First joint project at one of the leading US retail chains

DORTMUND, Germany and BOSTON, MA, March 5, 2012 – e-Spirit Inc., manufacturer of content management system (CMS) FirstSpirit, has a new strategic integration partner in the USA: BlueSky Technology Partners. Based in Noblesville, Indiana, BlueSky is a Smarter Commerce Authorized IBM Premier Business Partner developing ambitious e-commerce projects at medium-sized companies and corporate enterprises on the basis of IBM WebSphere Commerce. With its new partnership, e-Spirit successfully drives its further expansion in the USA and Canada. Jointly with BlueSky and its extensive expertise in the industry, the CMS manufacturer wants to focus its attention on top class companies in the retail market. BlueSky has experience as the first „trained partner“ who has integrated FirstSpirit at a known US retail chain.

The CMS as content integration platform for successful online shops

With FirstSpirit as a content integration platform, companies can quickly transform their international web strategies, efficiently manage website content, intranets and extranets, as well as distribute through different channels or integrate in complex portal structures. The seamless integration of the CMS within the e-commerce platform IBM WebSphere Commerce allows the clients to easily develop and comfortably maintain high-performance and successful e-commerce websites. Thereby the CMS is the central content integration platform permitting quick and easy expansion of the data from the merchant applications with editorial and social content, as well as the integration of marketing instruments. This ensures the optimized editing processes and the quick return on investment.

Best-of-breed strategy through integration of any cloud services

Thanks to the innovative modules, such as the AppCenter for simple integration of any cloud services as well as the flexible and open architecture of FirstSpirit, companies can follow a best-of-breed strategy which permits to select and integrate applications that are suitable for them. In this way the companies can dissolve themselves from the so-called „rip & replace“ strategy of many other CMS manufacturers, at which the company“s clients must exchange their entire back end in one swoop and the selection of their applications is limited only to the „purchased“ assortment. As an experienced system integrator, BlueSky ensures the individual and seamless integration of FirstSpirit in the existing and desired IT systems.

Synergy of CMS and IBM WebSphere Commerce expertise

The goal of the new partnership is to bring together the technological, integration and industry expertise in the e-commerce environment and to offer, to commercial enterprises, an excellent symbiosis of shop solution, content management system and additional best-of-breed applications which support the success of the online merchant. „We are very happy to have in BlueSky another strategic partner in the USA, which has recognized the unique selling characteristic of FirstSpirit as a real content integration platform and wants to establish it together with us on the market“, says Robert Bredlau – COO North America. „BlueSky has a long and wide experience in the implementation of e-commerce projects on the basis of IBM WebSphere Commerce and also has excellent access to the retail sector.“ In parallel to the first project, which is already in operation at one large US retail chain, BlueSky has already trained additional employees and consultants to work with FirstSpirit. „With e-Spirit and its content integration platform, we have finally found, after a long search, the right partner in order to adapt the e-commerce platforms flexibly and efficiently on the basis of IBM WebSphere Commerce to the individual desires and requirements of the clients“, says Todd Irwin, partner and CEO at BlueSky. „In addition, the future-oriented roadmap and the modular expandability of FirstSpirit offers our clients a high level of investment security which is searching for its equal in the US market.“

e-Spirit at the Gartner PCC Summit in Orlando

Clients and interested parties which would like to convince themselves of the flexibility and integration power of the FirstSpirit CMS can do this from March 12-14 2012 at the „Gartner Portals, Content & Collaboration Summit“ in Orlando, Florida, where e-Spirit is presented for the first time. Based on the continuously positive development of the company and its convincing best-of-breed strategy, as well as on the basis of the exceptional usability and integration capability of the enterprise portals, Gartner has placed e-Spirit 2011 in the magic quadrant for web content management.

Please set up a personal meeting and a live demo at the Gartner PCC Summit.

As the manufacturer of the content management system FirstSpirit?, e-Spirit is a technological leader in the field of web content management (WCM). Well-known customers from all business sectors rely on FirstSpirit? for implementing successful web strategies worldwide and for the creation, management and publication of content in highly diverse channels (Internet, intranet, extranet, mobile channels, PDF, email newsletters, portals, DTP, technical documentation). The content management system impresses with its outstanding integratability and its consistent best-of-breed strategy: It integrates seamlessly into complex system landscapes and portals (SAP NetWeaver, IBM WebSphere, Microsoft SharePoint, Liferay), and with FirstSpirit? AppCenter, e-Spirit offers the unique opportunity in the market for interface integration of any web applications directly into the CMS. As a content integration platform, FirstSpirit? meets the highest demands for usability, performance and investment security.

e-Spirit was founded in 1999. It is a part of the adesso Group and is represented with 11 locations in Germany, the United States, Great Britain, Austria and Switzerland. www.e-Spirit.com

Kontakt:
e-Spirit AG
Sandra Högemann
Barcelonaweg 14
44269 Dortmund
+49 (0)231 477 77 199

http://www.e-Spirit.com
presse@e-Spirit.com

Pressekontakt:
Schwartz Public Relations
Jörg Stelzer
Sendlingerstraße 42A
80331 München
js@schwartzpr.de
+49 (0) 89-211 871-34
http://www.schwartzpr.de