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Logesh Velusamy, CEO & Founder, Effitrac Solutions talks about his E-commerce platform which he has built for the MSMEs in this interaction.
What was the motivation behind building a E-commerce platform for MSMEs?
We launched our E-commerce product in November 2020. The product enables MSMEs to manage their entire E-commerce sales end-to-end, including launch of their own website using the likes of shopify, executing sales on third-party marketplaces, real-time visibility of inventory, and ability to set channel-specific pricing. While there was a slow acceptance of the online channels and platforms as a relevant sales medium even before the Covid-19 pandemic among consumers beyond the metros and among small and medium businesses, the pandemic made it crystal clear that without a strong and smart e-commerce strategy no retail-focused brand can survive. We saw our MSME clients dealing with the challenges caused by the pandemic and the lockdown in real-time and also saw how they were raring to meet the challenge head-on. Effitrac’s e-commerce API solution allows MSMEs to take control of their e-commerce channel and have complete visibility over all aspects, from raw material procurement to order delivery. We consider ourselves as the technology growth partner for small businesses and our purpose is to create easy to use and truly useful tech solutions that contribute to their growth.
What were some of the challenges/struggles that your family business faced before deciding to adapt to technology?
Though I come from a family that runs multiple MSME businesses, I had an interest in technology and so pursued my engineering and then went on to work in the field of technology and IT for over a decade. During my stints in companies like Accenture, Bestbuy, and IBS, I saw first hand how enabling the customer with new-age solutions and helping them leverage technology, acts as a catalyst to drive growth. When I came back to Namakkal to take over the operations of my family-run businesses across different verticals (Electrical Wholesale Trading, Poultry, Feed Manufacturing, Textile Retail, Sago, Apparel Manufacturing), it was a drastic change. Like most MSMEs, the businesses were stuck in the old ways. Some of the challenges I faced -
- Identifying cash flow requirements between different legal entities and to arrive on the net gap. it required a skilled accountant with advanced knowledge of Excel Sheet to figure this
- Understanding the revenue leakage at the granular level by linking the expenses made with the revenue at the transaction level
- Adopting a new technology stack in the MSME businesses was a daunting task as the users have limited knowledge in operating the software.
- Accessing information from anywhere for decision making required custom development, which increased OPEX & CAPEX
How did you resolve these challenges?
When I evaluated existing technology offerings, I realised that they were mostly made for large enterprises, were very expensive, needed intensive installation, required long installation time, and needed technological training or know-how to operate. This wasn’t feasible in the long term. This is why I set about building the Effitrac solution. I decided to build it for the larger MSME market because everyone needs a solution like this.
Effitrac offers an end-to-end no-code SaaS business process platform that covers everything from ERP to HRMS & Payroll. MSMEs can pick up specific modules or opt for the whole platform. Many times they choose 1 module and then scale up to all the modules once they realise how easy and useful it is. The platform is a no code one and all the technology automation happens in the backend. The business owner or their employee has to just feed the data and the platform does the rest, including even assigning the right data to the right columns. Our packages start from Rs 156 a month and installation and transition can be as low as a week. Effitrac offers full visibility across all aspects of business operations and our visual dashboards make it super easy for business owners to understand the health of the business at the click of a mouse.
Why it is important for Indian MSMEs to setup their own digital storefront?
Consumers have accepted online shopping as trustworthy and reliable even in non-metros. In fact, during the lockdowns online or digital supported shopping was almost the only way for consumers to buy goods. For retail businesses and even for B2B businesses, the reality of low-physical contact means connecting with customers will increasingly happen online. Digital storefront is no longer a nice-to-have, it is a must-have. Effitrac offers our SMB clients tools and solutions to easily and painlessly add on e-commerce sales channel and integrate their backend and inventory across multiple channels. We have seen clearly the benefits gained by companies who quickly moved online during the first wave. We have seen increased interest from others after the second wave. Those who adapted to digital have not only survived but have even thrived.