When Cory Waldron launched Mood Cannabis Co. in Nanaimo, BC, he knew that building a great cannabis retail experience hinged on more than just having the right products. With a focus on providing customers top-notch service and locally grown, small-batch BC cannabis, Mood needed a point-of-sale system that could keep up with inventory demands, simplify compliance, and support growth from day one.
After exploring several options, Cory ultimately chose Cova. Six years and two thriving locations later, he’s as confident as ever it was the right choice.
Weighing the Options
Cory had a clear set of criteria when choosing a POS for Mood. “We were looking at things like, how easy is it to learn the system?” he said. “Can we do this in a fairly short time? And not just for management to learn the back end, but how easy would it be to train the staff on?
“Of course, our other big considerations were around compliance – what does it look like as far as reporting, and what does it look like from an inventory perspective? What does it look like from a reports perspective? So when we looked at all those different components of Cova, it was a pretty easy choice,” Cory added.
What Mood Loves Most About Cova
As owner and CEO, Cory spends most of his day behind a computer, while his GM and staff interact more directly with customers – so Cory’s experience with Cova is different from that of his employees. But no matter if it’s front-of-house functions or backend management, he says Cova delivers the goods. “We have faith in the transaction process, knowing that Cova will be fast and reliable – especially during our busiest times like 420 and Christmas,” he said.
“I spend a lot of time in the back end of Cova, mainly doing inventory management, running reports, and building new items,” Cory added.
“One of the things I love most about Cova is that they’re open to change, open to innovation, and they actually listen to you. Anytime we’ve reached out with questions, they’re always there with a quick reply. It’s just been fantastic, and I don’t think we would get the same service with other POS companies. I’m sure of it.”
And when it comes to wait times for a customer service call? Cory says it’s usually a minute or less.
Another Cova standout for Cory is the ease of accessibility. “Cova operates very smoothly, whether it’s maintaining products within the catalog, or pulling data and reports,” he said. “That’s probably the thing I love the most – knowing where to find what I’m looking for, whether it’s on a computer, or on my phone or even a tablet, I can access all the information I need in different formats and it works great.”
How Cova Pay Upgraded the Mood Customer Experience
Like many cannabis retailers, Mood used to run separate systems for payments and the POS, which led to a lot of headaches. “For years we used non-integrated payments, and it caused all kinds of variances,” Cory explained. “You’d have to enter the transaction manually on the debit terminal, and that wasn’t great for the customer experience.”
That all changed with Cova Pay, Cova’s full integrated payments solution.
“Cova Pay is fantastic. It’s been the best thing since sliced bread,” Cory said.
"Cova Pay saves us thousands of dollars per year. By no longer having to manually enter the sales amount into a non-integrated payment terminal, we now have minimal inventory loss due to human error."
From reducing reporting discrepancies to saving thousands of dollars per store each year, the impact of switching to Cova Pay has been huge. Even when there were early issues with the rollout, Cory says Cova’s team worked closely with them to resolve everything quickly.
“We worked with Julie at Cova and our bookkeeper to fine-tune the reports, and now everything is spot on. It’s been flawless ever since.”
A Partnership Forged in Trust
When asked to describe Cova in just a few words, Cory didn’t hesitate: trustworthy, proactive, and innovative.
“Trust is huge in retail. You need to trust your system. And Cova’s always been honest and transparent with us. They work hard to make sure they’re doing right by their clients.”
For Mood Cannabis Co., Cova has been more than just a POS provider. They’ve been a true partner in growth, helping Cory and his team run efficient operations, adapt to new technology, and stay focused on delivering the best experience for their customers.
Ready to see how Cova can help upgrade your dispensary’s operations? Click the button below to book a free demo today!