GSI Commerce Expands North American Operations into Canada
Canada's Largest Sporting Goods Retailer, Forzani Group, Selects GSI for E-Commerce Technology, Fulfillment, Call Center and Interactive Marketing Services
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KING OF PRUSSIA, Pa., April 27 — GSI Commerce Inc. (Nasdaq: GSIC), a leading provider of e-commerce and multichannel solutions, today announced its planned expansion into the Canadian market, including the opening of a new fulfillment center and a long-term agreement with one of Canada’s leading retailers.
“Establishing a physical presence in Canada with our new fulfillment center will enable us to better serve the country’s leading retailers and brands,” said Michael G. Rubin, chairman and CEO of GSI. “We currently support clients with solutions that address the special requirements of this marketplace such as multilingual sites and Canadian currency, including Toys “R” Us (www.toysrus.ca).”
The new fulfillment center will be located near Toronto and is expected to open in the fourth quarter of 2009. The new fulfillment center is a component of GSI’s fiscal year 2009 planned capital expenditure program. The company continues to expect to spend no more than $50 million in capital expenses in the current fiscal year.
GSI also plans to hire local employees to work in the center, which will house fulfillment, customization and potentially customer care services. The combination of these services with the company’s robust e-commerce technology, make GSI well-positioned to serve Canadian retailers and international brands that desire a cutting-edge solution to support their e-commerce and multichannel goals.
Canadian business-to-consumer e-commerce sales are growing and expected to reach $11.1 billion by 2012.(1) Reports indicate that Canadian online sales from 2007 to 2012 are forecast to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 13.9 percent, almost double the U.S. rate.(2)
GSI is pleased to announce that the Forzani Group Ltd. (TSX: FGL – News), the only national retailer of sporting goods, apparel and footwear in Canada, has selected GSI’s platform and services as the backbone of its multichannel strategy. Forzani Group, based in Calgary, Alberta, is the first Canadian retailer to partner with GSI. Under the seven-year agreement, GSI will provide Forzani Group with e-commerce technology, order management, fulfillment, and customer care services. Forzani Group has chosen gsi interactive(SM), the digital agency of GSI, to provide design services.
With 2009 retail sales revenues of $1.6 billion Canadian dollars, Forzani Group operates more than 560 stores across Canada under a number of brand names, including Sport Chek. Sport Chek will be the first of the company’s Web stores to launch on the GSI platform. “E-commerce was the next step in our multichannel strategy. We conducted a comprehensive analysis of solutions and determined we wanted to partner with a best-of-breed platform provider. GSI was the top choice given their technology, comprehensive services, e-commerce expertise and their commitment to serving Canadian retailers and our customers,” said John Hould, senior vice president of Forzani Group.
“Forzani Group has built a great and trusted reputation among its customers. We look forward to extending this reputation and trust online through the company’s Web stores,” said Damon Mintzer, executive vice president of sales for GSI. “We are excited about the opportunity to provide our current and future Canadian retailers and their customers with an unrivaled online shopping experience.”
(1) eMarketer “Canada B2C E-Commerce: A Work in Progress,” December 2008
(2) eMarketer “Canada B2C E-Commerce: A Work in Progress,” December 2008
About Forzani Group
The Forzani Group Ltd. is Canada’s largest national retailer of sporting goods, offering a comprehensive assortment of brand-name and private-brand products, operating stores from coast to coast, under the following corporate and franchise banners: Sport Chek, Coast Mountain Sports, Sport Mart, National Sports, Sports Experts, Intersport, Econosports, Atmosphere, Tech Shop, Pegasus, Nevada Bob’s Golf, Hockey Experts, The Fitness Source, S3 and Athletes World. The Company also has websites for several of its corporate and franchise banners which can be accessed through its main website at www.forzanigroup.com.
About GSI Commerce
GSI Commerce® (www.gsicommerce.com) is a leading provider of services that enable e-commerce, multichannel retailing and interactive marketing for large, business-to-consumer (b2c) enterprises in the U.S. and internationally. We deliver customized e-commerce solutions through an e-commerce platform, which is comprised of technology, fulfillment and customer care. We offer each of the platform’s components on a modular basis, or as part of an integrated, end-to-end solution. We also offer a full suite of interactive marketing services through two divisions, gsi interactive(SM) and e-Dialog Inc. (www.e-dialog.com).