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Building Recognition To Help GK Become the No. 1 New POS Provider in the World
The challenge: GK Software had built a world-class, cloud-based retail technology suite and was developing a proven track record in Europe. But in North America, they were unknown.
The approach: Aster Agency developed GK’s first North American marketing channel, developing its regional positioning through media and analyst relations, executive thought leadership, social media and website positioning.
The result: After nearly a decade working together, GK is the No. 1 new POS provider globally and growing revenue at 27.8%, the fastest among major POS vendors. GK is a wholly owned subsidiary of Fujitsu, which valued the GK brand so highly it preserved GK’s brand name.
By the numbers:
No. 1
new POS provider globally
27.8%
revenue growth, fastest growing among major POS vendors
74%
share of voice in September 2026, GK’s strongest month on record
10 yrs
of partnership
When we entered the U.S. market, we knew that technology would only get us so far. American retailers hadn’t heard of GK. Aster Agency helped us change that. They didn’t just get us coverage. They helped us earn the credibility to have real conversations with real retailers about real problems. That’s made a real difference in how we’ve grown regionally.
The Situation
With more than 570,000 retail and payment installations across 65 countries, GK is a Germany-headquartered retail tech company founded in 1990. In May 2025, GK became a wholly owned subsidiary of Fujitsu, now leading the Consumer Experience (CX) pillar of Fujitsu’s Uvance initiative. Its CLOUD4RETAIL platform, a cloud-based, open solution for POS, self-checkout, mobile customer engagement and store operations, serves more than a quarter of the world’s Top 50 retailers, including Lidl, adidas and EDEKA.
But when GK was entering North America nearly 10 years ago, it had no dedicated U.S. marketing function, no media relationships and minimal awareness.
A number of GK’s early U.S. executives had worked for Triversity (the prominent customer-centric POS provider later acquired by SAP) and during that time collaborated with Aster Agency. With the relationship going back nearly 20 years, the teams had a shared foundation for partnership. They believed working together could help GK meet its North American goals.
The Problem
The U.S. technology ecosystem is crowded and competitive, with enterprise buyers relying heavily on third-party validation, including analyst reports, press coverage and peer validation. Without recognition in these channels, even the most technologically advanced vendor is left out of the conversation.
The specific communications challenges:
- No U.S. market presence: There was no recognition among U.S. influencers and no internal function to build awareness locally.
- No local thought leadership: GK’s executives were knowledgeable voices, but they had no way to demonstrate expertise in North America.
- Sales lacked consistent visibility: With long evaluation cycles, sales teams needed to be consistently visible and credible over time.
- No media or analyst relationships: North American buyers rely heavily on key analyst firms like Gartner, IDC, Forrester and IHL and trade coverage like Convenience Store News or Retail TouchPoints. GK had no established relationships with these influencers.
The Benefits
GK selected Aster Agency to essentially step into the role of its outsourced North American marketing team. Since kicking off the partnership nearly 10 years ago, Aster Agency has managed everything from digital marketing to thought leadership content to event strategy to PR.
Working together across the U.S. and Germany, we built GK’s communication strategy from the ground up. The stories in each market are unique, with North America establishing itself more heavily into c-stores, fuel and fleets than Germany. This approach has allowed GK to capture coverage in trending local stories and stand out to target buyers.
Generating consistent coverage to keep GK top of mind
In retail technology, deals are closed when buyers are already familiar with your established brand expertise. We capture consistent press coverage to keep GK visible to its target buyers, with roughly 200 pieces of coverage captured in the last few years.
- Quarterly press releases covering product announcements, customer wins, event presence and momentum.
- Up to four proactive pitches per month targeting tier-one business and vertical trade publications, positioning executives as go-to voices in retail trends.
- Consistent vertical coverage in publications like Grocery Dive, Convenience Store News, Chain Store Age, Loss Prevention Magazine and Payments Journal.
Creating thought leadership that inspires sales
Byline articles and executive posts help move enterprise buyers through long sales cycles. We write content that precisely matches GK’s unique value proposition and each executive’s voice, including:
- 47 bylines placed since 2022 in publications like Total Retail, Convenience Store News, Retail TouchPoints, Retail Today, Chain Store Age and Loss Prevention Magazine.
- Ongoing Forbes Technology Council articles for Michael Scheibner, CEO and chairman of the board at GK Software SE, helping GK establish its expertise in the subjects that matter.
- Ongoing LinkedIn articles for senior execs, helping them build leadership on their owned, personal channels in parallel with earned media.
Campaign spotlight: building GK Software USA president’s leadership profile, fast
When GK’s previous primary U.S. spokesperson departed in late 2025, Aster Agency pivoted immediately. Bill Miller, who joined GK in 2017 as regional director and has grown into the role of president of GK Software USA, was ready to illustrate his expertise and become a compelling industry voice.
Within weeks, we developed a targeted thought leadership plan for Bill, focusing on two areas of his expertise: the evolving convenience and fuel retail landscape and the future of unified commerce. We created content across byline articles, LinkedIn articles and pitching.
By mid-2026, we had placed four Bill Miller bylines in six months:
- Convenience Store News, “The Fleet Strategy C-stores Can’t Afford to Miss” (Jan. 23)
- Retail Today, “AI Won’t Save Retail Without Unified Commerce” (Jan. 30)
- Retail TouchPoints, “How Computer Vision is Reducing Shrink and Reshaping Retail” (May 5)
- Total Retail, “How AI is Moving CPG Monetization to the Point of Decision” (June 2)
That momentum carried into the fall, when Bill was interviewed for NACS Magazine’s “AI on the Front Line” (Sept. 4) and Convenience Store News’ “Unlocking AI’s Potential in Convenience Retail” (Sept. 28), each running in print and online.
The strategy paid off in the numbers. Through August 2026, GK sat third in share of voice at 18% year to date, behind NCR Voyix and Aptos. September reversed that: 17 pieces of coverage in a single month and 74% SOV, GK’s strongest month on record. That surge lifted GK to 26% SOV year to date, a virtual three-way tie for the lead with NCR Voyix (27%) and Aptos (25%) across a tracked set of six competitors that also includes Toshiba, Jumpmind, Manhattan Associates and Oracle.
Campaign spotlight: launching GK Agentic
Product launches are where positioning gets tested. When GK introduced GK Agentic, its agentic AI framework for enterprise retail, we built a launch program designed to land the story across retail, channel and AI trade media simultaneously.
The September 2026 launch generated nine pieces of coverage in under a month, the single biggest campaign of GK’s year, with pickup in MarTechCube, Convenience Store News, Brief Glance and across the ChannelLife, ITBrief and eCommerceNews networks in both the U.S. and Canada.
It capped a year of product and partner storytelling that also included GK’s DevHub open platform expansion in July and the Kitestring partnership announcement in September, each generating five additional placements.
Owning the convenience store innovation narrative
Convenience and fuel are two of the most important growth markets in North America. With unique technology needs around fleet fueling, forecourt management, dynamic pricing and c-store loyalty that don’t directly translate from Europe, Aster Agency has helped develop messaging and positioning that establish GK as a recognized authority in these markets.
NACS Show, the signature annual event for convenience, is a centerpiece of our strategy each year. We manage GK’s NACS communication strategy annually, including press release, media outreach, analyst coordination, social media and sales support.
Supporting analyst relations that open doors
Analyst recognition is one of the most powerful sales-enablement tools. GK’s extraordinary analyst program is driven by Orit Bar-Ad, GK’s chief innovation evangelist, who provides guidance on how we can support and amplify her strategic plan.
While in the earlier years of the partnership we played a direct role building the analyst program from the ground up, we now jump in to coordinate briefings, prepare briefing material, support follow-ups and amplify wins across the U.S. market. When GK is mentioned in prominent reports, we share locally through social, content and press activities.
Building and managing GK’s owned channels
When GK kicked off its partnership, the company had no local social media presence. We launched GK’s LinkedIn and Twitter channels, eventually retiring its X account, and have managed consistent content that has grown engagement and followers.
And when GK needed help creating its North American digital presence, particularly through its website, Aster Agency was there. We helped manage a local web launch, blog program and ongoing translation support.
The Result
In nearly a decade, Aster Agency has helped GK go from a company with zero U.S. brand recognition to the most prominent vendor in the space. Together, we’ve:
- Built and sustained executive thought leadership programs through multiple leadership transitions, keeping GK’s voice in the market without interruption
- Launched and consolidated GK’s local digital presence from zero, including web, blog and social media
- Amplified its success globally, including being named a leader by organizations like Datos Insights, IHL Group, IDC and Forrester
- Supported a growth strategy that has led to 27.8% revenue growth last year, with seven of the 15 largest U.S. convenience retailers partnering with GK
- Closed the share-of-voice gap on far larger competitors, moving from third place at 18% year to date through August 2026 to a virtual tie for the lead at 26% after a record September
Aster Agency isn’t a vendor we manage from Berlin, they’re a genuine part of our marketing team. The U.S. market has its own way of doing business. Trying to run that from Europe without someone deeply embedded is nearly impossible. Aster Agency knows the U.S. market and our business, understanding our products, positioning, strategic priorities and brand. Additionally, when we need something to move quickly, Aster moves quickly. We don’t spend cycles on revisions, they just get it.
Ready to turn an inconsistent PR program into a strategic communications plan?
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