Annie Penn from Tillex eCommerce - Summer August Q&A 2021

It's August and the height of summer although the weather may not always reflect that. Often in business it can be a slower month as children are not at school, parents take time off and many people take a break. Will this year be as different as last year? Time will tell.

We've been talking to various business owners about their summer and autumn plans and today we're talking to Annie Penn who is a director of · Tillex eCommerce which is a digital 'till' hosted within the UK with built in stock control and online ordering that looks like a website and acts as an app. 

How is August looking in your business? 

We launch 100% British Tillex ePOS (electronic point of sale) with integrated stock control specifically to help independent retailers that can’t afford giant platforms.

What are your personal plans for this month? 

To take a bit of time off in order to walk our labrador (Stan) across Coombe Hill in Buckinghamshire and listen to more opera – I’m fascinated by the plots!

The Olympics – Tokyo 2020 – have drawn to a close though the Paralympics are on their way. Have you seen anything which touched or inspired you?

Tom Daley winning gold after suffering from Covid19 (twice)

Did you know August 21 is World Entrepreneurs' Day? What does this word mean to you and do you apply it to yourself?

Those who are relentless in providing solutions to help a niche… we spent years writing Tillex alongside our careers before offering it (in Lockdown 1) for free to help UK businesses manage delivery + click & collect. 

We now work full-time ensuring retailers leverage an ERP (enterprise resource plan) comparable to those used by big brands. Remember many of the platforms which offer this type of service actually charge a lot of money, and that money goes overseas. 

Can you name one business you’d like to give a summer shout out to? Who has gone the extra mile for you recently? 

Day Zero in Buxton High Street Derbyshire is giving us vital feedback on operational needs in order for us to help him delivery locally grown vegetables. As ex IT – his support is superb! 

https://www.dayzeroshop.co.uk

As we move further through the pandemic, how are you feeling about the future of business in general in August 2021?

Consumers are Covid cautious, preferring to book a doorstep delivery – using large ecommerce providers charging businesses vast rates (one of our new customers was paying almost 40%) making growth impossible. 

Tillex addresses the need to take orders, manage stock and handle deliveries - at a fraction of the cost of gig economy providers.

Have you got any events planned for the autumn you’d like to shout about – either that you are running or attending? 

Because of our growth stage (start-up), we live and breathe Tillex. Those that have trusted our tiny but highly skilled ex corporate software engineering team (last app they wrote is used by 52M people) are fast becoming firm friends. 

In Cleveland, ‘What Planet Are You On’ will open their zero waste supermarket soon and have created a ground up build that uses everything Tillex - right down to the bar code scanner. 

Ben and Kelda will open with the Mayor – I’d love to be able to attend if our calendar allows as this is a first for us. 

Have you got any services or special offers you’d like to mention? 

If you turnover more than 2K a month and are struggling to manage orders / deliveries, we are offering a free ecommerce site build worth up to £8K that includes an app - followed by three hours of staff training via screen share. 

View a few users on our website to see customers online with Tillex and get in touch if interested by emailing [email protected] - please mention 'Total Guide media offer'.

And finally, August 16 is National Tell a Joke Day? Can you tell us a joke and raise a laugh? (please keep it clean folks!)

As explained, I’m opera mad - so always giggle at this one… How does a Soprano sing a scale? Do, re, mi, me, me, me!’

The business is based in Thame, Oxfordshire and for more information visit www.tillex.co.uk