In Pictures: Loyalty programs boost business at restaurants, retail stores
Ottawa-based Spoonity sells loyalty programs to restaurants and retail stores
Max Bailey (above) and Myron Gomes are founders of Ottawa-based Spoonity Inc., which provides retail stores and restaurants with online-based loyalty and incentive programs. Customers carry a card or keytag and scan it to earn rewards. Mr. Bailey is pictured at a Bridgehead coffee shop in Ottawa, one of his company’s clients.Blair Gable/The Globe and Mail
Spoonity’s loyalty and quick-pay programs as displayed on smartphones. Mr. Bailey says the business is doing well, drawing “millions” in revenue. Now he is considering the pursuit of venture capital funding to give his business a boost.
A loyalty card and keytag for Chorizo Fresh Mex restaurants, another of Spoonity’s clients. Though he is sure he wants to seek venture funding, Mr. Bailey isn’t so certain about when a young business like his should seek outside cash. To date, Spoonity has raised about $500,000 through self-financing and government grants, including the federal Scientific Research and Experimental Development tax credit and the Industrial Research Assistance Program. “We’re now at a stage where we could take it to the next level,” Mr. Bailey said.
The Spoonity loyalty program in use at a Bridgehead coffee shop.
An Internet advertisement touts the loyalty rewards program at Bridgehead. Spoonity tried once before to secure outside funding, but Mr. Bailey thinks his firm wasn’t ready to demonstrate its financial viability. “We didn’t have a sufficient customer base, and there wasn’t enough market validation. As a result, we spent a lot of time and energy unnecessarily. Instead of selling investors, we should have been selling clients.”
But things have improved, Mr. Bailey said. “Back then we were two guys with no revenue trying to raise money. Now we’re ten people with millions in revenue and a much bigger opportunity for accelerated growth. The product market is there.”
Mr. Bailey needs to know that Spoonity is at the right stage for seeking cash. “To ask someone for a fairly sizable investment requires a lot of planning and preparation on both sides. They’re going to have to do a lot of due diligence on the company, and a lot of investigative work. And we have to do a lot of preparation in order to provide them with the material.”Blair Gable/The Globe and Mail