Rogers, Minn. facility one of few to be certified by all major credit card companies
(Dec. 10, 2007) - Leading end-to-end gift and pre-paid card supplier, Archway Marketing Services, Inc., announced today that it has successfully gained Visa approval for distribution and fulfillment of Visa secure cards. As a Visa Approved Vendor for "prepaid card issuance with a generic identifier," Archway is now authorized to manage the distribution and fulfillment of Visa gift cards in the United States and Canada.
With the Approved Vendor status, Archway is now one of a number of organizations that is approved to handle secured cards for all four major financial network companies. The approval is the culmination of a two-year commitment by Archway to its gift card and financial services clients to support their growth. Archway's investment in upgrades to its infrastructure, facilities and systems and the ability to handle all major financial network secure cards combined with its expertise in marketing fulfillment and point-of-sale execution, places the company in an optimum position to support the prepaid segment, forecasted to reach $421.5 billion by 20101.
"The recognition by Visa underscores Archway's commitment to providing the highest level of security and service for our clients," said Mike Moroz, president of Archway Marketing Services, Inc. "The process of going through the certification process will have positive residual affects on all aspects of our gift card distribution and fulfillment processes.
"For consumers and retailers alike, universally accepted gift cards are easier and safer than traditional gift certificates and branded gift cards," said Moroz. With our added ability to handle Visa, we're now in a position to help relieve some of supply and demand pressure that exists."
The intense process, which involves more than 300 detailed requirements, took Archway nearly a year to complete. Some of the measures Archway put in place to meet the requirements included:
Building a 12,000 square-foot floor-to-ceiling structure inside their existing facility with 35-foot ceilings;
Establishing rigorous and redundant security measures including surveillance, security and inventory tracking technology; and
Implementing extensive processes and procedures for all employees and visitors.
The processes and infrastructure put in place to earn the certification have increased Archway's overall capacity including the ability handle 30 million preloaded Visa gift cards at anytime. With this added capacity, Archway anticipates that in 2008, the company will more than double the 204 million cards this it shipped in 2007.
About Archway Marketing Services
For more than 50 years, Archway Marketing Services, Inc., has been providing industry leading business-to-business and business-to-consumer companies with marketing fulfillment and business performance services. Archway provides fulfillment and logistical services to clients in all industries including Fortune 500 companies. From business intelligence to printing, fulfillment and analytics, Archway has the resources necessary to provide integrated, scaleable and flexible approaches to fit its clients' unique requirements. With more than 1,500 employees, Archway has operations in 14 locations in the United States, Mexico and Canada. Visit www.archway.com for more information.
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