Shapes for Women, South Africa's leading women-only fitness chain established in February 2005, chose Netcash as their preferred partner to process payment and collections across their 40 franchises.

"The Netcash system’s simplicity and ease of use is what motivated the franchise network of Shapes for Women to change from our previous supplier," says Greg Ivins, owner of the exclusive chain. "Approximately four years ago we were approached by Netcash. At the time, we were not in the market for a new service provider, but collectively the franchisees saw the value of the Netcash service and we switched to their service offering."

The Shapes for Women transaction volumes have grown over the last few years and as a group they currently process on average 6 000 transactions per month. Ivins confirms "our franchisees need a service that is fast, reliable and efficient. And it’s pleasing to note that our franchisees are happy with the ongoing service, pricing structure and user friendly system provided by Netcash."

As small to medium business owners, cost cutting and time savings are of chief importance to these franchisees. Donovan Marais, the account manager of Shapes for Women at Netcash adds "At Netcash there are no hidden training or consultation fees payable and no costs associated with dedicated and expensive software. The franchisees log on to the Netcash system via the internet from anywhere, at any time allowing these businesses to operate within their own time frames and parameters."

Netcash talks to a Shapes for Women franchisee

Liezl Botha has been a Shapes for Women franchise owner for three years now and owns the Weltevreden Park Branch in Johannesburg.

Liezl is passionate about owning a Shapes for Women franchise. She tells us why, "Shapes for Women gyms are different from other gyms as we offer a host of additional facilities such as dedicated personal attention to all our members which includes, an onsite personal trainer available at all times at no extra costs to our members. And we offer an ongoing weight loss and fitness program which includes a healthy eating plan and wellness maintenance. Added benefits include belly dancing classes, Pilates, boot camp, and gym equipment such as a treadmill, slimming bike and the popular power plate facility"

Shapes for Women in Weltevreden Park currently have over a hundred members and the majority of clients pay by debit order. Liezl adds "When I took over as the new owner of Shapes for Women Weltevreden Park, the manual system used to process debit orders was flawed and there were frequent errors, which was incredibly frustrating. I knew that the system had to be improved and spoke to Greg about changing to Netcash. Since switching to Netcash, there has been a huge improvement in the day to day running of my business," Liezl explains. "The Netcash system is so easy to use. You can log on at any stage and it is easy to add or delete information. The service team is helpful and the system is efficient and reliable - money reflects in your bank account when you expect it."

In closing, Liezl comments "I highly recommend Netcash to anyone. The system is hassle free and user friendly, allowing me more flexibility to concentrate on running a successful gym and growing my own client base".