The South African arm of global enterprise resource planning (ERP) business QAD has shown the most growth over the last year.
This is according to the QAD`s VP of EMEA, Jean-Claude Walravens, speaking at the company`s customer conference, Explore, which kicked off yesterday in Sorrento, Italy.
He says the entire region grew by 12% in the first quarter this year, with a significant portion coming out of the South African business. "We can`t give exact figures, because we are in a closed period."
The company deals in the three primary global regions including: the Americas, which accounts for 40% of the company`s business; the EMEA region, which carries the same weight; and Asia Pacific, which holds around 20% of the company`s business.
By the end of last year, QAD sported a market capitalisation of $260 million. The company operates exclusively within the manufacturing space and in several verticals, namely high-technology, industrial, consumer goods, life sciences and the automotive industry.
According to Walravens, 70% of the company`s revenues are generated through tier one global manufacturers. He adds that the clients garnered through these businesses gives the company access to around 50% of the market share in manufacturing-specific ERP.
Walravens adds that, within these verticals, business in SA has been the fastest growing in the region, with the Middle East following closely behind.
While the company has a solid customer set in SA, Walravens says the next step for the business is to develop a channel network across Africa. "SA is a good starting point to grow into the rest of Africa, it is a success story," he adds.
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