Beat the Q, one of Anthill’s 100 Cool Companies of 2013, has acquired loyalty app eCoffeeCard.
eCoffeeCard is a free app (iOS, Android, Windows Phone, and Blackberry) which puts coffee loyalty cards in one convenient location. Its reach of 1,600 cafes and 320,000 users makes it the biggest mobile loyalty scheme in Australia. eCoffeeCard will remain a free loyalty program for both consumers and cafes.
Capital for caffeination!
Beat the Q has funded the acquisition by completing a capital raising with current and new shareholders including Greg Wilkinson (Founder, Reckon Limited), James Spenceley (CEO, Vocus Communications), and former AFL star Leo Barry. Wilkinson was a seed investor in Beat the Q and is reinvesting due to the company’s traction and strategic direction.
“Adam and his team have developed a fantastic product and platform, one that is making mobile payments seamless and simple,” said James Spenceley, CEO of ASX-listed Vocus Communications.
“The ECC acquisition is great because the synergies between the businesses will catapult them forwards together. 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.”
Beat the Q has seen considerable growth over the past year, processing over 500,000 orders for hot drinks for thirsty Australians. Over 250 cafes around the country have signed up to it, including Toby’s Estate, Danes, Marionette, Sonoma, Campos Coffee, Gabrielle Coffee, GG Espresso, and Mecca Espresso.
A business grande
“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,” said Adam Theobald, Founder and CEO of Beat the Q.
“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.”
