Self-checkout leaders 365 Retail Markets and Avanti Markets confirmed their anticipated merger in recent website and YouTube posts. Simultaneously, the newly expanded micro market entity is folding in Lightspeed Automation, an automated product picking system widely used by micro market and vending operators.
Avanti and 365 founders and chief executives, respectively, Jim Brinton and Joe Hessling, made the merger announcement in a YouTube post recorded at Avanti’s Seattle headquarters. Brinton said the merger was a “longtime coming” and hinted that the two companies will begin merging their teams and software soon.
Among the benefits of the merger, Hessling noted that the millions of R&D dollars spent by both companies in two directions will now be focused in one direction. “Our focus will be to provide operators with security, uptime and innovation,” Hessling said.
Vending Market Watch will be covering more details on this historic merger in future posts.