Beat the Q, an Australian startup that wants to put an end to queues with an innovative mobile payment solution, has acquired Australia’s leading loyalty app eCoffeeCard.
According to a company release, through this acquisition Beat the Q will bring together ordering, payment, and loyalty under one roof; expand its reach to more than 15% of Australian cafes; provide organic growth across both Beat the Q and eCoffeeCard platforms; and founders Reckon and Vocus back the acquisition strategy.
eCoffeeCard is a free app (iOS, Android, Windows Phone, and Blackberry) which consolidates coffee loyalty cards in one convenient location. Its reach of 1,600 cafes and 320,000 users makes it the largest mobile loyalty scheme in Australia.
“Acquiring eCoffeeCard gives us a direct business relationship with 15% of all cafes around Australia, and a platform for true scale to help us become a market leader,” Adam Theobald, Founder and CEO of Beat the Q, said in the release. “There are strong synergies between Beat the Q and eCoffeeCard at a product, merchant, and consumer level, which is why the acquisition is such a perfect fit for us. We think bringing together two market leaders in their respective categories is a ‘one plus one equals three’ situation.”
Beat the Q has enjoyed tremendous growth over the past year, processing more than 500,000 orders for hot drinks through the app. Over 250 cafes around the country have signed up for it, including Toby’s Estate, Danes, Marionette, Sonoma, Campos Coffee, Gabrielle Coffee, GG Espresso, and Mecca Espresso.
“It means Beat the Q will be the go-to platform for merchants and consumers who are seeking a seamless, easy to use system capable of managing orders, payments, and loyalty benefits,” Theobald added.
Beat the Q has funded the acquisition through current and new shareholders including Greg Wilkinson (Founder, Reckon Limited), James Spenceley (CEO, Vocus Communications), and former AFL (Australian Rules Football) star Leo Barry.
“Having the founders of two of Australia’s most successful technology companies back us as investors is a huge boon for Beat the Q,” Theobald explained. “We’ll now be able to draw on the experience, insight, and advice from James and Greg, who have driven sustained growth on the ASX for Vocus and Reckon, respectively.”
Spenceley said Theobald and his team have developed a fantastic product and platform, making mobile payments seamless and simple.
“The ECC acquisition is great because the synergies between the businesses will catapult them forward together,” Spenceley said. “Growing via acquisitions was very successful for Vocus, giving us product and scale faster than we otherwise could have developed them. I am thrilled to be an investor in Beat the Q and I hope to see them make further intelligent acquisitions in the future.”