[img_assist|nid=25952|title=|desc=|link=popup|align=left|width=120|height=190]StyleCard is launching on Apple’s Passbook wallet, and the company has worked with Passforce, a software-as-a-service company, to create their card and campaign management tools.

The £39.99 annual membership card offers discounts on more than 1,000 fashion and lifestyle brands, including Kaliko, Yumi and James Lakeland, plus concessions in House of Fraser and Debenhams, and many independent stores. With the mobile StyleCard, customers can simply flash their phone to get money off, although some stores will have scanners integrated at the POS.

Using Passforce’s dashboard, campaign managers can update their promotions in real-time and on a personalised, even one-to-one basis. After users sign up, the card is geocoded with their address so when they are near a participating store, they receive (subtle) push notifications of relevant offers. StyleCard manages the front-end sign up process – which is done either online or on a mobile-optimised site – where the user can select preferences in terms of brands and product type so offers can be tailored further.

Chi-Lang Ngo, director of Passforce, set up the company to make it really easy for marketers to design mobile wallet campaigns. “Our clients are in the retail business, not the mobile development business,” he said. Passforce looks after all of the hosting and scaling for its clients. Ngo said that his company has been focused on helping marketers use Apples Passbook as it is the dominant player but when Google and Samsung catch up, all of their clients will be able to port their cards over. 

Commenting on the wider mobile wallet sector, Chi-Lang Ngo, said: “Unlike firms in the US and Asia, brands and retailers in the UK have been slow to adopt Passbook, partially due to lack of awareness and technology infrastructure. However this is changing quickly, with EasyJet, Odeon, British Airways, Subway jumping on board just in the last month.

“We anticipate the mobile wallet adoption to accelerate in second half of 2013, with more UK big brands offering Passbook, and becoming mainstream for consumers in the next year. Mobile wallets such as Apple Passbook are currently one of the best ways for brands and retailers to engage with customers on mobile. Passforce is helping brands and retailers take advantage of this next wave in mobile commerce by providing the technology to manage mobile wallet content.”