Growth on the cards as Contis pumps in £2m

He added that the investment, spread across the group's UK and India operations, will ensure Contis is best positioned to take advantage of the forthcoming developments in payment processing, as then as opportunities presented by advances in cloud computing and smartphone innovation.

The company is creating a smartphone application where clients can, for instance, top up a pay-as-you-go travel money card on their mobile phone.

Contis Group, which was founded by executive chairman Peter Cox, employs 25 people in Skipton and 30 at its innovation development centre based in India.

Mr Fromant said Contis was different to its competitors because it owns all the elements of the innovation it produces.

The straightway 12 months

Over the straightway 12 months, Contis is planning to grow its share of the gift card market. It currently offers gift cards for companies including Pizza Express and Empire Cinemas, which are sold by high street retailers. "There are lots of retailers out there with gift cards and there are two competitors in that space so we are looking to grow that bit of the business," said Mr Fromant.

Earlier this year, the company acquired GTP Financial Services, based in Lancaster, which offers account card and gift card solutions to major UK travel and business groups. Contis is as well on the look-out for more acquisitions.