Close X
Wednesday, November 13, 2024
ADVT 
Tech

Lightspeed Says It Has Solution For Struggling Retailers In Digital Age

The Canadian Press, 16 Sep, 2015 01:18 PM
    MONTREAL — A Montreal tech company with big ambitions for global growth says it has an inexpensive solution for restaurateurs and other retailers looking to thrive in the digital age.
     
    Lightspeed says its cloud-based software system can assist mid-sized retailers and restaurants manage inventory, take orders, process payments, analyze customer shopping patterns and develop an e-commerce presence.
     
    Founder and CEO Dax Dasilva says Lightspeed's offerings are best suited for companies with at least $600,000 a year in sales per location and up to 50 stores.
     
    For a monthly fee that can start as low as $76 a month, they can access Lightspeed software and apps either from mobile devices like iPads or older desktop computer systems.
     
    Running a business is much more complicated than it was 20 years ago, Dasilva said. Business owners not only need to have strong in-store offerings — they also need a strong online and social media presence.
     
    "So in order to be this modern independent retailer...they need somebody on their side to build systems that will help them be four people at once," the 39-year-old Vancouver native said.
     
    Founded in 2005, Lightspeed is doubling its business annually. It already has 25,000 customers in more than 100 countries, including about 1,500 restaurants, that process $10 billion worth of yearly transactions.
     
    It hopes to further expand its global reach after Quebec's Caisse de depot and Investissement Quebec led an $80-million investment involving original funding partners Accel Partners and iNovia Capital. Lightspeed said it has been inspired by Canadian tech companies like Ottawa's Shopify (TSX:SH) and Hootsuite in Vancouver.
     
    "We want to be the tech anchor in Montreal," Dasilva said during an interview in his office in a renovated building in Old Montreal that houses 210 of the company's 350 employees — one of eight offices around the world.
     
    Lightspeed is looking to take advantage of new regulations in Europe and North America to sell its retail and restaurant programs.
     
    Quebec has joined several countries in Europe and Latin America that require bars and restaurants to provide sales transactions to ensure proper payment of taxes.
     
    In the United States, the credit card industry is switching to chip cards long used in Canada to cut down on fraud. Starting Oct. 1, business owners rather than the card companies will be liable for any fraud from purchases made by magnetic-strip cards.
     
    That's a big potential growth market for companies like Lightspeed that works with payment processors to offer the service, said Dasilva.
     
    "Once the deadline is here I think it's only going to take a couple stories of people that lost money for people to want to invest in this (chip-reading) hardware."
     
    Caisse de depot vice-president Christian Dube said the Caisse was drawn to invest by Lightspeed's growth potential outside Canada.
     
    "We're really looking at this company on a global basis and the market share that they can take in the U.S. ... and what they can do in Europe," he said.

    MORE Tech ARTICLES

    Car rental firm's mobile app now triggers SOS message

    Car rental firm's mobile app now triggers SOS message
    An online car rental company Thursday added a safety feature to its mobile phone app through which a passenger can trigger an SMS and an e-mail to three...

    Car rental firm's mobile app now triggers SOS message

    Next generation electric car battery in making

    Next generation electric car battery in making
    Scientists at University of Waterloo have announced a breakthrough in lithium-sulphur technology to develop a new generation of cheaper, lighter and more powerful electric car battery....

    Next generation electric car battery in making

    Scientists warn of dangers of artificial intelligence

    Scientists warn of dangers of artificial intelligence
    Hundreds of scientists and technologists, including Stephen Hawking and Elon Musk, have signed an open letter calling for studies into artificial intelligence...

    Scientists warn of dangers of artificial intelligence

    e-Learning can create more health professionals

    e-Learning can create more health professionals
    Electronic learning - the use of electronic media and devices in education - is likely to be as effective as traditional methods for training health professionals, says a study....

    e-Learning can create more health professionals

    New device to charge smartphone in flat two minutes

    New device to charge smartphone in flat two minutes
    An Israeli start-up StoreDot has developed ultra-fast chargers that can charge smartphone batteries in two minutes flat....

    New device to charge smartphone in flat two minutes

    Facebook The Leader Of Social Media

    Facebook The Leader Of Social Media
     Facebook is the leader of social media, says a new survey, adding that the social networking site has also made inroads into becoming the popular choice among the elderly.

    Facebook The Leader Of Social Media