Ox&Pen

Yesterday morning, while making the rounds on Facebook, I noticed a thread of comments with regard to a small business in the West Loop and the loyalty programs in which it is currently participating. A few of the commenters were concerned about what happens to their points (which they racked up over the course of many loyal visits) should the small business discontinue its partnership with a given loyalty app/card/program.

These customers’ concerns were totally valid; with many loyalty apps, the points you earn at any given merchant can only be redeemed for rewards at that particular merchant. Should the merchant and the loyalty program in question sever ties, the customers who have 89,000 points saved up are pretty much S.O.L.

Sadly, this type of situation is not that uncommon. In fact, I think we all know someone who was negatively affected by the decision of a merchant to discontinue use of a loyalty program.

In an effort to mitigate the amount of disgruntled customers, Ox&Pen’s loyalty points are good toward rewards at each and every small business in our network of local merchants. In the unfortunate event that a merchant is no longer part of the Ox&Pen network, all the points you earned at that bar during post-softball team celebrations or extra-fun Sunday Funday brunches (you know who you are) aren’t for naught. Any accrued points at that, or any merchant you visit, can still be used like cash at every other merchant in the network.

There you have it. Loyalty points that won’t “go bad.” If you’re concerned about the loyalty program your favorite bar, restaurant, café or boutique is using—and what will happen to your points if they discontinue use—let them know that Ox&Pen circumvents the issue with universal points.

Interested in learning more about the loyalty network built for small businesses? Download the latest version of Ox&Pen for iPhone® or Android™ and follow us on Facebook. Let us know what you think about a universal loyalty network for small businesses!

Continue reading “What happens when loyalty points go bad?…” »

Ready for the ultimate tip of the holiday season? Here goes.

Have you ever seen a beautifully-wrapped gift? I’m not just talking about when the ribbon matches the paper and the card. I’m talking about the type of gift that is presented so amazingly that it becomes the most talked-about gift, even if it’s a pair of socks in a room full of iPads.

Win the gift wrap contest this year.

We’ve all seen those gifts, but who has ever had the time (or the creativity) to be the person to give such a work of art? Good news. There’s a service that can help you win the gift wrap contest (yes, it’s always a contest) this holiday season.

Boon is what happens when the holiday boards on Pinterest team up with a personal assistant to become the ultimate professional service—professional gift wrapping. Turn over your packaging and wrapping responsibilities to the experts at Boon; you won’t be disappointed with the masterpieces that come back to you. Plus you’ll save time. How much? You’ll save so much time that you can go back to daydreaming about the day you’ll actually build that United States-shaped bookshelf you’ve been eyeing.

The icing on the cake? When everyone oohs and ahhs over your gifts, go ahead and tell them it was you and your craftiness that made it happen; Boon’s gift to you is keeping everything a secret and letting you take credit.

Just for Ox&Pen members: 20% off any service at Boon.

Continue reading “Don’t let ugly gift wrap happen to…” »

Shopping at local establishments might be as trendy and hip as skinny jeans, but it’s also a practice that can make the economy boom—so much so that wallets aren’t fitting into the back pockets of those jeans. A Local First study found that for every $100 spent at a business that promotes the use of local products, services, and goods, $73 goes back into the surrounding economy as opposed to the measly $43 that comes from big-box chains.

The Local First study is not unique; several other studies reaffirm the positive economic effects of shopping and dining locally. A Civic Economics study found that 179,000 square feet of retail space in New Orleans, hosting about 100 individual businesses, generates $105 million in annual sales, with $34 million remaining in the local economy. In contrast, a nationally-known big-box chain of the same size brings in $50 million annually, with only $8 million staying in the local economy, and requires an extra 300,000 square feet of space for its parking lot.

While the exact numbers vary from study to study, the conclusions are consistent: the more we shop and dine at locally owned establishments, the more money we’re reinvesting in the local community. We can literally have a hand in supporting local farmers, artists, designers and professionals. Not bad.

We all love our neighborhoods, especially in Chicago. What’s good for them is good for us, right? So what can we do, as consumers, to help preserve the character of our communities that small business owners have helped to create?

So what else can be done to encourage local shopping and dining? Daily deals were a platform purported to help small business but they flopped, leaving behind quite a few dissatisfied small business owners and consumers. Currently, loyalty is the industry buzzword, and many startup loyalty programs are trying to fill the shoes daily deals left behind.

How is Ox&Pen filling that void?
Ox&Pen is taking loyalty a step further than other companies in the space. The Ox&Pen loyalty network is designed specifically for neighborhood shops and restaurants, rather than for national chains or big-box companies. By offering universal loyalty points to the network’s consumers, Ox&Pen is able to encourage repeat visits and full-price purchases, something daily deals weren’t able to do, but is of utmost importance to small business owners.

Jake Kaminski, owner of Westminster Hot Dog shared this anecdote: “With Ox&Pen, the point system is set up such that customers want to come back again, and pay full price while they’re at it. When we ran daily deals, we had swells of traffic, but the people coming in were only interested in steeply discounted prices, and didn’t return if there wasn’t an extreme price cut.”

Working at a startup can be hard work, but hearing those words from a small business owner is one of the main sources of drive for the staff here at Ox&Pen. We won’t succeed unless our small business partners succeed, and that pushes us each day to make this work.

Continue reading “Shopping local this holiday season – not…” »

Best Movember mustache goes to...

Big news: Ox&Pen founder & CEO, Andrew Gluck, will take the stage tonight at Technori Pitch! You’ll know who he is because he’ll be the presenter with the best Movember mustache.

If you haven’t been to Technori Pitch yet, it’s well worth your time. As technori.com articulates, “Technori Pitch is a monthly showcase of the city’s most innovative companies, pitching their latest technologies. It’s the city’s first large-scale, curated platform for companies to demo before an audience of entrepreneurs, executives, and enthusiasts. Every month, five companies get 5 minutes to demo their product and 3 minutes of moderated audience Q&A.”

As most of you know, Chicago’s startup scene is burgeoning, and Technori Pitch is your chance to see a few of Chicago’s up-and-coming companies. Plus, after the event, there are food & drink specials at Rosebud Theatre District; we can’t complain about that. Join us tonight! Tickets available here.

Continue reading “Join Ox&Pen at Technori Pitch tonight!…” »

Like any good Chicagoan, I have a healthy sense of neighborhood pride. Irrespective of whatever hip and trendy eateries and boutiques open elsewhere in the city, I still frequent the restaurants, cafés and shops around Lincoln Park and Lakeview. That section of Clark and Broadway between Fullerton and Belmont is my neighborhood, the place I call home. When merchants in the area do well, so do neighborhood residents. When another huge chain retailer goes up half a mile from my building, I get a little upset. Nothing against that particular chain; it’s just that with each big box that appears, a little bit of character disappears from the neighborhood.

Chicago is a city of small, unique businesses and I know I’m not alone in feeling lucky to live among so many great dining and shopping options.

And I wasn’t alone in my disappointment upon discovering Rahmig’s House of Fine Chocolates, on Broadway, is closing its doors at the end of September, after 70 years in business. cbslocal.com reported that current operator Fred Paillon said “times have changed, with storefront shopping at local establishments having given way to one-stop shopping at strip malls.”

Paillon noted decreased local shopping, one unfortunate side effect of an increase in national chains taking over neighborhood streets. Huge chains have economies of scale working in their favor, as well as sizeable marketing budgets and other factors working as barriers to entry for small merchants.

Small business marketing needs are increasingly a focus of attention, and over the past few years, platforms have emerged, packaged as marketing solutions for local merchants. Arguably the most notable was the daily deals model, which exposed merchants to huge, new audiences, but only when they offered up products at a steep discount. The hope was that consumers would be drawn in by incredible deals and would later return for more—and pay full price! Unfortunately, more often than not, customers didn’t return to pay full price; instead, they waited for the next daily deal and went to a different merchant to again pay half price (or less).

The surge of traffic taking advantage of daily deals was significant, but wasn’t always a good thing. Merchants were often left unprepared, understaffed and under stocked, which hurt both business owners and their customers. In some extreme cases, local shops and restaurants were forced to close their doors, due to cash flow problems stemming from a daily deal.

Long story short: daily deals once seemed like a great idea, but they proved themselves unsustainable. Chicago’s unique neighborhoods are in need of a tool focused on preserving their character. It’s not just municipal officials and federal candidates who are stressing the importance of small businesses in this country; consumers are right there with them. The success or failure of small, independent merchants directly affects the neighborhoods in which we all live and work.

That said, I’m proud to work for Ox&Pen, a company committed to driving traffic to independent merchants. Join us as we do our part to support local, unique businesses. What’s good for local merchants is good for us.

Continue reading “House of Fine Chocolates closes, Lakeview mourns…” »

You get to go on special tours of one of the city’s most celebrated breweries.

On Monday, Ken from Goose Island led us on a private tour of the local brewery’s Fulton & Wood location. Matilda and Sofie lovers – this is where all Private Reserve brews originate, including the aforementioned, Pepe Nero and Lolita.

Warehouse full of bourbon casks for Goose Island's Bourbon County Stout

On the tour, Ken led us through all the typical brewery tour talking points—barley, hops, yeast, wheat and that delicious Lake Michigan water. All of this is necessary information as I train my palate to distinguish subtleties in each beer I sip, but for me, it wasn’t the selling point about the Chicago brewery.

Ken went onto explain how Goose Island can brew so many different families of beer without them all tasting like each other. In many breweries, only one or two strands of yeast (or Hefe, in German) are used for the beers, so if 10 different beers are brewed, those two strands are used for multiple beers from multiple families. At Goose Island, nine or 10 strands of yeast are used, which is why the different families of beer produced have notably distinct flavors—as if the beers weren’t even produced at the same brewery.

Goose Island's Fulton & Wood location

Of all the things Ken divulged yesterday, however, one brewery anecdote stood out among the rest. During the roasting of the barley, the husks of the barley come off, and are essentially useless for the rest of the brewing process. Rather than just chuck those husks into the garbage, Goose Island gives them to a local hog farmer to feed to his pigs. The farmer, in turn, sells his pigs to the brewery, which Goose Island serves in its brewpub locations.

I’m constantly blown away by the efforts of local merchants to support other local businesses. The resulting network creates a sustainable environment in which local, independent businesses can thrive. When merchants are part of a network, they support each other and facilitate local shopping and dining among patrons. After touring Goose Island, we at Ox&Pen were delighted to see our city beer icon taking the lead in participating in a local network.

For more coverage of the Ox&Pen Tour de Goose, check us out on Facebook (and like us while you’re there!).

Continue reading “Reason #87 working for a Chicago startup…” »

In some ways, it feels like it’s been just a couple of months. In other ways it feels like it’s been…well, more than that. It’s been an exhilarating ride here at Ox&Pen thus far. A trip to Great America has nothing on this roller coaster we’ve all been on! Yes, we launched just five months ago. But how do you think all those merchants appeared on our platform on that first day? We’ve been working this from the West Loop since last September.

Perhaps the reason it feels like more than a year, is because it’s really been closer to two years since initially conceiving the idea. Here are a few fun facts as to what has transpired in that time:

Concept to wire frames to functioning site & app

• I have taken on a Dutch business partner
• The idea has gone from concept, to wire frames, to production web and mobile apps
• We’re on our fifth version of the mobile app, and have a few tricks up our sleeve as to how to improve it in the near future…Stay tuned!
• The company has grown from five employees to 14
• We inherited a mascot
• The Ox&Pen merchant base has grown rapidly…and continues to do so
  

  Office mascot, Madison!

• Peter’s hair is twice as long
• …and my hair is twice as grey

But in all seriousness, I am proud to be a part of this group. We have talented and motivated people who have really bought into the vision, yet know they have the voice to consistently challenge it to make it better. Do team meetings get somewhat “spirited” amongst the group at times? ABSOLUTELY. However, the one thing we all know is that whatever happens within these walls at our West Loop headquarters is with the intention of improving your experience. Everything we do is to provide our members with the most comprehensive, yet intuitive loyalty program at their fingertips,  and in turn, create loyal customers for our merchants. “Brick by brick,” as we frequently say here.

So, all this happened in just one year? Well, that’s pretty cool…seems like a lot of good stuff in a short amount of time…a lot of bricks, if you will. However, we’ve just begun to scratch the surface and there’s still a long way to go to establish the presence we’d like. We’re just an infant in this space. It will take a lot more 12-14 hour days from the whole team here to get us where we want to be, and to have the reach we will ultimately need to still be standing at the end.

We appreciate the support everyone has given us, and welcome more feedback on how we can improve.

I look forward to what the next year holds.

Continue reading “Has it been a year already? Really?…” »

The weekend is almost upon us! It’s the final weekend of August, the last before Labor Day. So wear all the white you own and get outside; perfect weather is expected this weekend and you don’t want to miss out.

Taste of Greece is the festival to attend on Saturday and Sunday. Personally, I’m going there with a determined objective of overdosing on saganaki, kalamata olives and feta cheese. Others may have their eyes on grape leaves, baklava and that irresistible Greek charm. Whatever it is that brings you out, hope to see you there. Ox&Pen will have a booth. If you’re interested in spinning the Wheel of Loyalty to win purple swag, a gift certificate or universal loyalty points, stop by to see us!

The festival runs from 100 S. to 400 S. Halsted. Bring your friends!

Also going on this weekend is Fashion in the Street, presented by the West Loop Community Organization. Held at Washington & Green from noon – 10:00 pm this Saturday & Sunday, the event features live runway shows, boutique street shopping and a model search by Factor Women 1:00 – 3:00 each day. While you’re there, grab a snack from Westminster Hot Dog and earn some Ox&Pen universal loyalty points.

And one more thing… Special shout out to all the triathletes competing in the Chicago Triathlon this weekend! If you’re up for an early morning, head to Monroe Harbor on Sunday to cheer them on. The first wave starts swimming at 6:00 a.m.

Continue reading “The Weekend Lineup…” »

Let’s talk about universal loyalty programs. Those of us earning frequent flier miles with an airline that is part of an alliance can likely redeem those miles for free flights on any airline in said alliance. The same is true of some credit card loyalty systems; every dollar you spend translates into a point that can be used at one of several merchants within the credit card’s network.

While the above examples truly embody the idea of a universal loyalty program, neither caters to small, local business owners or their patrons. Rather, those programs work best on a bigger scale; their loyalty networks are typically reserved for large, national (or international) chains.

In the very early stages of conceiving what would later become Ox&Pen, I knew supporting local businesses would be one of our critical objectives and that the loyalty component would be a huge driver in achieving that. I knew the network effect of the above mentioned loyalty programs could be extremely powerful for small businesses, but there were challenges in creating this with seemingly disparate neighborhood specialty shops.

Often, if our favorite mom-and-pop shop has its own rewards program, it involves a punch-card, where, you get something free with every 10^th purchase, but rewards can only be redeemed at that location. This system works well for people who live or work nearby. But if a particular vendor is on the other side of town, the effort required to get there 10 times might outweigh the benefit of receiving something for free. In this case, the punch-card loyalty program isn’t really added incentive to visit that store over another, and both the consumer and the merchant miss out.

However, with Ox&Pen, you can earn loyalty points for purchases and social engagement at a card shop near your home on one side of town, for example, and later redeem those points using your smartphone at that new lunch place near your work on the other. You feel good because you are shopping locally and earning loyalty points at the same time. The owner of the card shop is also happy; he gains an incremental sale that otherwise may have gone elsewhere. What a novel concept: creating a “loyal” customer, even if just a one-time shopper.

Not only does Ox&Pen’s model provide its members with plenty of flexibility in how their hard-earned points can be used; but business owners benefit by joining forces with other small, local establishments. As a network, they can much better compete against their big-box rivals in the loyalty game.

Continue reading “Universal loyalty network built for small, local…” »

It feels good to give back. No matter how hard you’re working, if you’re supporting a good cause, you’ll walk away with that great feeling inside. Sometimes, if you’re lucky, you have the opportunity to give back and have tons of fun while doing so. This was the case when Andrew, Vanessa, Jeff, Adam and I were able to volunteer last week as coaches at Girls in the Game summer camp.

The mission of Girls in the Game is to provide and promote sports and fitness opportunities, nutrition and health education, and leadership development to enhance the overall health and well-being of girls. After spending half a day with the staff at Girls in the Game and the girls they mentor, we understand the importance of this organization. We couldn’t be more impressed with the staff and the clear positive effect they had on the campers. (Plus, they must have some sort of special superpowers; I never would have imagined it possible to keep 120 girls, ages 7-13, in line all day without incident.)

Tip of the hat to Girls in the Game. We had a great time and look forward to continued involvement!

The whole group shows their muscles after a day at Girls in the Game summer camp.

Coach Andrew and a few campers

Christy plays tunnel tag with campers

Andrew coaches lacrosse

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