Cantaloupe-CHEQ to energize venue operations

Article posted by Coliseum, February 6^th, 2024

Image: Cantaloupe (Cheq) & Business Wire

The United States-based provider of end-to-end technology solutions for self-service commerce Cantaloupe has acquired CHEQ Lifestyle Technology.

‘THE PAYPERS’ stated that this strategic move positions Cantaloupe for expansion into the sports, entertainment and restaurant sectors. CHEQ, specializing in mobile ordering, socially connected payments, realtime reporting, and remote support, aims to enhance venue operations, increase efficiency and drive revenue.

Malvern (US)-based Cantaloupe, Inc. is a global technology leader powering self-service commerce. With over a million active locations, processing more than a billion transactions every year, Cantaloupe is enabling businesses of all sizes to provide self-service experiences for the consumers. The company’s vertically integrated solutions fuel growth by offering micro-payments processing, enterprise cloud software, Internet of Things (IoT) technology, as well as kiosk and point of sale (POS) innovations.

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Cantaloupe’s end-to-end platform increases consumer engagement and sales revenue through digital payments, consumer promotions and loyalty programs, while providing business owners increased profitability by leveraging software to drive efficiencies across an entire operation.

Washington (US)-based CHEQ Lifestyle Technology is a social payments platform, connecting consumers and businesses to create frictionless in-person experiences. CHEQ’s universal ordering and payment app can be used by any restaurant, café, bar, or stadium to make transactions fun, easy and worry-free. Users can even send food and drinks directly to their friends from anywhere in the world. CHEQ lets venues retain their unique branding within the application and keep their direct relationships with their guests.

‘THE PAYPERS’ further stated that the acquisition marks Cantaloupe’s entrance into a rapidly growing sector, with notable synergy between both companies’ product lines. Representatives from Cantaloupe expressed excitement about the prospect of growing the company’s footprint.

Founded in 2021, CHEQ powers payments for various professional sports teams, entertainment venues and festival operators, such as the National Football League (NFL) team Washington Commanders, the National Hockey League (NHL) team Florida Panthers (NHL) and the Major League Soccer (MLS) team Philadelphia Union. The technology was designed to improve food and beverage (F&B) sales, accelerate transaction times and support customer traffic and engagement.

Acquisition Highlights

Some of the most important aspects of the acquisition include the expansion of Cantaloupe’s market into solutions for the sports stadiums, entertainment venues, festivals, hospitality, theme parks, and full-service and fast-casual restaurants. The comprehensive offerings encompass an enterprise-grade POS platform, omnichannel solutions, socially connected features, and team/venue customizations.

Representatives from CHEQ anticipate the collaboration with Cantaloupe will allow them to bring market-leading innovation to their customer base and expand their technology offering through Cantaloupe’s national and international distribution network.

Seed of Growth

In December 2023, the Cantaloupe launched new analytics tools in its Seed Pro software platform. Seed Analytics and Seed Intelligence were designed to change how vending operators leverage data for business growth with improved decision-making and increased productivity.

Seed Intelligence was designed specifically for operators seeking a business intelligence tool. It offers an extensive data warehouse, integrating sales and operational data from Seed Pro with the operators’ existing business intelligence tools such as Microsoft Power BI, Tableau and QlickSense.

This eliminates the need for manual data handling, simplifying the analysis process. Additionally, it allows operators to create custom dashboards with their combined data. By centralizing data across platforms, Seed Intelligence aims to facilitate cross-functional reporting.

‘cantaloupe’ quoted Ravi Venkatesan, head honcho of Cantaloupe, Inc., as stating, “The acquisition of CHEQ expands Cantaloupe’s addressable market into a new and rapidly growing sector. There is tremendous synergy between both of our product lines and solutions that will grow our footprint across our combined customer base. We are excited to welcome the CHEQ team to the Cantaloupe family.”

Stated Shawn Thornton, Chief Revenue Officer, Florida Panthers, “We are thrilled with the success we’ve seen since implementing CHEQ’s solutions at the 20,000-capacity Amerant Bank Arena (Sunrise, Florida). CHEQ’s suite of payment options has enhanced the food and beverage (F&B) experience for our fans and has increased our backend operational efficiency.”

‘cantaloupe’ further quoted Thomas Lapham, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of CHEQ as stating, “We are looking forward to joining Cantaloupe and continuing our mission of delighting guests with a best-in-class on-premise payments experience. Joining forces will allow us to bring their market-leading innovation to our current customer base, and to expand our technology offering through Cantaloupe’s national and international distribution network.”

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