RARE SkinFuel had their store up and running within a week with Vend.
Health & Beauty
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Single-store
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HK
Hong Kong
RARE SkinFuel specialises in skincare that contains certified organic and native Australian ingredients. Their mission is to create the most effective and gentle products for consumers to regain confidence with their bare skin.
Located in Hong Kong, RARE SkinFuel was founded in 2019. Their store is located in Landmark Atrium, but products can be found in 4 stockists across Hong Kong. Global shipping is also available via their online store.
rareskinfuel.com/At a Glance
RARE SkinFuel had their store up and running within a week with Vend.
With Vend, RARE SkinFuel can now:
The Challenge
When RARE SkinFuel first launched in 2019, the intention was for them to be online only. However, they soon realised that their major target audience — particularly those in the Hong Kong market — prefer to shop in-store for skincare. In order to appeal to these shoppers, they quickly altered their business model to include a brick and mortar location.
When Michelle Chen, founder of RARE SkinFuel made the decision to open the store, she consulted with friends in the industry for advice on a system that she should put in place.
Many of them recommended Vend, and so did Landmark, the mall where the store is based. She started researching Vend and discovered NOVA, a Vend local Expert Partner, based out of Hong Kong.
Things rapidly progressed from there. Michelle emailed the team at NOVA with her requirements and they started the discussion of what would be the best fit for her.
“We approached the NOVA team and we told them the time frame, which was very short. We asked what they could do to help us and they really just did everything. They were even there on the launch day.”
The major factor in Michelle’s decision making was whether or not to go with a more traditional POS as she had seen across the market. After research and discussion with NOVA, Michelle chose to go with Vend, which was a more innovative and technically advanced system.
“I was pretty impressed by the way Richard from NOVA introduced me to Vend, particularly how it integrates with our accounting software, Xero.” says Michelle.
“I was pretty impressed by the way Richard from NOVA introduced me to Vend, particularly how it integrates with our accounting software, Xero.”
Michelle Chen, Founder, RARE SkinFuel
The Solution
Once Vend was set up in store, Michelle and the team dove into Vend’s reporting features to properly understand their target audience through their age and demographics, as well as to manage their inventory levels.
Michelle explains how important it is to have an understanding of her customers in order to develop new products. “It's definitely helpful to do a deeper analysis on our customer base. The more you understand your customers and their buying habits, the more you are able to cater to their requirements.”
They also used Vend’s reports to better understand their inventory levels and to ensure they remained profitable. “We use the inventory reports for accounting because our products are our assets. It's easy for us to generate the right reports and see what's in the store. It tells us how much stock we have, and which item sells the fastest.”
It’s also worth noting that Michelle lives an incredibly busy lifestyle and she spends a lot of time away from the store. Fortunately, she has the Vend Reporter App, which enables her to access all reports remotely from her phone — whether she’s at home or on the go. “I remember what caught my attention with Vend; the store owner doesn’t have to be in the store physically during business hours. It gives you enough information that you can monitor remotely.”
“It's definitely helpful to do a deeper analysis on our customer base.”
Michelle Chen, Founder, RARE SkinFuel
RARE SkinFuel brings their solution together with the best in retail
The Results
Implementing Vend in store has given Michelle the opportunity to access data that she never realised she needed —and so easily! Vend has given RARE SkinFuel the opportunity to continue to grow and thrive.
Using Vend and accessing all reports was easier than Michelle had imagined. “I think the user interface is very friendly.” She continues, “I would say that using Vend with an iPad is definitely self sufficient. Anybody can do it if you know how to use a smartphone. It's easy to connect the dots between customer contacts and what they’ve purchased. I think using the system gives you an overall picture of how your store is in a day and a week”
“My favorite feature as a business owner is that the features you need to operate a business are all combined into one app. So you're not just looking at the sales figures, but you're looking at demographics. You're also looking at accounting and you're looking at inventory.”
Vend has enabled Michelle to focus her time on product development and growing the business, leaving her employees to manage the store day to day. “It has definitely saved me a lot of my time to do my other stuff rather than looking at the store and what is happening in-store.”
“My favourite feature as a business owner is that all the features that you need to operate a business are all combined into that one app.”
Michelle Chen, Founder, RARE SkinFuel
