Sunday Times (Sri Lanka)

Leapset to take its online POS offerings Us-wide in 2013

- By Jagdish Haithirama­ni

Not only does Leapset offer merchants benefits related to efficienci­es and data acquired via process automation, but it also provides other real world benefits, says Mr. Fernando. These include collective bargaining undertaken by Leapset, on behalf of the merchants it represents, to drive down merchant credit card charges, etc.

US- based IT start- up Leapset intends to expand its reach, from a current client portfolio of 98 restaurant­s in the US state of California, to the entire US market during 2013.

It also expects to expand into the UK and Spain, and even Singapore and Malaysia, over the same period, according to Shanil Fernando, a Partner at the company, which has a 60- employee software developmen­t centre in Sri Lanka.

Mr Fernando said part of Leapset's expansion plan also includes tapping the around 400,000 restaurant­s supplied by its partner Sysco, which is a major food distributo­r in North America, as well as an investor in Leapset.

Leapset, which recently went in for venture capital funding that earned it a US$ 22 million ( Rs. 2.8 billion) valuation, offers an online Point of Sale ( POS) suite to merchants, currently just restaurant­s. Its basic services, which cost merchants just US$ 3 ( just under Rs. 400) per day, gives users a range of services including order taking and processing capabiliti­es as well as process automation benefits. It also offers premium services such as Order Pad, which allows servers to send orders to kitchens electronic­ally, at an added cost of US$ 1 (Rs. 128) per day.

Not only does Leapset offer merchants benefits related to efficienci­es and data acquired via process automation, but it also provides other real world benefits, says Mr. Fernando. These include collective bargaining undertaken by Leapset, on behalf of the merchants it represents, to drive down merchant credit card charges, etc. Mr. Fernando also noted that, while Leapset was currently only in restaurant­s, it was also planning, as a part of its expansion, to grow to encompass other types of businesses, from small shops selling mobile phones, and other products, and beyond.

 ??  ?? Shanil Fernando,
Shanil Fernando,

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