What Kitestring Technical Services does

Kitestring Technical Services is a privately held, family-owned IT consulting firm founded in 1998 by Larry J. Smith and headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas. The company specializes in retail and supply chain technology consulting with a focus on point-of-sale (POS) system selection, implementation, and modernization, and reports having modernized more than 2,000 stores over its 25+ year history. Its named enterprise customers include Walmart, JCPenney, Nordstrom, Spinx, RaceTrac, Potbelly, and Follett, and the firm derives approximately 20% of its revenue from Walmart and Sam's Club. Jared Smith, the founder's son, has served as CEO since approximately 2012.

The firm delivers its services through four modules: Strategic Consulting (CIO support, organizational design, and technology stack evaluation), System Selection Studies (a 16-week structured vendor selection and implementation roadmapping program), Custom Design & Development (end-to-end software development from user research through deployment), and Talent Solutions (technical talent acquisition, staff augmentation, and durable team deployment). Differentiated capabilities include a vendor-neutral POS demonstration laboratory in Bentonville housing equipment from 14 hardware and 7 software vendors, a Jobs-to-be-Done methodology for retail technology design, and a strategic partnership with Diebold Nixdorf (April 2026) that bundles Kitestring's consulting with the Vynamic software suite. Leadership includes alumni of Walmart, NCR, and Amazon Flex across principal architect, supply chain, and delivery roles.

Kitestring operates a sales-led, enterprise-focused go-to-market targeting large retailers with annual sales above $300 million, supported by direct field sales, presence at the NRF Big Show conference, content marketing, and a vendor-neutral lab used for client demonstrations. Revenue is generated through project-based consulting fees, retainer arrangements, talent placement fees, and multi-year contracts; pricing is custom and not publicly disclosed. The firm employs approximately 140 people as of April 2026, has no disclosed external funding, and remains under family ownership with no parent company or M&A activity on record. Geographic focus is North America, with a primary market in the United States.

Name

Kitestring Technical Services

Legal name

Kitestring Technical Services

Website

https://kitestring.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Kitestring Technical Services is a family-owned IT consulting firm specializing in retail and supply chain technology, focused on point-of-sale selection, modernization, and systems integration. Founded in 1998, it serves enterprise retailers through strategic consulting, system selection studies, custom development, and talent solutions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Bentonville

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Strategic Consulting Services: Consulting engagements providing clarity on technology strategy, organizational structure, product direction, and technology stack decisions. Revenue generated through project-based consulting fees and retainer arrangements with enterprise clients.
2. Talent Solutions: Providing vetted technology talent through technical interviewing, direct hire placement, right-to-hire contracts, co-engineering, and durable team deployments. Revenue from placement fees and ongoing talent engagement.
3. System Selection Studies: 16-week consultative program helping clients identify the right systems. Includes discovery, needs assessment, market research, vendor evaluation, and implementation roadmapping.
4. Custom Design & Development: Custom software development services including user research, personas, journey mapping, wireframing, prototyping, visual design, and full software development lifecycle.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Kitestring Technical Services is a family-owned technology consulting firm that helps retailers and supply chain organizations modernize their technology ecosystems. The firm provides four core services: Strategic Consulting, System Selection Studies (a 16-week vendor evaluation program), Custom Design & Development of software, and Talent Solutions for technical staffing. It also operates a vendor-neutral POS demonstration laboratory in Bentonville, Arkansas.

Product overview

Kitestring Technical Services is a family-owned, second-generation technology consulting firm offering four core service modules: Strategic Consulting, System Selection Studies, Custom Design & Development, and Talent Solutions. The firm specializes in retail and supply chain technology, helping clients with POS selection and modernization, systems integration, and technical talent acquisition. Their System Selection Studies is a 16-week consultative program, while Custom Design & Development provides end-to-end software solutions. They also operate a vendor-neutral POS demonstration laboratory in Bentonville, Arkansas. Through their Diebold Nixdorf partnership, they deliver the Vynamic software suite to enterprise retailers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Strategic Consulting Technology consulting that helps organizations align technology investments with business goals, including CIO support, organizational design, product strategy, and technology stack evaluation.
• System Selection Studies A 16-week consultative program that helps retailers identify the right point-of-sale, order management, or end-to-end technology stack through vendor evaluation, proof of concept, and implementation roadmapping.
• Custom Design & Development End-to-end software development from user research and design through development and deployment, focusing on user-friendly design, seamless workflows, and scalable solutions.
• Talent Solutions Technology talent acquisition including technical interviewing, direct hire, right-to-hire, co-engineering (staff augmentation), and durable team deployment for retail and supply chain projects.
• Vendor-Neutral Demonstration Laboratory A POS testing facility in Bentonville, Arkansas allowing retailers to test and evaluate point-of-sale systems from multiple hardware and software vendors side by side, featuring equipment from 14 hardware and 7 software vendors.

Quantifiable outcome

• 2,000+ stores modernized
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Diebold NixdorfcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 April 2026Strategic partnership to enhance point-of-sale solutions for enterprise retailers, focusing on North American markets. The partnership leverages Diebold's Vynamic software suite and Kitestring's consulting services, with a dedicated presence at Kitestring's Bentonville Innovation Lab.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Diebold Nixdorf: One of the largest enterprise POS hardware and software vendors globally, with the Vynamic software suite at the center of its April 2026 strategic partnership with Kitestring. Directly comparable because both target Fortune 500 retailers on multi-year, multi-million-dollar POS transformation engagements, with overlapping delivery capabilities in retail technology.
• NCR Voyix: Enterprise POS and retail technology vendor with deep relationships across grocers, convenience, and hospitality retailers, and the company where Kitestring's founder Larry Smith and Principal Architect Michael Leister gained their early POS experience. Highly comparable because it competes for the same enterprise retail POS modernization wallet as Kitestring's clients.
• Toshiba Global Commerce Solutions: A leading enterprise POS hardware and solutions provider serving major grocery, convenience, and specialty retailers globally. Comparable because it competes for the same multimillion-dollar POS modernization budgets that drive Kitestring's System Selection Studies and Custom Design engagements.
• Slalom Consulting: A mid-sized, regionally organized technology and business consulting firm with a strong retail and consumer goods practice. Comparable because it offers strategy, technology selection, and custom development services to enterprise retailers — the same buyer profile Kitestring targets with multi-million-dollar consulting engagements.

Emerging players

• Manhattan Associates: A leading supply chain and inventory optimization software vendor with strong penetration in retail and wholesale. Comparable because Kitestring's supply chain practice addresses WMS/YMS/TMS modernization, the same buying center where Manhattan Associates' solutions are evaluated and selected.
• Blue Yonder: A supply chain and retail planning software platform serving many of the same Fortune 500 retailers Kitestring advises. Comparable because it is a candidate vendor in Kitestring's supply chain modernization engagements (WMS/YMS/TMS) and operates in the same enterprise retail technology ecosystem.

Broad incumbents

• Accenture: The largest global management and technology consulting firm with a substantial retail industry practice. Comparable as a competing provider of large-scale retail technology transformation, system integration, and POS modernization services, though it does not specialize in retail the way Kitestring does.
• Deloitte Digital: The technology and consulting arm of Deloitte with a major retail and consumer products practice delivering strategy, implementation, and managed services. Comparable because it routinely competes for the same enterprise retail transformation RFPs that Kitestring pursues, though from a much larger scale.
• Capgemini Invent: Global consulting and technology services firm with a sizable retail and consumer products practice delivering digital transformation, supply chain modernization, and POS implementations. Comparable as a broader portfolio competitor for Kitestring's enterprise retail engagements.
• Cognizant: Global IT services and consulting firm with strong retail and consumer goods vertical capabilities, including POS implementation and supply chain modernization. Comparable because it competes for the same enterprise retail technology services work, though with vastly greater scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks1 record

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/kitestring_Tech
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@KitestringTechnicalServices
• Facebookfacebook.com/kitestringconsulting
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kite-string
• Instagraminstagram.com/kitestringtechnicalservices

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Kitestring Technical Services