Store technology developer Datavantage Corp. has acquired CommercialWare Inc., a provider of cross-channel retail technology, for $13.2 million in cash. Datavantage is a wholly-owned subsidiary of MICROS Systems Inc.

As part of the deal, CommercialWare CEO Donny Askin will leave the company to head up OrderMotion, a software-as-service e-commerce technology provider to small and start-up companies.

OrderMotion has been part of CommercialWare but was spun out before the acquisition. Askin says OrderMotion is not competitive with Datavantage/CommercialWare. “OrderMotion focuses on high-volume, low-ticket, low-touch retailers in the zero to $10 million range,” he says. “That is different from the environment that CommercialWare and Datavantage operate in.”

The acquisition was welcomed by analysts. “This acquisition bolsters Datavantage in that it provides them with true multi-channel capability,” says Rob Garf, retail analyst for AMR Research, who is speaking at the Internet Retailer 2006 Conference & Exhibition June 5-7 in Chicago. “It makes them no longer just a vendor at the point of interaction in the store and it allows their retailer clients a 360-degree view of customers.”

The acquisition was a smart strategic move for Datavantage because it keeps the company’s focus on the store, says Paula Rosenblum, analyst with the Aberdeen Group. “I like the notion of filling out the store as opposed to filling out the entire retail enterprise end to end,” Rosenblum says. “Retailers don’t think in terms of buying all their technology from one vendor.”

Datavantage’s POS, loss prevention and sales audit functionality will bring more power to CommercialWare, she says, while CommercialWare’s e-commerce capability allows Datavantage to develop a new base of clientele looking for multi-channel systems. “It’s a great deal because it gets Datavantage into multi-channel, where they really need to go.”

That was the reason for the acquisition, Datavantage says. “Our customers have shown us that a multi-channel strategy is key to their growth. We agree,” says Chaz Napoli, president, Datavantage. “This acquisition is a perfect fit as it pairs us with the CommercialWare organization, the clear leader in the market for cross-channel solutions. This expertise allows us to extend our applications into the direct-to-customer channels and round out our retail solution set with cross-channel offerings.”

Jane Cannon, a 20-year veteran of CommercialWare and most recently its senior vice president of research and development, will replace Askin, becoming CommercialWare’s chief operating officer.

 

Favorite