mario parisi - MSI Merchant Services
mario parisi - MSI Merchant Services mario parisi - MSI Merchant Services
Pro�les in payments: Mario Parisi 25 MARIO PARISI Merchant acquiring is not a business for the fainthearted. Ask Mario Parisi, COO at Merchant Services Inc., a 20year-old ISO headquartered in Union, N.J. "I work three times harder than most," said Parisi. Not that he's all about work. "I work hard, and I play hard," he added. The payoff has been good for Parisi, who joined the company 18 years ago and has helped transform MSI into a nationwide player in the ISO world. "I work three times harder than most. ... We're �ghting our battles on the front lines every day." Parisi's tenure at MSI has been one of great change for ISOs and their MLSs. Perhaps no change has been more notable in his mind than the migration from terminal leasing to giveaways, a model he, like many of his peers, considers unsustainable. "There are so many companies out there who think giving away profit margins on the front-end and making it up in volume later is the way to go," Parisi said. It's proven a faulty assumption, especially as the economy (and spending) slows, he suggested.
He said the result is "a lot of people are hurting because their business models are not working as planned." Not so for MSI and it's sales partners. "The people around us are making money," Parisi said. MSI pays residuals to roughly 400 agents every month. The company reports a base of 80,000 active merchants and annual bankcard volume in excess of $10 billion. Like most ISOs, MSI's business is not limited to bank cards; it includes check and gift and loyalty programs, as well as its own Internet gateway. Parisi attributes the success of MSI and his tenure there to good marketing, a good business model, loyalty and respect. "We are a solid company with solid financials that gives out good deals," he said. "We do not bait and switch." And he is ever mindful of the competition. "We're fighting our battles on the front lines every day," Parisi said. O.B. 26
Pro�les in payments: Mario Parisi<br />
25<br />
MARIO<br />
PARISI<br />
<strong>Merchant</strong> acquiring is not a business for the fainthearted.<br />
Ask Mario Parisi, COO at <strong>Merchant</strong> <strong>Services</strong> Inc., a 20year-old<br />
ISO headquartered in Union, N.J.<br />
"I work three times harder than most," said Parisi. Not<br />
that he's all about work. "I work hard, and I play hard," he<br />
added. The payoff has been good for Parisi, who joined<br />
the company 18 years ago and has helped transform <strong>MSI</strong><br />
into a nationwide player in the ISO world.<br />
"I work three times<br />
harder than most. ...<br />
We're �ghting our<br />
battles on the front<br />
lines every day."<br />
Parisi's tenure at <strong>MSI</strong> has been one of great change for<br />
ISOs and their MLSs. Perhaps no change has been more<br />
notable in his mind than the migration from terminal leasing<br />
to giveaways, a model he, like many of his peers, considers<br />
unsustainable.<br />
"There are so many companies out there who think giving<br />
away profit margins on the front-end and making it up<br />
in volume later is the way to go," Parisi said. It's proven<br />
a faulty assumption, especially as the economy (and<br />
spending) slows, he suggested.
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