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Growth investment in digital commerce: Solteq Plc makes a niche acquisition to boost the launch of eCommerce Practice and buys Pardco Group Inc.

Solteq Plc Stock Exchange Bulletin 20.12.2016 at 3.05 pm

Solteq has acquired the entire share capital of Pardco Group Inc. The company
acquisition is part of the digital commerce growth strategy that Solteq
published earlier this year. One step forward on growth path was the decision to
invest in the Nordic mid-market omnicommerce growth by launching Magento
Practice. Omnicommerce means a retailing strategy that delivers a seamless
customer experience through all available shopping channels – from brick-and
-mortar shops to online stores and mobile. In this environment, it is essential
that all the systems in the retail chain work seamlessly together, starting from
the customer encounter all the way to supply chain management and digital
marketing.

The new omnicommerce competence center complements Solteq’s existing
omnicommerce solution offering, which is at its best for large or global clients
in retail or wholesale. Magento Practice, which was launced in autumn 2016, will
bring another strong pillar for Solteq’s offering of digital commerce solutions,
serving especially mid-market Nordic retail and wholesale customers.

The company acquisition enhances the Magento technology expertise of the
omnicommerce competence center by 8 people. In addition, SaaS-based eCommerce to
small and mid-market clients, called Magentokauppa.fi, will be transferred to
Solteq’s ownership. The parties of the acquisition do not share the value of the
deal in details.

The omnicommerce competence center for mid-market clients has been built during
the past few months by recruiting Magento technology experts and offering job
circulation opportunities to Solteqians. In October, we announced that we would
recruit 40-50 employees for this business area in Finland or in Sweden in the
next 12 months. The acquisition of Pardco completed and signed today will
increase the number of personnel in the Magento Practice to 15. Demand for
omnicommerce solutions designed for mid-market clients has been active, and
Solteq intends to continue growing the business in 2017 as planned.

Shared will to grow in the digital commerce

The parties to the deal share a will to grow in the strategically important
area.

- The acquisition of Pardco will increase the coverage of our digital commerce
solutions offering. We have already been able to offer eCommerce, back end
systems, digital marketing and design to global and large clients. Today, we are
able to offer the same to mid-market wholesale and retail clients. An especially
important result of the acquisition is the synergy between eCommerce and digital
marketing, which will certainly benefit mid-market clients, states Juha Luomala,
Vice President, Service Development from Solteq Plc.

- We want to be part of a growth story. We will be in the strategic core of a
significantly bigger player in the industry, which will create interesting
prospects for all of us. New clients, bigger projects and more versatile growth
paths are just some of the reasons why our team is so excited, Pardco Group
Inc’s CEO Janne Tiainen explains.

Profit guidance

Solteq Plc makes no changes to its profit guidance and expects its revenue to
grow significantly from the 2015 level. The operating profit and the operating
profit before non-recurring items are also estimated to grow from the 2015
level.

Additional Information

Juha Luomala, VP, Service Development, Solteq Plc
Tel +358 50 539 9323
e-mail juha.luomala@solteq.com

Janne Tiainen, CEO, Pardco Group Inc.
Tel + 358 358 20 729 9859
e-mail janne.tiainen@pard.co

Press release 5.10.2016: Solteq to invest in growth – Magento Practice for
delivery of eCommerce solutions to be lauched
(https://www.solteq.com/en/investors/releases-and-publications/releases/solteq
-invest-growth-magento-practice-delivery-ecommerce-solutions-launched/)

Distribution

NASDAQ OMX Helsinki
Key Media
www.solteq.com

Solteq in Brief

Solteq is a digital commerce expert. We offer total solutions for omnicommerce,
from back end processes all the way to the purchasing experience of the customer
and from supply chain management to digital marketing. Our passion is to deliver
the unexpected to our clients – in the fast changing world, you need a partner
that can deliver today what you will need tomorrow. We employ about 500 experts
in three countries and make deliveries to Europe, North America, Asia and
Australia. In 2015, our annual net sales amounted to 54 million euro.

Pardco in Brief

Pardco Group Inc.is an agile ICT company that specializes in Magento eCommerce
development and maintenance. We help our clients implement a long-term eCommerce
plan. We believe that the key to a successful implementation is a trusting
relationship between the client and the supplier. Our revenue is about 0.5
million euro.