Solution: Industry: Restaurants

M-Commerce Application With a New Pick-up System

Safe, Contactless Business Model
<business.adapted>
Flexible Performance & Costs
<resources.optimized>
Fast Time-to-Market
<solution.delivered>

The Challenge

A popular chain of café shops in Switzerland, Green Gorilla is known for its hot beverages and healthy food options. Although the company operated primarily from physical locations, they also used a mobile SaaS solution to minimal success – as such, they wanted a cost-optimized solution with direct ownership.

Needing a quick solution – and understanding the growing importance of mobile interactions in their business - Green Gorilla asked Unity Group to build a new product from scratch.

  • The app needed to provide a high quality, native-esque feel on both iOS and Android in order to reach the wider customer-base.
  • It also needed to support a Buy Online, Pickup In-Store (BOPIS) option, wherein customers can purchase and pickup at select locations.
  • This also meant that fast digital payments were a must, to keep the customer path as contact-free as possible.
  • Likewise, each location also needed to be able to manage its own offers, including availability and pricing.
  • Green Gorilla also needed to replicate their customer experience in-app to keep their customers happy – this includes eco-friendly choices and loyalty schemes.
Johan Jakobsson
Partner at Green Gorilla
Green Gorilla

"Due to the current situation around the world, our restaurants are closed – we respect the rule of social distance. Fortunately, we have been able to establish contact with Unity Group, who have helped us to develop our unique and customized application to ensure our customers can continue using our products – by placing an order in the application and receiving it at one of our shops."

The Solution

  • Thanks to React Native, we were able to quickly develop the iOS and Android apps side by side.
  • The click & collect functionality, available for each store, is the core functionality of the final product.
  • There is also a dedicated loyalty system to encourage engagement and retain customers.
  • Online payments were also a must, so customers need only pick-up their order – everything else can be done directly in the app.
  • Finally, the AWS platform served as a scalable solution to manage varying levels of activity throughout the day.

The Result

Safe, Contactless Business Model
With both online ordering and payments, stores only need to be visited to pick-up orders at predetermine times, ensuring a safe process for customers and staff.
<business.adapted>
Flexible Performance & Costs
Thanks to utilizing AWS, resources are only used as needed, regardless of time, traffic or location, ensuring costs stay minimal.
<resources.optimized>
Localized Customization
Thanks to utilizing AWS, resources are only used as needed, regardless of time, traffic or location, ensuring costs stay minimal.
<localization.enabled>
Localized Customization
The app already has offline support, ensuring it is futureproof - i.e. QR codes can be used to combine online/offline purchases under the same loyalty scheme.
<offline.integrated>
Fast Time-to-Market
Thanks to effective use of React Native and other time-saving technologies, the app was delivered faster than normal – without compromising on quality.
<solution.delivered>
Johan Jakobsson
Partner at Green Gorilla
Green Gorilla

"Throughout the whole application design process, many new ideas have emerged, which allowed us to see further opportunities to develop our business and increase revenues."

What We Learned

Green Gorilla wanted the solution as quickly as possible. To ensure we could focus on development the most, we were able to complete Sprint 0 – which normally takes weeks – in a few days. This was only possible due to both our extensive knowledge in this area and the client’s trust in our expertise.

This, combined with an agile development approach, meant we could take any challenges in stride and still end up with a high quality solution that meets the business needs. Thanks to this, we were able to release quickly which – in light of the Covid-19 pandemic – helped Green Gorilla survive the unexpected lockdown that would have otherwise hindered business.

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