How Bathu Scaled to 30+ Stores Using Shopify POS

Overview

Bathu launched in 2017 with a clear mission: build a sneaker brand that speaks to African identity. Founder Theo Baloyi opened the first store in Johannesburg’s Newtown district and saw immediate demand for locally designed footwear. But as buzz spread, managing inventory across an online store and multiple shop floors on separate platforms grew chaotic. Outdated systems led to constant site crashes, over-sold products, and frustrated customers.

The Challenge

Growing from one store to dozens in a country the size of South Africa meant Bathu needed a unified system. Their Wordpress site and Vend POS disconnected online and in-store stock counts. Teams spent hours reconciling spreadsheets. Popular designs sold out at one location while gathering dust in another. Launching new stores was a slow process of manual data entry and local setup. Scaling required technology that could centralize operations and keep up with rapid expansion.

The Solution

Migrating to Shopify and adopting Shopify POS solved Bathu’s headaches overnight. Inventory lives in a single dashboard, letting staff sell any product from any location. When a store runs out, orders ship directly from another outlet to the customer’s door. Bathu also tapped into Stocky for forecasting, turning raw sales figures into smart restock orders. Rather than wrestling with spreadsheets, the team now opens up to four stores each month with inventory already synced, saving weeks of setup time.

The Results

With a unified point of sale, Bathu saw a 200% surge in monthly revenue during the initial roll-out and a sustained 26% uplift overall. Today the brand operates 30+ stores, manages a retail team of 200+ through a single hub, and never loses a sale due to stock errors. Site stability improved—no more crashes under traffic spikes—and onboarding new staff takes minutes thanks to Shopify POS’s intuitive interface.

Looking Ahead

After conquering South Africa’s major cities, Bathu is eyeing expat communities abroad. With Shopify’s global infrastructure, international shipping and local storefronts are on the roadmap. The brand’s next chapter will prove that an African sneaker label can compete on the world stage—powered by technology that scales as fast as demand.