When Trade Link’s field services managers visit their small town retail customers across South Africa, they aren’t just paying a courtesy call. They’re ensuring that a business they genuinely care about is kept up and running as efficiently as possible.
Business owners know this, which is why Trade Link staffers are generally showered with gifts of biltong and goodies before they leave.
Since 1994, Trade Link has been a specialist in retail IT systems, building deep industry knowledge and close relationships with retail customers – from the largest enterprises to small rural grocers, says Trisin Reddy, director of Trade Link division TLRS.
TLRS supports a large and complex voluntary retail organisation with a head office, distribution business and over 1 300 independent retailers across the country.
Trade Link has invested in significant resources to enable agile, rapid support to every retailer in the group, with a personal approach that considers the unique operational and economic realities of each business.
Trade Link CEO Ahmed Laher notes that supporting a retail group where each voluntary retailer is a business owner requires agility from a partner like Trade Link. “In an organisation like this, each retailer has a level of autonomy to grow their revenues. So, Trade Link has built the capability to be diverse and to scale according to a specific set of needs.”
During its years of supporting the retail group, TLRS has implemented four major nationwide point-of-sale (POS) upgrades for the client, and customised its systems to support both the head office and the individual needs of each store.
Full-service support
Reddy notes that while Trade Link is widely known as a leading POS systems partner, the company implements and supports a wide range of retail technology.
“In TLRS, we support all the retail systems layers for our client’s head office, distribution centre and voluntary retailers. This means everything from the front-end POS systems through to the critical back-office systems. It includes the IoT technology stack, in-store bank terminals, network security layers, managed switch environments and the entire connectivity stack. We also play a key role in planning and implementing the backup power they need – from UPSes to generators.”
Extensive reach built for rapid response
To support over a thousand retailers – many in small towns and far-flung rural areas – Trade Link has established a countrywide support infrastructure.
Reddy says: “We have branches in key locations around the country – main offices in major cities, branch offices in secondary locations and hubs in outlying areas. We have partnered with logistics companies to be able to move customer equipment to locations anywhere in the country quite efficiently.
“Our multi-tier support model includes a contact centre, field services support, a development house and project managers to look after the client and each retailer holistically, across multiple system landscapes.”
Beyond the KPI service excellence
Trade Link takes pride in exceeding expectations and never letting customers down. Whether the team has to camp on a retail floor or brave unrest, Trade Link delivers.
Laher notes: “TLRS has never missed a deadline or been late for an opening since inception. For example, as the riots in KwaZulu Natal came to an end, we were already dispatching a truck of IT equipment and had our client stores back up and trading before all the other retailers.”
In addition to its passion for delivery, Trade Link has developed its own tried-and-trusted methodologies for deploying systems in the uniquely complex retail environment.
Reddy says: “We have methodologies we started developing with our first deployments back in 1995, and these have evolved and changed with the landscape. Our in-house project managers have a deep understanding of the environments and can quickly adapt to change – or the unexpected.
“Because we are dealing with individuals, relationships are critical,” he continues. “We have dedicated teams that support each customer, to give a bespoke support structure to the retailers, the head office and the distribution centre. They visit these retailers, engaging with them directly about problems and helping them address them. This is why these small business owners have us on speed dial and treat us like old friends.”
About Trade Link
Trade Link is a leading retail innovation and support services partner to retailers in South Africa and the rest of Africa. It is a strategic partner to global leading point-of-sale and retail solution providers, with wraparound support, development and professional services. It is our experience and deep retail knowledge that makes the difference to our customers. We are the “Trade Link” between retailers and their customers. Learn more at the Trade Link website or connect on LinkedIn.
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