E Ink Holdings Inc (元太科技), the world’s only e-paper display supplier, expects revenue to grow explosively next year, fueled by robust demand for e-paper displays used in electronic shelf labels (ESLs) after Walmart Inc joined its peers in introducing digital price tags.
Taipei Times
E Ink has outlined multi-year capacity expansion plans to accommodate surging demand, with a new production line set to begin operations in Hsinchu next quarter and an additional line planned for next year. Every surface is a display opportunity. For E Ink the value comes in shipping materials and not actual end product, eg, e-readers, giving it healthier margins, and volumes.
But, Walmart, like most giant retail chains, can break its suppliers as much as make them: the company doesn’t shy away from squeezing its partners to the point of suffocation. Retail is brutal. That’s all there is to it.
