MyVenue takes Adelaide tech to the Miami Dolphins and beyond
In just 18 months, MyVenue has grown from a small Adelaide-based team to a global staff of 36 with offices across Australia and North America. Tim Stollznow, MyVenue CEO, tells how his company is outpacing competitors with clever tech.
Founded in Adelaide, MyVenue is revolutionising point-of-sale (POS) solutions for stadiums, arenas and hospitality venues worldwide. The company’s fully integrated solution helps large venues improve the speed of service, reduce operating costs, and maximise food and beverage sales.
‘While we position ourselves as a global company, we are proud that 100% of our software is developed in Adelaide,’ says Tim Stollznow, MyVenue CEO.
‘Our story is one of innovation, foresight and persistence: an Australian point-of-sale company successfully taking on multibillion-dollar organisations in the lucrative North American sports and entertainment sector.’
Outpacing competitors with clever tech
MyVenue is 100% hosted in the cloud and reports data in real-time. This removes the need for traditional, expensive-to-run data servers. Its intuitively designed interface, native mobile ordering app, and back-office platform help make service quicker, with minimal training required.
Comprehensive in-built offline redundancies further set MyVenue apart from competitors. This allows POS devices to continue accepting credit card transactions even if wi-fi, power or payment gateway networks fail.
This creates a seamless purchasing experience for patrons. It also instils venues with the confidence that they can always make the sale, no matter the circumstance.
‘Because many stadiums and arenas are essentially concrete bunkers, wi-fi network disruptions occur regularly,’ says Stollznow. ‘Modern POS systems rely on the internet to operate. Having offline technology to fall back on ensures venues don’t suffer from literally millions of dollars of missed sales.’
MyVenue the official POS provider of the Miami Dolphins
MyVenue has invested heavily in the North American market over the past 12 months. This is due to its larger size and stagnating competitor innovation, opening a window of opportunity to seize market share.
In January 2022, the company became the Official POS Technology Provider of the Miami Dolphins and its home-field, Hard Rock Stadium. The 65,000-seat venue is home to the Miami Open, the University of Miami football team, concerts, international soccer matches, and the Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix.
The lucrative contract saw 1,360 POS terminals fitted with the next-generation MyVenue solution. These processed more than 254,000 transactions during the fortnight-long Miami Open in March and April 2022. A further 223,000 transactions were processed during the Miami Grand Prix race weekend in May 2022.
‘At the F1, more than 20,000 transactions were processed in MyVenue’s offline mode due to intermittent wi-fi disruptions around the track. This helped the venue operators capture an additional US$500,000 in food and beverage sales that otherwise would not have been possible,’ says Stollznow.
Reaching venues across the globe
MyVenue solutions have found homes in several other North American venues. Southeast Asia, Europe and Oceania are other important growth markets for the company.
MyVenue has diversified its product for the hospitality (pubs, bars, café) sector, further expanding market share.
‘In the last 18 months, the MyVenue team in Adelaide has grown into a global team of 36 staff with offices across Australia and North America,’ says Stollznow. ‘We want to be one of the leading suppliers to the American stadium and arena sector within the next 2 years.’
An opportunity for growth
MyVenue is committed to reinvesting around 50% of its revenue into research and development.
The Hard Rock Stadium contract has allowed the company to hire an additional 8 employees across customer service, software development, sales and operations.
Hiring new developers saw MyVenue further optimise its technology. Of particular focus was cyber security, back-office reporting, and a web browser mobile app.
Australian Export Awards offers new opportunities
Stollznow anticipates the relationships forged from being announced as the Australian Export Awards Emerging Exporter winner 2022 will provide new opportunities to elevate MyVenue’s business.
‘Operationally, we’re excited at the marketing and exposure opportunities that the award represents. We are keen to forge closer relationships with Austrade offices in the US and the UK,’ he says.
‘It also acknowledges the incredible work our team has delivered to continually push MyVenue to new heights, as well as put South Australian POS tech development on the map.’
Being recognised as a leading exporter also bolsters MyVenue’s status in the Australian workplace. Stollznow believes this may present new HR opportunities in a tight employment market.
‘Because of the opportunities they present, we highly recommend other exporters participate in the Australian Export Awards.’