Ekkon expands eCommerce product offerings with new acquisition
Ekkon Technologies to acquire the majority of the assets of MindTrend Technology
Vancouver, BC, November 26, 2002 -- Ekkon Technologies, a Vancouver-based Internet software developer, today announced that it has agreed to purchase a majority of the assets of MindTrend Technology, a local software development firm.
The two companies have worked closely together ever since they met in November 2000 at the eWorld tradeshow in Vancouver, BC. Over the last 2 years, both companies have consulted on various projects together and have seen each other grow from struggling startups into stable software companies with a keen focus on customer satisfaction.
"It's no surprise that we've decided to join forces as both our companies share the same core values and have developed a level of mutual respect that can only come from helping each other through difficult times," explained Dave Koo, former Managing Director at MindTrend who has recently been appointed Vice President of Product Development at Ekkon. "It's easy to work together when business is great. But when the market slows down and cash flow gets tight, all of a sudden companies tend to crawl under their shell and focus only on their own survival at the expense of others."
Instead, Ekkon and MindTrend chose to take the opposite approach and spend extra time building their partnership in order to provide added value to their clients. The two companies attended networking events together, submitted joint proposals and even gave each of their products similar names in an effort to gain a larger share of the Internet software and web services markets.
"At first it wasn't easy to split the revenues from projects between both companies as the natural tendency is to want to keep the entire contract for yourself, even if it isn't your core competency," said Harry Chemko, CEO of Ekkon Technologies. "But by each focussing on our own strengths, we found that we were both able to build stronger relationships with our customers and partners. Once they saw the level of trust that we placed in each other, they knew they were in good hands."
The strategy has paid off for the two young companies whose combined client list has now grown to include large international corporations such as A&W Restaurants, Capezio, General Motors, Grant Thornton LLP, Scott USA and Uniglobe Travel.
The announcement today is a major step forward for Ekkon as it will now be able to fully integrate ContentSpace, its web content management system, with MerchantSpace, MindTrend's eCommerce system, to create a single software framework for both products. This will simplify future product development, speed implementation time and ultimately reduce costs for its customers.
About Elastic Path Software
Elastic Path Software pioneered flexible ecommerce software that enables online retailers to attract and convert customers profitably. Elastic Path's fully-integrated, ecommerce framework is designed specifically for mid-sized retailers operating within a multi-channel environment. Using innovative search engine optimization (SEO) technology and simplified open source components, Elastic Path's technology empowers its customers to maximize resources and quickly adapt tactics at a comfortable price. Companies such as Makeup.com, Cotswold Collections, Aeroplan, Random House, Electricshopping.com, and Xerox use Elastic Path for maximum control over their rapidly evolving online stores.
Elastic Path Software is headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. For more information please call 1-800-942-5282 or visit www.elasticpath.com.
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