IT services firm V&S Innovations is providing restaurants and brick-and-mortar retailers the ability to allow customers to order and pay for goods online.
The KwaZulu-Natal-based company is offering its all-in-one platform, Place Order, to small businesses which lack the amenities to take online orders, deliveries, payments and loyalty solutions.
Place Order is an ordering, delivery and loyalty solution which allows businesses to upload their products to a personalised platform, interfaced with the business Web app. The service allows customers to browse, select, purchase goods and arrange delivery of their purchased items, from the comfort of their home.
As SA enters day four of level four of the phased re-opening of the economy, restaurants around the country will now be able to operate, albeit only via the delivery of takeaways. With the lockdown still essentially in place, more brick-and-mortar retailers will require online ordering and delivery capabilities.
Experts believe the reduced footfall in retail stores is expected to lead to a permanent uptick in online shopping.
However, for many small local businesses, mainstream delivery solutions are often too expensive or simply out of geographical reach, according to V&S Innovations. The company says it is offering an affordable online ordering and delivery service, charging businesses either a monthly fee or a standard per-order service fee.
V&S Innovations co-founder Tim Strang says solutions such as Place Order are a pressing necessity, especially during the lockdown period. “The reality is that COVID-19 is going to have a prolonged impact on the food and hospitality sectors.
“For businesses in the food industry to operate and continue to contribute, they need a solution that works with their budget and they need to be able to work within the restrictions placed upon them by government. The problem is that existing food delivery services charge restauranteurs rates that are not feasible in the current economic climate if they are to operate at all,” notes Strang.
Strang runs V&S Innovations with co-founder Byron Verreyne, a digital expert, programmer and Web developer, who has worked with brands such as Nike, Diageo, Woolworths, Brandhouse and Estee Lauder.
The Place Order service is initially added onto the merchant’s Web app and can be rolled-out to the iOS and Android app later, notes Strang.
Establishments are given the option of managing deliveries themselves or using the platform’s third-party delivery solutions to deliver on a mass scale.
According to the company, the platform is compatible with a range of point-of-sale solutions, such as GAAP and Pilot POS, and it can be fully operational within three to four working days.
V&S Innovations says it is currently working with local grocery chain Spar.
Kyle Buckley of Winklespruit SuperSpar says: “With the huge demand of WhatsApp ordering, we decided to take it one step forward – online ordering. We believe online ordering is here to stay, and the Place Order system was able to get up and running quickly to enable click-and-collect as well as delivery for our store. It has been a huge help during the difficult times we are all facing."
With many restaurants in small towns and under-serviced areas not having the urban marketplace apps and scale to warrant their own applications, the V&S Innovations team has developed the MiTown app which equips outlets in these regions with all the features of the Place Order platform.
All of the eateries within these regions are listed in one app and by enabling combined online ordering and delivery, they are afforded an economical solution, allowing customers to download only one app to gain access to all these restaurants, notes the company.
“Our software is capable of handling vast amounts of data and a plethora of products, making it a viable solution for food outlets, retailers, offices, factories and school canteens too. The benefit of using Place Order in these spaces is that it eliminates the need for queues, which helps maintain physical distancing. To date, we have already successfully launched the platform in two Spar outlets in KwaZulu-Natal,” adds Strang.
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