Blackhawk Network Launches eCommerce Website for Gift Cards in Canada

Popular gift card brands now available as egifts in one convenient location

TORONTO, July 27, 2016 /CNW/ - Blackhawk Network (Canada) Ltd., a leading prepaid and payments network, announced today the launch of its first website for purchasing egifts in Canada. The website, www.GiftCardStore.ca, provides shoppers with a single, convenient online store to purchase a variety of well-known branded egifts, including those in the retail, dining and gaming industries.

"We're committed to providing shoppers with a superior experience when buying gift cards, and launching GiftCardStore.ca is a natural extension of that effort," said Steve Dekker, Managing Director of Blackhawk Canada. "Egifting is on the rise because convenience and instant gratification are important to consumers, and Canadian shoppers will now have a convenient and thoughtful way of gifting that adds value to the shopping experience."

Currently, GiftCardStore.ca allows shoppers to purchase egifts in a variety of denominations, and the company plans to offer physical gift cards for purchase in the near future. Some of the key features of the new website include:

• Easily searchable, robust catalogue of egift options. The site provides shoppers with a substantial selection of egifts to purchase in one location. Shoppers can browse the site by category, occasion or brand to find the perfect gift.
• Egift delivery. GiftCardStore.ca makes it easy for consumers to purchase egifts and deliver to the recipient by email, thus helping shoppers recognize milestones and other celebrations, including holidays and birthdays, in a timely manner.
• Personalized messaging for gifts. For those that choose to purchase an egift for family, friends, or other special people in their lives, personalized messaging is available to help attach more meaning and added thoughtfulness to the gift.
• At-home shopping experience. The site allows shoppers to find what they are looking for from the comfort of home through their smartphones, tablets or computers.

About Blackhawk Network

Blackhawk Network Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: HAWK) is a leading prepaid and payments global company, which supports the program management and distribution of gift cards, prepaid telecom products and financial service products in a number of different retail, digital and incentive channels. Blackhawk's digital platform supports prepaid across a network of digital distribution partners including retailers, financial service providers, and mobile wallets. For more information, please visit www.blackhawknetwork.com or product websites Cardpool, Gift Card Lab, Gift Card Mall, GiftCards.com and OmniCard.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Forward-looking statements are indicated by words or phrases such as "guidance," "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "estimates," "plans," "continuing," "ongoing," and similar words or phrases and the negative of such words and phrases. Forward-looking statements are based on our current plans and expectations and involve risks and uncertainties which are, in many instances, beyond our control, and which could cause actual results to differ materially from those included in or contemplated or implied by the forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, among other things, risk arising from consumers' demand of egifts in Canada, consumer spending patterns and preferences in Canada, and the Company's ability to retain and attract new customers online.

Other risks and uncertainties relating to the Company's business are: our ability to generate adequate taxable income to enable us to fully utilize our income tax benefits, changes in applicable tax law that preclude us from fully utilizing our income tax benefits, our ability to grow adjusted operating revenues and adjusted net income as anticipated, our ability to grow at historic rates or at all, the consequences should we lose one or more of our top distribution partners or fail to attract new distribution partners to our network or if the financial performance of our distribution partners' businesses decline, our reliance on our content providers, the demand for their products and our exclusivity arrangements with them, our reliance on relationships with card issuing banks, the consequences to our future growth if our distribution partners fail to actively and effectively promote our products and services, the ability of our distribution partners to implement EMV compliance within their expected timeline and lift the measures they may have taken prior to such compliance to limit or control their exposure to liability for fraud losses; changes in consumer behavior away from our distribution partners and our products resulting from limits or controls implemented by our distribution partners during our distribution partners' transition to EMV compliance; the requirement that we comply with applicable laws and regulations, including increasingly stringent money-laundering rules and regulations, and other risks and uncertainties described in our reports and filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), including the risks and uncertainties set forth in Item 1A under the heading Risk Factors in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended January 2, 2016 and other subsequent periodic reports we file with the SEC. We undertake no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect developments or information obtained after the date hereof and disclaim any obligation to do so other than as may be required by law.

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CONTACT:
Ashley Jackson
[e-mail]
719-332-3495

SOURCE Blackhawk Network