Etika Expands Business Portfolio Following Acquisition Of Advend Systems Pte Ltd

Etika Sdn Bhd (“Etika”), one of Malaysia’s most prominent Halal beverage companies, has recently announced the expansion of their business portfolio after acquiring Advend Systems Pte Ltd. (“Advend Systems”), headquartered in Singapore. Advend Systems is a leading operator, refurbisher of vending machines and systems solution provider for the vending industry. This acquisition includes its vending businesses in Malaysia and Singapore operating under the name Atlas Vending.

With this acquisition, Etika is now the number one player in vending with more than 10,000 vending machines across Malaysia. Etika will be able to vend hot beverages as well as confectionery products, following the completion of this acquisition.

Etika, as a leading beverage company always looks to offer its consumers a more convenient and affordable way to purchase great tasting products, served chilled and as freshly produced as possible. Now, with the acquisition of Atlas Vending, Etika is able to offer consumers a great number of options to purchase and consume their favourite products.

“At Etika, we have always laid special emphasis on meeting consumer requirements as seamlessly as possible. Following the acquisition of Atlas Vending, we are now able to be present in a larger number of vending machines, making Etika the No. 1 beverage company with vending machine presence in the country,” says Mr. Khalid Alvi, Chief Executive Office of Etika, Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei.

With over 39 years of operations, Atlas Vending is one of the largest independent vending solutions provider in Singapore and Malaysia, with services ranging from hot and cold beverages like coffee, canned and bottled drinks as well as snacks such as cup noodles. Atlas Vending machines come in various formats and some are equipped with proprietary telemetry technology that eases everyday operations such as stocking machines, inventory management, operating status, and stock levels, that reduce machine down-time and stock out situations.

This acquisition will enable Etika to offer multiple payment options at its vending machines such as e-wallets, cash, credit cards, contactless payment etc. While not all machines will carry all payment modes, Etika can choose to strategize its vending machine make-up to suit the local market. Be it cashless or cash payments, consumers will be guaranteed convenient, onthe-go access to their favourite beverages.

Atlas Vending’s machines also possess the ability to retrieve cashless sales data from its servers for analysis and understanding of transaction trends, products purchased and time of purchase. This technology is currently being progressively rolled out across more machines. For Etika’s expanded business services, these analytics will help to map the entire consumer journey while obtaining key insights such as in-demand products and popular locations, assisting the company to better serve their loyal consumers. This allows Etika to play a more active role in the entire consumer journey, from manufacturing to purchase.

Along with providing a convenient and fast option for consumers to purchase their beverages, the acquisition of Atlas Vending further strengthens vending as a strong pillar in Etika’s business. This gives the beverage company an opportunity to invest in and develop an improved vending experience for consumers ranging from an efficient payment gateway to offering rewards to loyal consumers.

“Innovation lies at the core of Etika’s business principles. We are constantly on the lookout for new ways to innovate our offerings for our consumers. Etika’s acquisition of Atlas Vending provides a major growth opportunity for us as we provide increased convenience to our consumers who can now access their favourite beverages, in many more locations” added Mr. Khalid Alvi.

The acquisition of Advend Systems Pte Ltd by Etika will be completed by Quarter 1, 2020.