Blackhawk Expands EMEA Network with Latest Acquisition (Dec. 3, 2013)
Blackhawk Network has acquired Germany-based gift card distribution network Retailo AG, a deal which adds more than 40,000 new locations to Blackhawk’s total EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) retail distribution network. Retailo operates in Austria and Switzerland in addition to its home country of Germany—a market in which Blackhawk previously had a “limited presence,” according to the company. With Retailo now in the fold, Blackhawk’s total EMEA network numbers 70,000 locations. The acquisition bolsters the company’s growing digital gift card business with the addition of Retailo’s digital platform, which includes email, SMS, smartphone and social media apps.
“Blackhawk is focused on international growth, and the acquisition of Retailo in Germany, Europe’s biggest economy and a country where gift cards are becoming increasingly popular with consumers, is a clear indication of our ability to execute strategically to expedite that growth,” said Bill Tauscher, CEO, Blackhawk Network. Under terms of the acquisition, Retailo will operate as a business unit of Blackhawk, maintaining its Cologne, Germany, home base and reporting to Blackhawk’s EMEA headquarters in London. Financial terms of the acquisition were not revealed, but a TechCrunch report pegged the price at around $68 million.
The Retailo deal is the second major acquisition finalized by Blackhawk in the past several weeks. In mid-November the Pleasanton, Calif.-based company sewed up its previously announced purchase of corporate incentive and promotions provider InteliSpend Prepaid Solutions—a deal reportedly worth between $71 million and $100 million.
