Manly Food Co-op plays a central role in the seaside haven’s bustling community, having been the area’s key supplier of low tox, low waste food sourced from local producers for the past 20 years. When Tyro spoke with its chairperson, Sarah Weate, she had a lot to say about the benefits of managing payments remotely for a volunteer organisation.
About the Co-op
Manly Food Co-op is a non-profit organisation owned and operated by members selling fresh produce from local suppliers and farmers. Milk, “the best sourdough on the northern beaches”, pulses, fruit & veggies and more; the Co-op is open to everyone, anyone can join, and anyone can put their hand up to help out.
Quite the following
“What our customers really like about us, they like the fact that we’re low waste. They like the fact that we’re really always looking for more plastic-free solutions. They like the fact that we sell organic, healthy food.”
And with more Aussies learning more about the benefits of embracing diets high in plant-based food sources – “we’re vegetarian, we’ve got a lot of vegan options as well” – it’s no wonder the Co-op looked to streamline its payment systems.
Bringing the parts together
Tyro EFTPOS is integrated with the Co-op’s point of sale system, Vend, likewise with Xero, giving Sarah and her team full access from anywhere:
“Because we’re volunteer run, we’re all at home trying to reconcile things online, and my Tyro reconciles every day directly to the cent. Anyone that logs on at home, they can see that.”
Planning made easier
With so many people rostered through the week – the Co-op is open 7 days – having that holistic view on incomings so Sarah can plan ahead is key:
“I use the Tyro App a lot in conjunction with Xero. It’s a really powerful App anyway, in that it has a really powerful search facility, and it gives me real time for my takings, so I can start planning what payments I’m going to make the following day, as I can see the money coming in even before it’s settled.”
“I can just hit a button on my phone”
Having connected their Tyro Bank Account with Xero, the Co-op has been able to minimise the time spent on admin. Core business and happy customers come first at Manly Food Co-op.
“What I like is that if I run a Xero payment, I can just hit a button on my phone and put that through. There’s no uploading banking files. It’s really, really efficient. And from my perspective, the fact that all the things are integrated, Vend, then Vend to Tyro and Xero to Tyro, just means the whole thing’s really seamless.”
The integration top 3
• No re-keying of sales information, helpings to reduce errors and speed up transactions
• Streamlines the end-of-day reconciliation process
• Generate reports at the touch of a button – reducing the admin burden
Getting the money to people who need it
“The Tyro Bank Account’s great because we have overnight settlement … As a nonprofit, we make a real effort to pay our farmers as soon as we get and process the invoice, well before the due date.”
“With the drought and the bushfires, our local farmers are already cash strapped. So, the fact that we get the money in overnight, really helps us be able to pay them more quickly.”
It’s principles such as these that remind us just how grateful we are to be part of Australia’s business community.
Visit Manly Food Co-op to find more, get in touch with us here at Tyro or explore our website for more about EFTPOS, Xero and the Tyro App.
Xero is a trademark of Xero Limited.
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