Payris 2020 in review

This newsletter originally started out as a review of developments in the Payris infrastructure for Q4 2020 but bearing in mind the enormous achievements of the Payris team in the whole of 2020 plus the outlook for 2021 it has become a review of the whole year.

But first, there are two types of reader for this newsletter, those who are familiar with the Payris concept of a centralized, curated matchmaker for all the local needs of the consumer and those who are not. For that second group a quick introduction to Payris is necessary.

What is Payris?

Payris allows local consumers to make a wish on the Payris app which is then matched to personalized offers from curated neighbourhood suppliers. In other words Payris brings the local high street indoors and places it at the fingertips of consumers exactly at the point where they are in the market to buy something. This gives local businesses hot leads for closing sales and gives consumers the products and services they want, exactly when they want them. Payris is based upon a business model where internet revenue is shared with consumers and suppliers unlike many of the internet giants who profit from transactional data to their own benefit. Payris respects the privacy of its users and has made a commitment to never sell or market any personalized identifiable information (PII).

2020 development complete leading to commercialization

BY April of 2020 the development of both the Payris app and the back-end supporting technical infrastructure was complete and the service under went a “soft” launch in central Washington DC in May. The Payris app is currently available for download on both the App Store and Google Play.

A steady stream of Washington DC consumer facing businesses have since signed up to the Payris concept putting them in direct contact with new local customers just at the moment when they are in the market to buy . This has been especially valued by businesses as numerous COVID19 lockdowns have decimated foot traffic and high street visits by consumers during the year. With Payris the consumer has the opportunity to be on the high street “virtually” having their wishes fulfilled by personalized service from local businesses.

The Payris App

Consumers access the Payris network with an extremely easy to use app, the layout and functionality of which has been designed to appear intuitive, making it simple even for first time users to make their wishes on the system and place orders with local suppliers.

Supporting the local business community

In addition to the clear benefits of Payris to both consumers and suppliers there is also the effect on the local community to consider which we have condensed down to 6 main benefits:

1. It allows you to keep your dollars in the local economy:  compared to chain stores and internet giants, locally owned businesses recycle a much larger share of their revenue back into the local economy, supporting jobs and wages (which are often better than the benefits internet giants offer)

2. Shopping local directly adds to your community’s character and prosperity and help our neighborhoods and cities feel less homogenized

3. You are giving directly back to your community’s well-being: local businesses build strong communities by connecting neighbors, contributing to local causes themselves and sustaining local creativity and vibrancy. 

4. By adding money to the local economy, you support local decision-making: you live here, your decisions should matter.

5. Local spending encourages sustainability: locally made products mean less carbon footprint
   
6. Diverting your dollars locally has a direct impact on the diversity of your local offerings: small businesses select their offerings based not on a national sales plans and predictions, but on needs of their local customers, guaranteeing a much broader range of product choices.

In September Payris announced a number of community partnerships with service and product suppliers in the Capitol Hill area of Washington DC to bring rewards directly to consumers for utilizing the Payris app and began offering credit rewards on the Payris app for its refer a friend program.

Expansion to New York City

Following the success of the Washington DC roll-out it was decided to bring the service to New York City, in particular the most densely populated region around Manhattan.

The New York service will follow the same business model as Washington DC and is being marketed as COVID beater to local businesses and suppliers in the targeted metropolitan footprint.

Payris is currently in the process of forming a relationship with the main business universities in its catchment areas with a view to employing business students to assist with supplier sign up to the Payris service. Selection and employment of students is currently underway in both Washington DC and New York. Payris has also started negotiations with SBDC with a view to rolling out the Payris concept nationally to benefit SMEs where ever they may be in the USA.

Payris is however not content with just the USA. The management team of Payris is in advanced negotiations with investors to bring Payris to the main Canadian cities and to selected European locations. Payris is also interested in discussing the roll-out of the concept in other jurisdictions with partners and / or investors who have the requisite skills.

2021 and beyond

Now that Payris is fully developed and has proven to be bullet-proof in both the Washington DC and New York roll-outs consumers and businesses can look forward to benefitting from the service in multiple locations globally during 2021.

The Payris dream in bringing value to consumers and suppliers through the simple process of making a wish is here, with a business model that shares revenues with all participants unlike the big tech giants who have turned their users into an advertising product without ever cutting them into a share of the profits.