@lutzpr.com