GfK RT USA also conducts a number of field ( in-store ) programs.

GfK Retail & Technology USA LLC, produces point-of-sale data from retailers, specialists, and other resellers in certain verticals such as Pet ( pet food and health products ) and Optics ( eye wear products ).

The GfK Group, established in 1934 as Gesellschaft für Konsumforschung ( Society for Consumer Research ) is Germany's largest market research institute, and the fifth largest market research organisation in the world, after Nielsen Company, Kantar Group, Ipsos ( incl.

The GfK Group is a worldwide market research organization providing services in the three sectors Custom Research, Retail and Technology and Media.

GfK is a joint stock company and traded on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.

GfK Custom Research: The Custom Research sector is specialized in operational and strategic marketing issues relating to virtually every industrial sector and market.

GfK Retail and Technology: Retailer POS data is the source for the Retail and Technology sector.

GfK is Germany ’ s oldest market research company, established 77 years ago at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg.

Today, GfK SE is widely acknowledged as Germany ’ s undisputed market leader, with a market share of well over 25 percent.

GfK SE is currently the leading market research company in Switzerland, Austria and the Netherlands, the second largest in Belgium and Italy ( since 2002 ), and the third or fourth largest in France, Greece, and Portugal.

As of 2006, GfK is the largest market research company in Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Ukraine ; the second largest in Bulgaria, Croatia, Russia, the Czech Republic and Turkey ; and ranks third or fourth in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Poland, Serbia and Hungary.

Headquartered in New York, GfK Custom Research North America is a full-service market research and consulting firm providing access to several of the world's largest consumer databases as well as a full-range of ad-hoc research services.

GfK Boutique Research Inc., headquartered in Boston, MA, ( with offices in New York, London, and Hong Kong ) is a ‘ Big Data ’ analytics firm.

GfK Boutique is the publisher of GfK OvernightNews, and produces forecasts for sales of technology devices based on GfK point-of-sale-data and external data sets.

In April 2005 it acquired NOP World, based mostly in the United Kingdom, the United States and Italy, which was rated the ninth largest market research business in the world, a move described by the company as " the most important decision made by GfK since going public in 1999.

In December 2011, GfK acquired Knowledge Networks, based in Palo Alto, the United States, which does online research for consumer products and services, pharmaceuticals, retail, media, and public policy.

In April 2012, Lucida Sans was selected by GfK Blue Moon as the font for a package design as part of a proposed law in Australia banning logos on cigarette packaging.

The castle in the center of the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, known to many simply as the Schloss, where GfK SE was established over 77 years ago

During September 2005 GfK SE was a sponsor for the “ Du bist Deutschland ” ( You are Germany ) advertising campaign, the country's largest multimedia initiative to date, aimed at enhancing Germany ’ s image.

The electronic measuring technology used in this type of media research was developed by GfK subsidiary Telecontrol, while GfK Eurisko has also created a similar audience measurement tool for measuring radio audiences electronically.

GfK was among the first market research companies to move into central and Eastern Europe.

This was only the second foreign-owned company of any kind to be established in Hungary, and was followed in rapid succession by GfK Polonia in Warsaw, GfK Praha in the Czech Republic and GfK Rus in Russia.

In 2005, GfK had subsidiaries in 15 countries and although GfK was only active in the Retail and Technology division until 2005, it was already the region ’ s fifth largest market research company.

This was followed in 2003 by V2 GfK and a year later by GfK Arbor.

However, the most important step in GfK ’ s U. S. business development strategy was the acquisition of NOP World in April 2005, including the Roper Poll brand.

In January 2009, GfK Audits & Surveys acquired The Nielsen Company's contact lens panel and expanded tracking to include Optics in America.

Other parts of UNM were also disposed of advantageously, including the demerging of MAI's original securities business in 1998 as Garban, which subsequently became ICAP ; the sale in 1998 of United's Provincial Newspapers including the Yorkshire Post to Johnston Press ; the controversial sale of Express Newspapers in 2000 to Richard Desmond, owner of a stable of pornographic magazines ; the sale of the NOP World market research business to GfK in 2005 ; and the sale of United's 35 % stake in Channel 5 to RTL in 2005.

In 1936, GfK SE conducted the country ’ s first brand study, on the cross logo of pharmaceutical company Bayer, and a year later it published the first German purchasing power figures, which are now also produced for the rest of Europe and overseas.

It also began expanding its international network at an early stage, and in 1960 GfK SE co-founded the Europanel, which, together with British partner Taylor Nelson Sofres ( TNS ), conducts continuous studies of consumer purchasing patterns in 26 European countries.

In 2008, GfK Asia will track the broader Asian Optics industry which includes contact lens, ophthalmic lens, spectacles frames and sunglasses to give the industry a comprehensive view of this expanding market segment.

According to a study in August 2007 by GfK, 61 % of German households have a Payback card.

As of March 1, 2011 by GfK

GfK SE began its international expansion into western and southern Europe during 1960 by establishing a subsidiary in Austria.

According to a survey of 500 companies by GfK Ukraine Company and the magazine " Correspondent ", MTS-Ukraine was one of the three best employers in the country.

The concept of the exhibits and the interior design were realized by Kunstraum GfK mbH, Hamburg and Archimedia, Stuttgart.

In 2005, the newly established GfK Kazakhistan launched its Custom Research and Consumer Tracking operations.

During January 2005, GfK Belgrade received the Coca-Cola Company ’ s Strategic Consumer Insights award for excellence in marketing consultancy.

In 2005, GfK launched its Healthcare business in Asia in the form of subsidiaries in Singapore, Hong Kong ( acquired SoHealthAsia in August 2005 ) and Thailand, as well as the former NOP World company, GfK Healthcare, in China.

In financial terms, 2005 was considered the most successful year in GfK ’ s history.

Together with the former NOP World companies consolidated since June 1, 2005, GfK achieved sales in excess of 937 million euros.

Worldwide revenue of GfK SE in 2005 was $ 1. 31 billion, including the NOP World companies for January 1 through December 31, 2005.