CardPartner Inc., which develops affinity card programs for small organizations, says it has added 12 such entities to its client list.
The New York company, a unit of Serverside Group Ltd. of London, said last week that it has introduced more than 100 "micro-affinity" programs in the past nine months. It officially started operating in June, with the intention of offering affinity cards for nonprofits and other groups that lack the membership numbers to attract major issuers.
CardPartner said its 12 new clients include the nonprofits Farm Rescue and World Vets. Farm Rescue in Jamestown, N.D., plants and harvests the land of farm families that have experienced a major illness, injury, or natural disaster; World Vets in Deer Park, Wash., provides veterinary services to underserved areas globally.
UMB Financial Corp. in Kansas City, Mo., issues cards for all the affinity programs designed by CardPartner. The cards run on the Visa Inc. network. CardPartner keeps costs low for all parties by not preprinting batches of cards and by avoiding traditional direct-mail campaigns. Instead, the affinity groups advertise the cards directly to their members, usually through their Web sites or in their newsletters.
Mark Levitt, the senior director of creative services at CardPartner, said in a press release that its focus on smaller groups has helped it enlarge its client list despite the current tight credit environment. "Small nonprofits and other groups that need the revenue generated by an affinity credit card program are often lost in the shuffle" at major issuers, he said. "By focusing on this underserved space, CardPartner is uncovering tremendous pent-up demand for affinity credit card programs."
