AUSTIN, Texas -- In one of those high-powered-lunch brokered deals, a business-intelligence software provider known to the convenience store channel has merged with a Web-based trade-settlement firm to continue a trend toward consolidation within the technology sector.
Austin, Texas-based PerformanceRetail Inc. (PRI), which provides a data-gathering and -reporting solution used by many in the petroleum and c-store industry, and Minneapolis-based Notiva Corp., a provider of Web-based trade-settlement software for retailers and their trading partners, [image-nocss] announced yesterday that the companies have merged. While no financial terms were disclosed, the 50-50 merger brings together two technology companies in the retail-software market and provides each with additional resources to expand customer bases, software deployment and product development.
We're constantly looking for opportunities to grow with new technology, resources and domain experience, said Marc Hafner, president and CEO of PRI. He told CSP Daily News the two companies came together through a mutual board member and saw a non-competitive opportunity to combine resources. The deal was one of those settled over a business meal, Hafner said. The merger could ultimately bring added supply-chain value to PRI's current application, which allows retailers to analyze sales data in real time. The company, however, will continue to be committed to both the full suite of products and the module-by-module business paradigm.
Retailers are more interested in addressing specific areas of pain and solving them, but doing it in a way that adds additional functionality over time, said Dean Cruse, vice president of marketing for PRI. [The merger] adds retail domain expertise to the new company, particularly on the manufacturing and supply side.
PRI software suites provide retail business intelligence, allowing operators to view the metrics driving their business in a timely manner. Notiva, which was founded in 2000, provides a patented, collaborative solution that links retailers and their trading partners electronically. The link reduces trade disputes, lowers the cost of goods and improves revenue by using a single source of data on financial transactions between the two partners.
The merged company retains the PerformanceRetail name and is headquartered in Austin, Texas. Hafner continues in his role as chief executive officer, president and chairman of the board. Additionally, the company is expanding the management team to include Notiva senior executives in the roles of vice president engineering, vice president professional services and vice president customer care in order to bring more focus to the company's customer deployments.
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