Twine
Deliverables
Tech Used
Service
Project Year
Website
In 2022, Lighthouse Supermarket, a trusted supermarket chain and long-standing Threls client, reached out to us with an ambitious vision: a custom-built Point of Sale (POS) solution uniquely tailored for their retail operations. Previously, Threls had developed an e-commerce platform for Lighthouse, and this new venture represented a deeper integration into their business. The initial meeting, a critical step in our process, raised an important question: why not opt for an off-the-shelf POS solution? Lighthouse had already thoroughly assessed existing solutions and found them lacking for their specific needs, presenting a compelling rationale for developing a bespoke system.
The Start of a
Partnership
Recognising the unique requirements and potential in Lighthouse’s proposal, we advised exploring a collaborative model, where both parties would invest resources and expertise into a POS system that could extend beyond a single supermarket. This marked the inception of a partnership aimed at transforming not only the POS experience for Lighthouse but also creating a versatile product with the potential to serve the broader retail industry.
Simultaneously, Threls was building an e-commerce platform to cater to various clients. We saw an opportunity to unify these systems, envisioning Twine as a comprehensive digital solution that could seamlessly connect retail interactions from inventory to customer engagement.
Planning the Future: Business
Modeling and Market Analysis
Threls' team undertook extensive business planning and market analysis to ensure Twine’s long-term viability, led by an in-house economist and accountant who crafted a detailed business model and market strategy. This plan highlighted the demand for a flexible, scalable POS solution tailored to small and medium-sized supermarkets, with future potential for expansion into sectors like appointment scheduling. Supported by PwC’s expertise, the business case for Twine was reinforced by the following insights:
Revenue and Profitability
Twine aims for local growth to optimise through feedback, with investments planned for long-term returns for Lighthouse and Threls.
Strategic Market Positioning
The Maltese retail sector shows demand for scalable, customisable POS solutions that address common pain points like inventory and cash management.
Risk and Competition
Research with retailers identified needs for inventory synchronisation, customer personalisation, flexible fulfilment, data consistency, and scalability.
Pain Point Analysis
Research with retailers identified needs for inventory synchronisation, customer personalisation, flexible fulfilment, data consistency, and scalability.
Why Malta?
We chose Malta as Twine's headquarters, recognising the strategic advantages this EU member state offers. Malta’s commitment to fostering technological growth aligns seamlessly with Twine’s ambitions, supported by national policies and EU strategies like the Digital Malta strategy and the Digital Agenda for Europe. These frameworks promote ICT development, digital innovation, and e-commerce, providing an ecosystem where businesses like Twine can thrive. As a nation focused on becoming a regional tech hub, Malta presents an ideal environment for Twine to grow, innovate, and contribute to the EU’s vision of a digital-first economy.
The Name and Vision
Behind Twine
The name "Twine" embodies the concept of weaving, threading, and intertwining retail operations into a seamless, cloud-based POS system. Central to Twine’s purpose is the focus on interaction between customer and business, with every feature built around delivering a unified experience on a single, cohesive platform. At the heart of Twine is its centralised system, which brings together data from all touchpoints—POS, e-commerce, CRM, loyalty programs, and more. This 360-degree view of the customer journey eliminates data silos, allowing businesses to deliver a seamless experience whether customers are shopping in-store or online. Twine’s platform ensures that every interaction counts, with no opportunities missed to enhance customer engagement and loyalty.
The Launch of Twine
The name "Twine" embodies the concept of weaving, threading, and intertwining retail operations into a seamless, cloud-based POS system. Central to Twine’s purpose is the focus on interaction between customer and business, with every feature built around delivering a unified experience on a single, cohesive platform. At the heart of Twine is its centralised system, which brings together data from all touchpoints—POS, e-commerce, CRM, loyalty programs, and more. This 360-degree view of the customer journey eliminates data silos, allowing businesses to deliver a seamless experience whether customers are shopping in-store or online. Twine’s platform ensures that every interaction counts, with no opportunities missed to enhance customer engagement and loyalty.
Team Formation and Structure
Building a specialised team for Twine posed challenges, as Threls had to shift from its traditional software house approach to a product-focused mindset. This required aligning development processes with long-term product goals and assembling a dedicated team with specialised roles to bring Twine’s vision to life:
- Product Manager: Leads vision and strategy, ensuring alignment with Twine’s objectives and prioritising customer needs.
- Product Designer: Crafts user experiences that are intuitive and accessible, focusing on usability across Twine’s ecosystem.
- Engineering Lead: Oversees technical strategy, ensuring the system’s architecture is scalable, maintainable, and integrated.
- Software Engineers: Execute technical implementation, emphasising code quality and seamless integration across features.
Together, this cross-functional team collaborates in agile cycles from discovery through delivery, ensuring every feature advances Twine’s commitment to innovative, user-centred solutions.
Embracing a Product-
Centric Approach
Transitioning from a project-based model to a product-focused approach was essential for Twine’s success. This shift, grounded in our “Thinking Product at Twine” strategy, required a new mindset for the Threls team, emphasising agility and outcome-driven processes over simply delivering outputs. Our team worked to create a product vision that clarified how each feature would address customer needs, focusing not only on functionality but also on usability, feasibility, and business value.
Timeline of Key
Milestones
2022
Developed the business plan, conducted financial analysis, finalised branding, and formally established Twine Ltd., solidifying Twine’s identity in the market.
2023
Began building the POS system, with key features including the inventory management system and a stocktake app. Additionally, we onboarded our first test client to trial the inventory management and stocktake app.
2024
Expanded the POS foundation by developing core features, including POS order and checkout, purchase orders, transfer orders, and the admin portal. Launched a soft rollout of the Twine POS across Lighthouse’s supermarket chain, which is currently being tested in a real-world environment. We also have 25 additional retailers in the pipeline as beta testers.
