MERKUR SPECIAL Internationalisation: From eastern Westphalia into the wide world T
he Gauselmann Group’s market leadership in commercial gaming machines and gaming arcades across Germany is a solid foundation on which to build the national and
international expansion of the corporate group. The focus is on developing new business segments and exporting established models for success abroad. Here, the group is steering the right course, as the popularity of the products and services from the ‘games makers’ in many European and international markets testifies. Internationally, the Gauselmann Group was again able to grow through further acquisitions in the financial year 2016: sales increased by 23.6 per cent to 832 million euros in 2016. In 2017, the company predicts that foreign sales will for the first time account for substantially more than 50 per cent.
The Gauselmann Group has been active in
international markets since as far back as 1985, firstly as Stella International Spielgeräte GmbH and, from 2003 onwards, through MEXIM GmbH & Co. KG. With the establishment of the Atronic subsidiary, the Gauselmann Group expanded its global activities in 1993 and in 1998 was the only European company to be granted a manufacturing licence for the American casino market in Las Vegas/Nevada. In May 2008, Atronic came completely under the responsibility of an American lottery system provider.
Stella International Spielgeräte GmbH and MEXIM GmbH & Co. KG were merged in 2005 as part of the realignment of the international business activities to form Merkur Gaming GmbH, which since then has been responsible for the development and sales of gaming machines and casino slot machines, as well as video lottery terminals (VLT) and server-based gaming (SBG) systems for the international markets. The Gauselmann Group has evolved into a leading international AWP and vending machine developer and manufacturer and entertainment centre operator.
In 2015, Merkur Gaming was organisationally
integrated into adp Gauselmann GmbH. Merkur Gaming has been retained as the international sales and development brand name and constitutes a successful export department within adp Gauselmann GmbH. All Merkur Gaming products are manufactured
with DIN EN ISO 9001:2008 certification exclusively by adp Gauselmann GmbH in Lübbecke, North Rhine-Westphalia.
Research and development play a particularly
important role within the Gauselmann Group. In total, 16 games design teams around the world are involved in creating new games content for the Gauselmann Group. The centrepiece and link between the international development locations is adp Gauselmann GmbH in Lübbecke, where nearly all of the basic technology for the group is developed. This is where everything comes together.
main international sales markets are the UK, Italy, Spain and Scandinavia, where GeWeTe in each case has its own customer service representatives and technicians. Apart from arcades and casinos, GeWeTe’s money-changing technology is also used throughout the world by department stores, libraries, transport operators and public facilities.
Furthermore, the Gauselmann Group has set
itself the goal to make the Merkur sun just as well-known and successful online as in the stationary sector. More and more countries are regulating and licensing the online gaming market, thus giving players the option to enjoy gaming within their own four walls or when out and about. With its products and services aligned with e-gaming, the group provides an ideal gaming experience.
International arcade expansion One particular advantage of the broadly
This concentrated development and
production expertise in highest ‘made in Germany’ quality and the input from the respective markets enables the group to tailor games and game systems precisely to the needs of the individual markets. Like this, the ‘games makers’ are able to expand their worldwide presence in casino markets and further consolidate their market position in Europe, North, Central and South America as well as in Africa. To secure the supply of the North, Central and South American markets with proprietary time-on-device games in the future, a separate US development studio was set up in Las Vegas, which is expected to contribute to the company’s success from as early as 2017. adp Gauselmann GmbH’s subsidiaries in the UK and Spain also contributed to the company’s international success.
Another important cornerstone for the national and international activities of the Gauselmann Group is GeWeTe Geldwechsel- und Sicherheitstechnik GmbH, which specialises in the development and manufacture of money-changing machines and pay stations. International arcade and casino operators are also relying more and more on the innovative ‘made in Germany’ solutions from GeWeTe. The
based corporate group is the 300-plus CASINO MERKUR-SPIELOTHEK entertainment centres in other European countries. This ensures that customer feedback on the proprietary games and machines flows directly back to the development departments. The Gauselmann Group opened its first international entertainment centre in Amsterdam in 1986. This was followed by arcades in other European countries. In 2006, Merkur Casino GmbH was founded in order to further promote arcade expansion outside of Germany. Today the company operates under the name CASINO MERKUR International GmbH.
In the international arcade arena, the company applies the same successful concept as in Germany with emphasis on the three factors well-trained staff, stylish decor and the latest generation of machines. The first international entertainment centres – like those in Germany – were designed with sisal wall covering and orange ceiling rings. Part of the concept from the very beginning: the friendly laughing Merkur sun. Service – atmosphere – products: this remains the recipe for success to this day, also beyond Germany’s borders, although here the offering is customised to the needs of the individual markets. The acquisition in 2012 of the renowned Praesepe arcade chain with today about 180 venues in the UK, where culturally gaming has a better reputation than in Germany, was the largest in the company’s history.
SEPTEMBER 2017 57
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