A degree in economics and arts from the University of Adelaide, as well as some super simple software, helps Eleni Georgakopoulos run a successful bricks-and-mortar retail store in the age of disruption.

Eleni Georgakopoulos owns Ginger Frank, an excellent example of an independent fashion boutique supporting interesting and unique Australian-designed-and-made fashion on Rundle Street.

Ginger Frank opened on 10 October last year in the site formerly occupied by Tu Yu and is named for Eleni’s dog, Frank, a five-year-old Dachshund who has a bit of a limp, Eleni tells us. We agree unreservedly with Eleni that a limp from an old war wound would make a sausage dog even more adorable.

The store has personality in abundance thanks to stories like that and racks chock-full of independent labels, such as Sister Studios, Permanent Vacation, Pfeiffer, and Kuwaii.

“I felt like there was a hole in the market when it comes to fashion; there are so many independent brands interstate that weren’t being represented here in Adelaide. There are plenty of great small bars and restaurants doing innovative things – so there should be more fashion boutiques doing that as well,” says Eleni.

Eleni studied economics and arts at Adelaide University based on her favourite subjects from high school, and while there’s no tertiary degree for running a retail business, we feel as though economics and art would work well.

“The shopping experience is critical,” says Eleni. “Many women have been frustrated buying online only to be disappointed that the item doesn’t fit or when they feel the fabric it’s not up to the standard they expect.

“I always wanted a physical store. Lots of the brands I really like weren’t being stocked in South Australia. Having both a physical store – as well as an online one – is key, so women can come in, try on, touch and feel the clothes.”

Eleni Georgakopoulos in her Rundle Street store

Eleni wanted to make sure she could offer her customers a modern checkout experience, too. She chose Vend’s cloud-based point-of-sale software, which runs on an iPad to make it easy to transact and monitor her stock levels.

“Literally, they [Vend] have a website – you go to the website, download an app and away you go. It’s that easy,” Eleni says of the Vend experience.

Eleni also uses Vend to understand how her store is tracking.

“I use Vend to identify which brand lines are bestsellers and what clothing sizes are most popular, so I can accurately order for the season ahead,” she says.

“Nothing is manual, I’ve automated the store management using Vend and have freed up my time to curate a beautiful Instagram page to showcase our fashions.”

But don’t contact Ginger Frank if you want to “collab.” Eleni tells us of the many and various “opportunities” she gets in the shop’s DM to give clothes away to beautiful people in exchange for their influence, but prefers to work with more traditional stylists and models to create her shop’s amazing Instagram feed.

“Working with stylists feels a lot better to me, you always get incredible images as a result and the clothes are returned – which is important for a small retail business,” says Eleni.

There are other innovative ways in which Eleni approaches modern retail. On the night CityMag visit, she’s just installed a new floral display and re-merchandised her front windows in preparation for a VIP shopping night for a group of mothers and daughters in the store.

A portrait of Frankie the ginger sausage dog

All the while Vend runs in the background and helps manage Ginger Frank’s stock levels and sizes, so Eleni has great vision across the breadth and depth of her business.

“I don’t want to have dead stock sitting around,” says Eleni. “I use Vend’s weekly sales tools and can compare week on week, so I know how I’m tracking. Nothing is manual.

“A lot of my customers prefer to pay through Afterpay, so it was crucial to offer this payment method. Vend integrates easily with Afterpay – it was super easy to set up and I’m not tech savvy at all,” she says.

And while many things have changed in retail, the satisfaction from seeing a customer come in and fall in love with something still Makes Eleni happy.

“There’s a lure with fast fashion working well for a lot of retailer’s bottom lines but I have to believe in the products I’m selling,” says Eleni.

“For me, nothing beats the feeling of seeing a girl come in three times in a week, and look at something, and learn about the brand, and then make the decision to invest in that piece.

“It feels great when that happens.”

Vend is helping fuel a growing retail scene in Adelaide and across South Australia. Our retail experts are in town 2-5 July and can show you how cloud-based point of sale technology can transform your business. Call us on +61-3-8595-3783 to book a demo!