Localz: Path Breaking Location Based Services for Omni-Channel Retailers

Given the pace at which software, cloud and mobility is evolving, it’s an adapt-or-die situation for several industries. Retail, logistics and payment industries are at the forefront of this transition. They need to rapidly innovate to catch up, exploit and enhance their internal processes. With this regard, location based technology comes as a boon for the retail industry. The technology is fast gaining ground in joining the dots between digital and brick-and-mortar retail stores. Having already used location technology in real-time peer-to-peer payments industry, Pete Williams, Melvin Artemas and Tim Andrew, realized that location technologies such as Geofence, Wi-Fi, beacons, NFC and QR codes can help create a smooth experience for customers. So, they incorporated Localz in 2013 to help clients leverage location based technologies to bridge the gap between physical and digital worlds. Tim Andrew, Co-Founder and Commercial Director says, “We are excited to see how location can be used as a connector between the physical and the digital world. It can benefit several industries, including the retail sector.”

Localz’s Spotz platform was built to manage multiple location technologies with simple integration into the existing apps and the pre-built adaptors for major systems-of-record providers such as Teradata, IBM, Salesforce etc. The click and collect solution developed by the company covers the entire retail chain—from store back door to customer fulfillment. It supports search and retrieve, location-aware staff app, management dashboard, warehouse and order management system integration, customer app integration, standalone kiosk and customer order status dashboard.

Moreover, Localz has also created Endless Aisle solution in conjunction with PayPal and Braintree that retrieves additional product information based on proximity of the product, complete purchase in-app with click & collect and home delivery options for fulfillment. Its Loyalty, Coupons & Payment solutions presents loyalty membership information, coupon redemption and tokenized presentment of payment.

Though retailers are increasingly adapting to Click and Collect solutions, customers still experience issues: incapability of the staff to quickly locate orders is one among many. Localz’s Click and Collect solution specifically addresses such core issues; it employs location technology to track the exact shelf where the order is lying and alerts nearby staff when multiple customers arrive. Such unique advantages allow Localz to efficiently assist the logistics and retail industry. For John Lewis, one of UK’s leading Omni-channel retailer, Localz has deployed a beacon solution, which has reduced the waiting time for its customers and enhanced the tracking and staff efficiency. As a result customers now spend more time in shopping than waiting in queues.

Localz’s Spotz platform was built to manage multiple location technologies with simple integration into the existing apps and the pre-built adaptors for major systems-of-record providers such as Teradata, IBM, Salesforce.

Localz serves various elite clients including John Lewis, Woolworths Limited, DPD UK, Homepass/Fairfax Media among others. The company has won several prestigious awards such as John Lewis JLAB 2014, PayPal StartTank2015, IBM SmartCamp Australia 2015, Retail Week Hackathon 2015, and Dagrofa IDEAS 2015 Denmark. This Melbourne, based company, which has a strong foothold in UK as well, is now working on integrating next generation technologies such as 5G, new WiFi standards and magnetic field detection into its products. Localz’s clientele is rapidly growing in APAC and the company sees its next phase of growth coming from this region.