POSIFLEX Technologies Inc., a professional POS (Point of Sales) hardware solution provider worldwide, today announced the acquisition of a majority stake in one of their leading distributors in India, Protocol Solutions a bangalore based company. With this, Protocol Solutions will now be called POSIFLEX India, thereby making a direct presence in India. POSIFLEX products are widely used by the largest of retail outlets in India, making them the second largest in India next to IBM according to IDC report.
This strategic move will help shorten the lead time of delivery and provide satisfactory service to customers, to increase brand awareness and expand market share. On the strength of acquisition, POSIFLEX will not only acquire the existing channel resource, but also give access to the Indian software development industry to bundle with hardware of POSIFLEX. It is expected to offer low TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) solution from India to global channels eventually.
On this occasion Mr. Owen Chen, CEO, POSIFLEX Technology Inc., said, “We saw great potential in the Indian market and decided to enter India by acquiring a majority stake in Protocol Solutions. We were happy with our relationship with Protocol and impressed with their track record. They understand our products well and have played a vital role in creating a demand for our products in India. So when we thought of having a direct presence in India, Protocol was undoubtedly our choice. We will be investing US$ 10 million over the next 3-5 years, which will include setting up of R&D team in India to deliver customised solutions, strengthening our marketing and channel partners as well as an option of starting an assembly line.â€
“There is tremendous potential in the Indian retail market. With hundreds of malls that are projected to open in the coming years, the sector is expected to invest around US$ 500 million in retail technology service solutions in the current financial year. This could go further up to US$ 1.26 billion in the next four to five years. So it was an important strategic milestone for us to have a direct presence in India,†added Mr. Chen
Mr. Dinesh, Director, Protocol Solutions, said, “The organised retail sector accounts for only 5 per cent of the Indian retail market, which leaves us with the big chunk of untapped unorganised retail market. As POSIFLEX India, we intend to enter the huge unorganised retail market through channel partners across India.â€
Mr. Baskar, Director, Protocol Solutions, said, “We have been working as POSIFLEX distributors for over eight years and today their solutions are widely used by most of the large retails chains in India. We have worked with POSIFLEX and have been instrumental in making the product second largest in India with over 20 per cent market share. As we have developed great success stories in the organised retail segment, POSIFLEX Technology will be leveraging these successful cases in other countries.â€
POSIFLEX POS solutions are used in multiple market segments such as, hospitality, retail, entertainment, logistics, manufacturing, banking, information services etc. Protocol has successfully deployed POSIFLEX products in both Industrial Automation & Retail Automation. Their clientele includes, Ford India, IFB, Hindustan Motors, Ashok Leyland, Schneider Electric, Shopper Stop, KFC, HyperCity, SPAR hypermarket, Fresh@, Subway, Costa Coffee, Café Coffee Day, Food World, Royal Orchid, Arvind Brands, Peter England, Lifestyle to name a few.