Three hours. That’s how long it used to take a small neighborhood grocery store to manually enter inventory from a week’s worth of deliveries. Franklin Taylor thought that was three hours too many.
Today, thanks to his startup Zaiko, those same stores can do it in just 15 minutes.
Zaiko’s technology is deceptively simple: a store owner takes a picture of a paper invoice, the software scrapes all the relevant data – product details, unit costs, quantities – and uploads it directly into the store’s existing inventory or point-of-sale system. What once was a tedious, error-prone task is now fast, accurate, and automated.
For many of Zaiko’s customers (grocery, convenience, and liquor stores with fewer than 20 employees) the difference isn’t just time saved; it’s money earned. With faster, cleaner data, these businesses can make smarter purchasing decisions, avoid overstocking or shortages, and finally keep pace with larger competitors.
When Franklin first started thinking about Zaiko, inventory automation wasn’t even on his radar.
While pursuing his MBA at Washington University in St. Louis, he became hyper-aware of his own food waste. “I’d go to events where you could get free food, and the ground beef in my fridge would go bad,” he recalls. His initial idea was to tackle consumer food waste directly.
That early concept morphed into a system for dynamic pricing at the grocery store level…think electronic price tags that adjust based on how soon a product will expire. Two major grocers loved the idea, but both said they couldn’t implement it. The reason was a curveball: they barely tracked their inventory, let alone expiration dates.
It was a small neighborhood grocer, Garner’s Market, that reframed everything for Franklin. “They said, ‘Hey, can you just take a picture of these invoices? I think all the information’s here.’” That was the spark. Franklin realized the bigger opportunity wasn’t in pricing. It was in helping small stores digitize their most basic operational process: inventory tracking.
That pivot changed everything.
Zaiko now works with seven paying customers and is in conversations with more. Beyond invoice scanning, the company recently rolled out an analytics platform that gives store owners deep insights into their operations: average turnover rates, top-selling products, highest-margin items, and even geographic cost comparisons between stores using the same distributors.
It’s the kind of data that was once only available to corporate chains with large IT departments. “Now our customers can make data-driven decisions they couldn’t before,” Franklin says. “It’s leveling the playing field.”
Franklin is the first to admit that entrepreneurship looks smoother from the outside. “You tell people about your business and they’re excited, but selling is a whole other thing,” he says. “It’s like working out. Everyone knows it’s good for them, but not everyone wants to do it.”
One of his toughest technical challenges was integrating with an outdated POS system whose own company didn’t know how to connect it. “We had to figure it out ourselves, and it took significantly longer than we wanted,” he says. That persistence, figuring it out anyway, is what keeps Zaiko moving forward.
Franklin joined the 2025 Future Founders Fellowship, a year-long program for exceptional young entrepreneurs, to sharpen his skills and expand his network.
“It’s easily the top entrepreneurship support organization I’ve been a part of,” he says. “Every week, there’s a fire speaker. But what really stands out is the focus on you as the founder, not just your company. They ask, ‘Are you doing okay? Are you doing the things you need to push forward?’ That’s different from other programs, and it matters.”
Future Founders’ approach combines world-class entrepreneurial training with a supportive peer network, mentorship, and access to resources that extend long after the program ends. For Franklin, those alumni connections and introductions to potential partners are just as valuable as the skills he’s gaining in the moment.
With new features rolling out and momentum building, Franklin is excited for the months ahead. The analytics platform is already delivering value, and each customer win makes the sales process a little easier.
Zaiko’s long-term vision goes beyond scanning invoices. Franklin wants to empower small stores with the same operational intelligence that large chains use—without the complexity or cost. “If we can save them time, give them insights, and help them run more profitably, that’s a win,” he says.
And if his journey so far is any indication, Franklin is just getting started.
About the Future Founders Fellowship
The Future Founders Fellowship is a selective year-long program for the nation’s top young entrepreneurs. Fellows receive tailored mentorship, access to a national network of founders, skill-building workshops, and ongoing support from the Future Founders community. The goal: to help each founder – and their business – thrive for the long haul. Learn more at futurefounders.com/fellowship.
Ready to get involved? Join our newsletter for updates
Δ