By ROB O'NEILL
Auckland-based Cardlink Systems is best known locally as the provider of fleet management services and loyalty programmes.
But internationally it has become a knowledge economy export success, delivering software and support services in Asia, South America, Europe and South Africa.
The company, which is owned by John Spencer's Clime Systems investment vehicle, will soon double the size of its Kuala Lumpur office to 12 staff.
In 1998 it implemented systems for Malaysia's BonusKad Loyalty to support a consumer rewards programme with redeemable points and more than 2 million cardholders. It has other clients in the Philippines and Singapore.
In Argentina, its client is Multibrand South America, which runs the Travelpass loyalty programme with 3.2 million cardholders. Participating outlets include telecommunications providers, banks, petrol stations and retail chains.
In Brazil, it launched a loyalty product for Smart Club Do Brasil, operating in Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Rio Grande do Sul and boasting 1.3 million cardholders.
Fresh opportunities are being pursued in the Middle East and Africa.
But going into the Asian market in 1996 was not without its pitfalls. Cardlink Systems lost one major client, Thailand's SmartBonus Loyalty, which was backed by a bank and a retailer that withdrew support during the country's economic hard times.
Cardlink pulled out of that market but maintained the relationship in expectation of a return when conditions recover.
Managing director Linc Burgess said the joke around the office was "Join Cardlink and see the world."
He now spends as much time out of the office and out of the country as here and many other staff receive overseas stints.
Mr Burgess, who left American Express to join Cardlink at its inception in 1984, said he expected revenue from software and systems development and implementation to soon overtake income from the local card, bureau and other services.
Cardlink Systems' software revenues were either from a licence plus support contract, he said, or based on a "risk and reward" system under which Cardlink's revenues grew as the client's business grew.
Cardlink is probably best known for its Fleetcard corporate fleet charge card, launched in association with Shell in 1985 to replace the fuel payment system in use for government vehicles.
The company, now independent of the petrol companies and providing services to most, today provides four other vehicle-related cards, including taxi charging systems and a range of software solutions.
These include its Cardsmart loyalty system and Cardsmart Datamart system for relationship marketing. It is now developing a web front-end for these to be demonstrated in Asia.
Cardlink Systems marketing manager John Bone said the loyalty programmes allowed operators to accumulate a large amount of data that, through the datamart system, could then be used to deliver targeted special offers to individuals.
Other software developments have grown out of the company's growing fleet management outsourcing division, which now provides fleet management services to several of New Zealand's largest corporates, including Telecom. Its products in this area include FleetSmart and FleetPro for vehicle reporting and analysis from purchase through maintenance to final disposal.
These are now being offered to the company's growing base of software users as a value-added product.
However, Mr Burgess has resisted any temptation so far to take an equity stake in the operation of Cardlink's systems outside New Zealand. He said the opportunity had arisen, but the company would prefer to concentrate on development and consulting.
"We may investigate it more seriously in the future. Taking equity for its own sake is not necessarily the thing we'd do. We'd rather participate actively in the business."
Expansion on the cards for loyalty and systems firm
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