German maker of digital price tag tech targets U.S. dealers

Robin Berrendorf envisions a big future in the United States for digital automobile price tags. He believes his family's company — Digital Communication Solutions — will make it happen.

Based in Berlin producing technology designed to help customers access accurate and instantaneous pricing for available cars in a dealership, Digital Communication Solutions is now expanding into the U.S. market.

"The U.S. is the greatest automotive market out there," Berrendorf said in a telephone interview from Germany on Sept. 12.

The company's main technology centers on a digital pricing tool — a tablet placed inside the car at the windshield or side window for customers to view. Two sizes are available — a smaller one that displays the dealership logo, or a larger one that highlights pricing for the customer and can be changed instantly to match market demand or changes.

Customers can access additional information via tools such as finance QR codes and links via iPacket, a company whose technology enables on-site or remote digital sales. A GPS beacon lets sales teams know a precise vehicle location and issues alerts intended to help prevent car theft, battery problems or unsold vehicles from staying on the lot too long. Artificial intelligence technology recommends the closest vehicle to one that has been sold so salespeople can offer quick alternatives, Berrendorf said.

Digital Communication Solutions, founded in 2009 as an electronic signage company, developed its first digital price tag system for dealerships in 2018. So far, the company has deployed 60,000 units at 240 European automotive dealerships of multiple sizes, Berrendorf said.

In the U.S., the company's first client was Mark Miller Subaru of Salt Lake City. Alex Kuhn, sales manager at the store, said the dealership chose Digital Communication Solutions after some research to replace an earlier, similar vendor that went out of business. Mark Miller has been happy with the technology, he said.

"Having the information of the vehicle on the price tag with a price that updates automatically has been great for our store," Kuhn said. "It saves us oodles of time and it's saving us a lot of manpower."

Berrendorf said the goal is to deploy 10,000 to 15,000 digital pricing tools at U.S. dealerships of multiple sizes in Digital Communication Solutions' first year here. Plans call for expanding that to up to 50,000 over the next few years.

Berrendorf's older brothers Patrick and Denis founded the company. The brothers' father, Peter, later joined after retiring from IBM.

"Being a family business in the automotive space is one of our strong suits," Berrendorf said. "I need to be a family business in a market where there are a lot of other family-owned businesses."