The Belgian Waffle Co.'s Recipe for Managing Petty Cash with OmniCard

At a Glance

• 50% reduction in manpower / reconciliation workload
• 250 company-owned stores live on OmniCard
• 3-4% of company expenses managed through OmniCard
• Reimbursement cycle cut from 10-15 days to twice-weekly settlements
• Onboarding & training rated 10/10; account management rated 10/10

About The Belgian Waffle Co.

The Belgian Waffle Co., owned and operated by Bloombay Enterprises Pvt. Ltd. founded in 2015 is a rapidly expanding food and beverage company with a strong presence in India. Today, it boasts over 565 stores across 199+ Indian cities, and the brand has been honored with prestigious accolades, including the Franchisor of the Year “Dessert Category” award and the “Asia Food Innovation Awards.” The company has expanded its product portfolio to include ready-to-eat and easy-to-make products such as Waffle Crisps, Spreads, and Pancake and Waffle Premixes, available both online and offline across the country.

As the business grew, managing expenses, especially those made in cash for local purchases, became increasingly challenging. The Belgian Waffle Co. needed a robust solution to streamline expense management, improve control over cash flow, and facilitate UPI transactions. This case study explores how OmniCard's Expense Management platform addressed these challenges and delivered significant operational improvements.

Reconciliation Workload reduced by 50%

A Quick Comparison

Features	Without OmniCard	With OmniCard
UPI Payments for Petty Cash	No	Yes
Employee Reimbursements	No	Yes
Short Settlement Cycles	No	Yes
Physical + Virtual Cards	No	Yes
Seamless implementation across branches	No	Yes
Reduced wasted Man hours for Store Employees	No	Yes
Better Cash Flow Control	No	Yes
Instant Bill Upload and Tracking	No	Yes
Minimal data entry and submission	No	Yes

Challenges

Cash-Based Local Purchases

The Belgian Waffle Co. faced substantial difficulties in managing expenses, primarily because a significant portion of local purchases was made in cash. Monthly cash burn for local expenses was around INR 20-25 lakhs, which increased to INR 25-30 lakhs as the company grew.

The reliance on cash led to several issues:

• Lack of control over cash flow
• Difficulty in tracking expenses and verifying transactions
• Manual reconciliation and settlement processes

Inefficient Expense Management Solutions

Before adopting OmniCard, The Belgian Waffle Co. used another expense management solution which lacked UPI transaction capabilities, leading to:

• Complications in managing cash withdrawals and expenses
• Inefficient and delayed reimbursement processes
• Additional manual effort for tracking and verifying expenses

Decision-Making Process

The initial interaction with OmniCard's representative, Arshdeep, and the subsequent demonstration of the platform's capabilities convinced The Belgian Waffle Co. that OmniCard was the right choice.

The decision to switch to OmniCard was influenced by several factors:

• Comprehensive UPI transaction support
• Better customization and reporting capabilities
• 24/7 service availability, essential for stores operating late into the night

OmniCard has been a game-changer for our Expense Management. With 250 stores now live, we’ve slashed our manpower requirements by a remarkable 50%. UPI integration has been an absolute boon, simplifying processes and making it a primary reason for choosing OmniCard. It’s incredible to see 3-4% of our company expenses efficiently managed through this platform.

— Sanjay R Rao, Accounts Receivable Head

Getting Started

10/10

Onboarding & Training

10/10

Account Management

Selection Process

The decision to choose OmniCard was influenced by the comprehensive demonstration provided by Arshdeep from the OmniCard team. After evaluating other solutions available, the company found OmniCard's expense reports more customizable and the 24/7 service particularly beneficial for their stores, many of which operate late into the night.

Onboarding and Training

The onboarding process was smooth and efficient, thanks to the dedicated efforts of OmniCard's KAM team which conducted training sessions for 160-180 stores within 1-2 days, ensuring that all store managers could download and use the software effectively. A WhatsApp group was created for real-time query resolution, further streamlining the onboarding process.

Integration and Usage

OmniCard was subsequently implemented in the 250 company-owned company-operated stores (COCO). Franchise stores, which manage their own expenses and only remit royalties to the head office, were not included in this implementation phase.

Key features utilized included:

• UPI transactions for local purchases
• Real-time expense tracking and reporting
• Twice a week settlements, replacing the earlier 15-day cycle

How We helped The Belgian Waffle Co.

Primary Use Case: Retail Store Expenses & Petty Cash

UPI Payments & Reconciliations

The use of UPI transactions through OmniCard significantly improved the control over expenses. The finance team could now easily identify and verify each transaction, ensuring that payments were made to the correct merchants. The settlement process became more efficient, with top-ups happening twice a week instead of once a month, reducing the cash-in-hand issues and improving liquidity.

Enhanced Control and Efficiency

By transitioning to OmniCard, The Belgian Waffle Co. gained greater control over expenses. The ability to track and verify transactions in real-time helped in:

• Identifying bills and merchants accurately
• Ensuring that expenses were entered and billed correctly
• Reducing manual effort and time spent on reconciliation

Improved Reimbursement Process

The reimbursement process saw a significant improvement:

• Earlier cycles of 10-15 days were replaced by twice-weekly settlements
• Store managers could submit bills instantaneously, reducing wait times
• The finance team experienced a reduction in workload, needing fewer resources for verification & reconciliation

Monetary and Time Savings

The need for manual reconciliation and verification was drastically reduced. The finance team, which previously required two people for these tasks, now needed only one person who could complete the work in less time. Store managers no longer had to maintain and submit physical bills and Excel sheets. The digital submission process streamlined their workload and reduced delays in reimbursement.

• Reduced blocked cash due to quicker reimbursements
• Savings in man-days for both store managers and the finance team
• Reduced need for manual intervention and verification

Positive Feedback from Store Managers

Store managers appreciated the reduced manual workload and faster reimbursement process. The ability to submit bills instantaneously using UPI was a significant improvement over the previous system. The implementation of OmniCard also extended to all company employees, who reported a smooth experience with the platform, as it simplified their tasks.

• Elimination of manual data entry and submission
• Instantaneous bill submission and quicker reimbursements
• Better tracking and management of local purchases

Customer Quotes

OmniCard helped reduce 50% of the man hours spent earlier on reconciliations by ensuring seamless tracking across their 250+ stores in 20 states across India.

— Sanjay R Rao, Accounts Receivable Head