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In the vibrant landscape of Tanzania's healthcare sector, David opened his pharmacy just a year and a half ago, fueled by his passion for pharmacy and a desire to serve his community. Facing numerous challenges in inventory management and customer relations, David turned to Loyverse, a POS system that transformed his operations. In this interview, he shares his experiences with Loyverse, highlighting how its features have streamlined his business and offered valuable insights for aspiring entrepreneurs. What are some challenges that you faced during your first year in business? There are many challenges. Some are related to inventory management, tracking stock that comes in and out, and tracking product expiration dates. These challenges pushed me to search for a system that would help me manage my business effectively. Other challenges that I faced are market-related. When did you start using Loyverse in your pharmacy? I started to use the Loyverse system in February of this year. Did using Loyverse change how your business operates, and which features are you using most? Loyverse has been a handy tool that has helped me significantly to manage the inventory and track my business with the sales reports that it offers, allowing me to see the profits. I use the Advanced Inventory subscription. It is effortless to send orders to suppliers and update the stock in the system. I use this feature very frequently. I love all the reports that Loyverse offers. The Sales summary report shows me how the business is doing, compares each period with the previous period, and helps identify the busiest days or hours. Before using Loyverse, I tried to track everything manually, which was quite a hassle. Implementing Loyverse has made all the tracking easier. I am also using Employee Management so that each employee has their profile in the system. This helps me manage their access rights and track their performance. Did you use other POS systems before Loyverse? I tried several POS systems. However, I was very impressed with Loyverse because of its simplicity of use and purchase order functionality. Another fact that convinced me to use the Loyverse POS system is that it can be installed easily on smartphones and tablets. Do you have loyal customers, and have you registered them with Loyverse? Yes, I have loyal customers. I still need to add them all to the system. I am still working on my customer base. I have added only a few of them to my Loyverse account for now. I want to add all my customers and explore the loyalty program feature in the future. Do you utilize the Loyverse additional apps? Yes, I use the Loyverse Dashboard on a daily basis. It helps me with the reports and quickly sees the stock update of items. I like the push notifications feature when an item is low or out of stock. Have you used the Integrations service to integrate Loyverse with other apps? I have tried to connect Loyverse to Quickbooks. But, since I am still new to the business and our profit is low, I have decided to postpone using the Integration for a second moment. How would you describe your experience with Loyverse’s customer support? Have they been responsive and helpful in resolving any issues or answering your queries? The customer support is very fast. I have not used it frequently since I have found answers in the Loyverse Community and your Help Center. What advice would you give to other young entrepreneurs who have just started their journey? If your business is small and new, like mine, I suggest investing in a good system. Of course, I would recommend Loyverse to get started. You can always start with the free version and upgrade when your business grows.

Kijani Beach Villas, a charming boutique family hotel nestled along the pristine shoreline, offers a haven of tranquility and indulgence. Each villa boasts a distinctive vista, allowing you to awaken to the mesmerizing sunrise right from your bed. For added relaxation, take a refreshing plunge in your private rooftop Jacuzzi or partake in a sunrise yoga session on the enchanting first-floor deck of the sea-view restaurant. Families with children will find joy in the pools, playground, and kid-friendly menu. This exquisite Zanzibar retreat has harnessed the power of the Loyverse POS system to enhance its operational efficiency and elevate customer service. In this interview, Mrs. Laroy reveals how Loyverse has transformed their business. Can you briefly describe the story of your business? We are running a Hotel and Restaurant in Zanzibar, Tanzania. We started our journey in October 2021. We decided to open this type of business because we wanted to challenge ourselves and do something different in life. We moved from the Netherlands to Zanzibar in 2019. We have had plans to build our own piece of paradise for a long time, and in 2021 we were finally ready to welcome you all! We started using Loyverse in December 2022 because we thought it would make our life easier, and it is. We came across Loyverse in another restaurant that my friend is managing. I was in search of a system like this at that time, so when I saw it, I thought it could be something cool for us. You managed your hotel and restaurant for a year without a digital system, and then you started using Loyverse. It has been almost a year using Loyverse. How has it helped streamline your restaurant operations, such as order management, inventory control, or employee scheduling? Loyverse made a huge difference because we were doing everything using pen and paper, and now everything is much easier. Which are some of the features of Loyverse that have been most useful for your business? We are using Loyverse in the restaurant to create all the tickets for the customers staying in the hotel and for customers who are coming only to the restaurant. It is like two situations: The outside guests come to spend half of the day, they come for lunch or for dinner, or sometimes they come for a few drinks. This is like the typical restaurant use. They order the food and drinks, stay for a while, and then pay and go. On the other hand, we have our inside guests who stay in one of our villas. In this case, we use the system to keep the tickets for them, so everything that they eat and drink during their stay we record in the system. They pay the F&B bill at the end of the stay. This is our main use. Of course, in this case, the most useful feature for us is the open tickets functionality and the KDS app that we use to send orders to the kitchen. In addition, we use the stock tracking features to track the available stock behind the bar. We have yet to fully use the stock system, because we are trying to figure out what makes sense for us. As a new and growing business, we have yet to figure out everything we need from a system. We will eventually start using the Advanced Inventory subscription that you offer. Are you using the Employee Management subscription at the moment? Yes, we are using the Employee Management. We have our F&B manager who has management level of access rights. We have just hired a general manager, and I created a profile for her with the necessary access rights. We have a login for the cashiers who serve in the bar who are allowed to take the orders and receive the payments. Did you face any challenges training your employees to use the Loyverse POS system? No, it was really not difficult. The system is quite easy to understand. It works very intuitively. The most challenging part was the rules that we had to implement for our business on how to keep tickets for guests that are staying for multiple days; how are we dealing with outside guests in terms of table numbers or names for the tickets etc.? These are the challenges we faced that do not relate to the system but are related to the rules we want to implement in our business. In terms of reporting and analytics, how valuable is the data you obtain from Loyverse in terms of understanding your restaurant's performance and making informed decisions? Yes, the reports have been very helpful. As I mentioned, we are not fully using the benefits of these reports yet as we are still improving our menu and changing things, but in general, they have been useful. This is because it is very easy to read and understand these reports. We can easily find information about the sold items and identify the most preferred dish. It is very helpful to see analytics like this. Having the Dashboard app is also very helpful. What channels do you use to market your business? We use multiple channels. We use booking.com, and Tripadvisor. We have also set up a website and our social media pages, and a lot of customers find us mainly by word of mouth. What made you decide to move from your hometown, the Netherlands, to Zanzibar to open a business? There were multiple reasons—mainly good business environment, nice weather, good people, beautiful beaches, etc. You need to challenge yourself to do something different someday; it is very advisable. Is there any advice or words of wisdom you would like to share with aspiring entrepreneurs looking to start their own business? Mainly: Just do it! It will be difficult at times, challenging for sure, but you will grow in your life, so really just go and do it.

In the world of small businesses, the journey to success often involves overcoming numerous challenges. Meet a dedicated entrepreneur whose journey has been significantly transformed with the help of Loyverse. This exclusive interview provides insights into the experiences of a loyal Loyverse customer in the automotive industry. Dive into this inspiring story of success as Mr Sadiq, the owner of Jioni Automotive, offers valuable advice for aspiring entrepreneurs on the cusp of their retail journey. Can you briefly describe your business? We are an automotive business. We are selling repairing parts for three-wheelers. I started my business around three to four years ago, and at that time, I was not using Loyverse. I chose this type of business because, at that time, I was not employed, so I started looking for something to help me get income. When I started this business, it was giving a good profit at the start. The main problem that appeared was how to manage the shop. I started as a small shop. Initially, I used Excel to record my sales, but I could not check the profit with Excel. This is why I started to look for another program. Two years later, I found a POS software I thought would help me. I was required to buy a computer to use this program. While searching for a laptop, I came across a friend, and as I shared my situation with him, he introduced me to your system. This is how I started to use Loyverse. Officially, I implemented the software in my business in April of this year. How has technology, specifically the Loyverse system, impacted your retail operations and overall business efficiency? Loyverse has helped me a lot. Now I have an employee working in the shop, and I can pay him the salary on the 25th of each month. Now, I don’t have to give the employee different dates or come up with different situations like this day is not a good day, but now I know my business; I know what I am doing. I know I am making a profit for the first time in three years. The Back office reports have helped me a lot to understand what is happening. I like that Loyverse compares each selected period with the previous one, so I can know if I did better this month than the previous one. Having the reports at my fingertips has allowed me to have long-term goals. Knowing how much profit I make monthly, I can make predictions and take new steps, like applying for a loan and knowing I can pay it. Loyverse has also given me the opportunity to manage my business remotely. Even now that I am talking to you, I am not in my country, Tanzania; still, I can see what is happening in my store, which items have been sold, and even know which items are in low stock. Your software has changed my life. Now, I can see the business from a different angle. For almost four years, I was doing business just to provide money for food. But now, using your software, the tools you offer, and the reports you provide, I can really say that I am a businessman. Are you using Loyverse in one or multiple stores? I actually have three stores, but they are small stores with a limited number of items. Each store is set up to serve a particular customer base. I always wanted to have a chain of stores, but many times, I have thought of closing two of the stores and keeping only one because I thought I needed more money to afford the three of them. However, using Loyverse and seeing the reports and the profit for each store, I understood that the profit I was making in each store was covering the costs. So, I had no reason to close any of the stores. Loyverse made my dream of having multiple stores up and running a reality. I can see that the features that made a significant impact on your business have been the reports in the Back office. Is there any other Loyverse feature that has been useful for your business? The most important features are the Back office and the Dashboard where I can check the sales daily. In addition to that, I want to mention the inventory management feature as well. I can see the stock of my items quickly and easily, and the system notifies me whenever an item is low or out of stock. This feature is essential for me because my stores are small, and I have one item of each kind in inventory. When this item is sold, I must go to that store and substitute it. Did your employees need help learning how to use the Loyverse POS system? No, they did not have any difficulties. I uploaded all the list of items in the system. My employees need to go to the sales screen, see the list of items, and make the sale. I also connected a barcode reader to the system. All my items have barcodes; the employees just need to scan the barcode to find and add the item to the ticket and charge. Also, I did not have to worry much because if my employees faced any difficulty, they could get assistance from Loyverse immediately through live chat support. That is one of the most amazing things Loyverse offers. You will get your reply within one minute. I have never experienced this before with any other company. They always limit the questions you can ask them or reply very late. Nothing compares with your customer service. I have searched to find a loophole, and I have not been able to find any. Now, I am helping my friend to install Loyverse in his business. He has been testing Loyverse for a week and can already see the positive impact. Have you created a customer base in your Loyverse account? Yes, I have added my customers in Loyverse since we have a regular customer base, and of course, we also have new customers coming in every day. I have introduced customers to the Loyalty program. We have customers from different cities, and they sometimes ask for a discount. In such cases, I have trained my employees to offer customers to register in our system by providing some basic information. They will get bonus points for every purchase, which they can use later to get a discount. Customers really appreciate the Loyalty program, and they can understand what we give them compared to other shops. Loyverse has helped us to stand out from the competition with this feature. Customers are used to having a loyalty program in the supermarkets, and they are astonished to find such a feature in a small shop. What are your plans for the future? I want to continue improving and expanding the stores with the help of the Loyverse system. In the future, you never know; I might also open a different business. If I do, I will use Loyverse there as well. Before using Loyverse, I was always jumping from business to business, thinking that I must try different businesses to see which is more profitable. And I did not understand that the business I had could be profitable if I managed it properly. By using Loyverse, I have understood that if you put effort into what you are doing, it will make money. Is there any advice or words of wisdom you would like to share with aspiring entrepreneurs looking to start their own retail business? I can say from my experience that when you start a business, you try your best not to use a lot of money because you don’t have money to spend. But there are some things that you need to spend money on so that they can help your business. For example, a good investment is the Loyverse POS system. If you use a system since the beginning, you can measure the results of what you are doing. I learned about your system three and half years after I started my business. I wish I had known about your system before. For new business owners, my advice is to use this system. If you use it, it will help to grow your business.