OMNi: The Business Model For Adaptability

Angélica Leon, chief strategy officer at OMNi, shares her recommendation for businesses struggling to survive amid the pandemic: “Identify realistically and rapidly what changes — however big or small — are necessary in the foundation of business models, whether it means designing a value proposition for a previously unknown and unidentified market, or seeking new allies to accelerate the distribution chain.”

The following is an excerpt from What Did You Change?, contributed by Angélica Leon, chief strategy officer of OMNi.

At OMNi, we had one key advantage by starting off as a tech-borne platform across the board. This was key to pivoting our business model to fit the new business and social reality. In record time, as we had to store our bikes, we presented a new value proposition to our users, with a different set of key resources, activities and alliances to deliver said value.

Our strong R&D and access to real-time data allowed us to act upon a more competitive understanding of key aspects within the market environment. In light of the mandatory quarantine, we launched an entertainment platform across social media and YouTube, with results of around 4.5 million views. We also accelerated the deployment of our neobank solution, OMNi Moni. The response has been decisive: OMNi quickly rose to become one of the most prominent brands in Costa Rica.

But entertainment is just part of it. It’s clear that people have shifted their consumption habits and preferences, and more than ever in their financial behaviors. This phenomenon became more evident as the traditional — or legacy — banking industry in Costa Rica and the region unfortunately kept launching failed “digital” projects or programs.

Our neobank took the lead insofar as OMNi is opening bank accounts at twice the daily average of any other bank. It has drastically improved the lives of thousands, and consequently has significantly reduced the risk of infection from COVID-19, as we not only offer the whole onboarding process digitally, but also provide cashless solutions, such as P2P transfers, QR payments and digital loans as relief packages for SMBs.

This pandemic has sparked an unprecedented era of change at an unprecedented rate. In order to survive, all businesses have been pushed to adapt their models to the new reality and market dynamics.

Our recommendation to all is to be able to identify realistically and rapidly what changes — however big or small — are necessary in the foundation of business models, whether it means designing a value proposition for a previously unknown and unidentified market, or seeking new allies to accelerate the distribution chain.