San Francisco, CA, and Brentwood, TN – December 15, 2023 – Housatonic Partners, a leading growth-oriented private equity firm headquartered in San Francisco, has announced a strategic investment in eCard Systems (“eCard”), a comprehensive provider of outsourced gift card programs and processing services. eCard caters to over 100,000 businesses, ranging from restaurants and retail stores to salons and spas, predominantly within the small-to-medium sized business sector. This investment by Housatonic Partners signifies a strong endorsement of eCard’s business model and its potential for continued expansion in the gift card industry.
eCard Systems, based in Brentwood, TN, delivers a complete suite of outsourced gift card solutions. These include physical gift cards, digital gift card storefronts, and proprietary gift card processing software. The company’s software is designed to address the intricate needs of merchants, particularly those with multiple locations, ownership structures, or point-of-sale (POS) systems. This technology enables seamless gift card sales and processing across all enterprise locations, regardless of POS technology. eCard’s solutions are compatible with over 125 point-of-sale providers, including popular platforms like Square, Toast, Lightspeed, SpotOn, ShopKeep, TouchBistro, and Upserve, as well as dedicated online ordering portals.
Benjamin Berg, CEO of eCard Systems, a search fund entrepreneur who acquired the company in 2017 with initial backing that included Housatonic Partners, has been instrumental in the company’s recent growth. Since acquiring the company, Berg has strategically directed investments towards enhancing eCard’s sales, marketing, technology, and production capabilities. These investments have resulted in significant expansion of eCard’s customer base and the establishment of stronger alliances with numerous point-of-sale and payment processing companies.
“Today represents a pivotal moment for eCard Systems,” stated Berg. “We are excited to strengthen our partnership with the Housatonic Partners team, given their proven history of supporting and fostering growth in search fund businesses. We are eager to collaborate with them to further broaden our gift card program offerings for merchants. We are confident that this partnership will be highly beneficial to our customer base and point-of-sale partners alike.”
Joe Niehaus, Managing Director at Housatonic Partners, who will be joining eCard Systems’ Board of Directors, commented, “We are impressed by Benjamin’s vision for developing a leading business within the attractive gift card sector. Housatonic Partners is enthusiastic about deepening our collaboration with eCard Systems and Benjamin in the years ahead.”
The financial details of this partnership remain undisclosed. Canaccord Genuity and Kroll Securities served as financial advisors to eCard Systems in this transaction.
About eCard Systems
eCard Systems stands as a premier outsourced gift card solution provider, serving over 100,000 merchants in the restaurant, retail, and hospitality industries both in the U.S. and internationally. The company offers a comprehensive range of gift card products and processing services, characterized by user-friendly online ordering and dedicated customer support. For further details, please visit WWW.ECARDSYSTEMS.COM.
About Housatonic Partners
Founded in 1994, Housatonic Partners is a private equity investment firm managing over $1.5 billion in capital. The firm focuses on investing in growing, profitable businesses with strong recurring revenue models. Over the past 28 years, Housatonic Partners has supported exceptional management teams in more than 100 small to mid-sized companies. For more information, please visit WWW.HOUSATONICPARTNERS.COM.
