Driving growth in the coffee industry using technology and data
Carl Wazen, Yoco co-founder and CBO, recently spoke at the South African Coffee Leader Summit about providing technology to small businesses as a way to grow the market. He shared how Yoco is using technology and data to grow the economy as a whole, and the coffee industry specifically.
Why small business?
Here at Yoco, we want to amplify small businesses using smart technology. By smart technology we mean smart and easy to use interfaces and an integrated system that syncs seamlessly to the cloud. We want to help businesses do what they do - better.
Small businesses are at the heart of the African economy. All the growth is largely driven by SMB’s and the only way to make this sustainable is to empower these entrepreneurs.
But they are faced with by daily challenges. Getting paid is always a challenge as card payments systems are generally aimed towards larger, more established businesses.
Another big challenge is getting organised. The classification of a formal vs informal business is largely determined by how the business tracks their efforts and keeps records. Moving from pen and paper to digital, automated systems allow businesses to be classified as more formal and thus get more access to capital. Without getting paid using non-cash methods and without getting organised, it’s tricky to get access to capital to fund and grow your business.
How does Yoco use technology to amplify small business?
Yoco is a technology business that builds tools to help SMB’s get paid, run their business better and grow. We have created our ecosystem specifically with this in mind.
75% of the businesses using Yoco have never accepted card payments before. We knew that we had to come up with a completely fresh approach by lowering the cost to accept payments. We’ve innovated to get to that 75% from the way we service our customers and how we acquire them.
Quick and easy set up and use
To get Yoco you can sign up on our website in 10 minutes and have your card reader delivered to you within 5 days. The business owner then downloads the Point of Sale App from the Google Play or Apple App store and is ready to accept payments.
Payments are quick and mobile and there are no monthly fees. This allows us to be inclusive and accessible to even first time entrepreneurs with no trading history.
An entrepreneur looking start up a mobile coffee trailer can start accepting card payments in one week, and transact wherever the trailer takes them.
No monthly fees
The current model that traditional financial institutions employ means that if you process less that R40 000 in card transactions a month, you’re not able to afford to rent a card machine. This excludes the majority of the market and means less diversity and inclusivity, because you’re not able to equip people who want to start a coffee business from scratch. Our pay-as-you-use model was created with the aim of making it financially viable for smaller business to start accepting payments.
An integrated system
The payments accepted through the Yoco card reader sync in real-time to the Yoco Point of Sale App, which in turn all syncs to the cloud. This allows for a seamless checkout experience, faster cash up and more control over your business. An entrepreneur who needs to step out of their coffee shop for a meeting can still keep an eye on what’s happening in their business and the sales that are being made.
Yoco also integrates into leading hospitality(TabletPOS) and retail(Vend) Point of Sale Software, making it accessible to not only smaller business, but more established ones too.
Real time data and insights and control
Because Yoco is mobile and cloud-based, business owners can access their data from anywhere. The Yoco Business Portal provides real-time insights on the performance of your business in a single place, in a way that’s easy to understand and action.
Coffee shops can see exactly how many cups they’ve sold, which coffees sell the best and adjust their strategies accordingly.
Encouraging diversity and inclusivity in the coffee industry
A big part of what we’re doing at Yoco is promoting diversity and inclusivity in the economy. In the coffee industry, this is about getting quality coffee businesses into areas that have not previously had access.
Gcobani started Barista Cup by hand roasting beans in his township home. He served taxi drivers at a busy intersection in Nyanga junction at an affordable price, a market which previously did not have premium coffee. He has since grown to doing events and a permanent store at CPUT. He uses Yoco to accept payments and track his sales.
Why small business?
How does Yoco use technology to amplify small business?
Encouraging diversity and inclusivity in the coffee industry