ROGERS, MINN. (Nov. 16, 2009) – Archway (www.archway.com), a leader in marketing operations management and the largest distributor of gift cards in North America, will ship 500 million gift, prepaid and universally accepted financial cards by the end of 2009 – half of all the cards purchased in North America. Of this total, Archway expects to ship 145 million cards to retailers, channel partners, consumers and businesses this holiday season.

 

“The current state of the economy has changed the way consumers think about holiday spending,” said Kathleen Carter, vice president of business development at Archway. “However, gift card shipment levels are still high because of the benefits gift cards provide to both businesses and consumers. Businesses utilize cards to pick up revenue in a tough market and consumers are using cards to put a cap on holiday spending and help manage tighter budgets for travel and everyday expenses.”

 

According to Nielsen, the world’s leading marketing and media information company, online buzz about gift cards is increasing due to retail purchasing incentives such as gift card bundles. Nielsen explains, “Gift card bundles essentially provide shoppers with two sets of gifts: the original purchase and the gift card which can either be given as a gift or used to buy more holiday presents.”

 

Archway has nearly 100,000 square feet of secured warehouse space dedicated to the distribution of secured cards. Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover Card have approved and certified the space for secured card distribution making Archway the only fulfillment services company approved by the four major card associations to fulfill secured cards.

 

Archway is an end-to-end solution provider, offering procurement, fulfillment services, and inventory management, as well as serial number tracking, forecasting, automatic replenishment and online reporting for gift, prepaid and financial card programs. The company's technology infrastructure combined with its serial number and lot tracking expertise, were used to develop a radio frequency (RF) tracking system and card fulfillment e-tools that streamline inventory management to get cards in the consumer's hands faster.

 

Archway is a leader in marketing operations management, providing marketing execution solutions and complementary business process outsourcing. These solutions include fulfillment services, consumer promotions, rebates, print management, facility management, business intelligence and decision support tools. Each solution is designed to reduce marketing operations costs, improve marketing execution processes, leverage emerging technologies and most importantly help improve the brand experience at every touch point of their clients’ marketing campaigns. Archway is ranked on the Inc 5000 list of fastest growing private companies and has 1,500 employees and 3.5 million sq. ft. of distribution space in 13 major metropolitan areas in North America. For more information visit www.archway.com