London, 30 November: Today, branded payments provider Blackhawk Network announced its growth in the gift card market with two of the top UK brands, Boots and ODEON.
Blackhawk Network will manage both brand programmes through its proprietary CashStar platform. Part of Blackhawk Network, CashStar is an industry-leading provider of gift card commerce solutions at the forefront of digital gifting.
Boots
Blackhawk Network already operates the in-store gift cards available at Boots across the UK, however this announcement sees an extension of their existing partnership to include a B2B programme. The B2B gift card programme will allow businesses to purchase bulk gift cards online, with Blackhawk Network managing these sales through a dedicated account team.
ODEON
Earlier in 2020, Blackhawk Network began operating ODEON’s B2C gift card operations, and it has now announced the launch of B2B digital gift cards for one of the most prolific cinema chains globally.
Priding themselves on the very best cinema experience, this gift card offering will reinforce the cutting-edge technology and choice of experiences available for a B2B market.
Chris Bates (Commercial Director UK & Ireland): ”The UK public can’t wait for cinemas to reopen and blockbusters to return to our big screens, so we are excited to launch this new online gifting service for a range of businesses to take advantage of, whether for rewarding employees, treating their customers, or acquiring new business.”
CashStar provides an end-to-end solution to manage the sales and marketing, production and distribution of digital and physical gift cards across multiple channels and devices. In addition, the CashStar platform delivers advanced security, fully automated delivery, and its highly flexible and configurable approach is easy and efficient to use, ensuring the best customer experience.
The platform is used by more than 400 of the world’s most recognisable and innovative brands.
Matt Howe, Managing Director EMEA at Blackhawk Network said: “We are so pleased to announce the onboarding of these two fantastic brands onto one of our proprietary platforms. I look forward to seeing how our relationships continue to grow into 2021.”
About Blackhawk Network
Blackhawk Network delivers branded payment programs to meet our partners’ business objectives. We collaborate with our partners to innovate, translating market trends in branded payments to increase reach, loyalty and revenue. With a presence in over 26 countries, we reliably execute branded payment programs in over 100 countries worldwide. Join us as we shape the future of global branded payments.
Blackhawk is headquartered in Pleasanton, California. For more information, please visit www.blackhawknetwork.com/uk-en.
