RetailBasics South East

Today’s Torygraph reports that research by Actinic has found that use of EPoS systems by small shops has increased from 9% in 2006 to 40% in 2007. Other nuggets in the report were:-

• the average price paid for a new system has fallen from £12,000 to £5,200.
• more than 33% had problems with their system last year;
• 8% said their system was unreliable, and
• another 8% criticised their supplier for poor levels of support.

Apparently they polled “around” 100 retailers. Oh the miracles of statistical sampling: or is it the interpretation thereof that is the miracle?

Whether Actinic’s interpretation is correct or not, it is certainly true that:

• EPoS technology provides the retailer with all the essential information necessary to run the business profitably - instantly, on demand, whenever the manager wants it - as well as processing the sale efficiently. It is the provision of this essential information, enabling the manager to recognise & react to market trends, which a till system cannot do.
• the price of EPoS systems has fallen. Our basic entry-level system costs less than £400; which is less than many till systems.

However, it is the level of reported problems & lack of support that we find truly shocking.

We are only too aware that the efficient performance of our systems is critical to our customers whose business, quite literally, does not exist if our system breaks down. That is why we offer full training and a committed support service.

For further info please contact us.

The PC-based electronic point-of-sale (EPOS) market in Europe/Middle East/Africa continues to show strong growth potential in 2008, says a new study released today by IHL Group.

“Retailers continue to see the EPOS as more than just a method for accurately recording sales,” says Greg Buzek, president of IHL Group, a global research and advisory firm that serves retailers and retail technology vendors. “Added functionality at the till, whether in the form of capabilities such as customer returns, inventory look-up, or workforce management, helps retailers see EPOS as the central system in the store, and they are willing to invest in it accordingly.”

Contact us for more info.

The Government has announced recently that the adult minimum wage will rise by nearly 4% from £5.52 to £5.73 from October 2008. The rate for 18-21 year olds will also increase from £4.60 to £4.77, while the 16-17 year old rate will rise from £3.40 to £3.53.

Immediately following the announcement Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) chief executive James Lowman said: “To expect businesses to deal with these above inflation increases year on year is unacceptable.

“We support the principle of a minimum level below which wages should not fall, but the continual increases of this level are not sustainable or fair to businesses.

“This is particularly true in a year when the Government has received so much criticism from many different professions for their own low public sector wage increases. Teachers pay will increase by 2.45%, and police and nurses’ pay will increase below the 2.2% inflation rate.

“If the majority of workers in the country are receiving inflationary rises of around the 2% mark then why should small businesses such as convenience stores that already have to deal with the burden of increasing regulation have to foot the bill?

“Why are we expected to afford pay increases greater than those the Government is prepared to pay itself?

“We have given evidence to the Low Pay Commission face-to-face and in writing. While we believe this has helped to moderate the increase to a lower level than in some previous years, we remain disappointed that the national minimum wage continues to rise at this rate.”

In a recent interview with Independent Retail News the installation of EPoS in the past year has helped to transform Chhina’s, the small convenience store run by Laky Chhina and his family near Stourbridge.

Chhina says “EPoS is now an essential tool for the business as it helps to track stock situations, sales and margins as well as highlighting both the fast and slow moving lines.” And now major suppliers have indicated that they are prepared to make Chhina’s one of their trial stores, as the results can be easily tracked using their EPoS system.

No doubt this system cost many £,000s – but it does not have to. A simple system costing £00s can offer most, if not all, of the benefits being enjoyed by Laky Chhina.

For more information please Contact Us.

Are you wanting to implement a staff incentive scheme but finding it difficult to easily & cheaply collate the relevant staff sales statistics?Potentially one of the most useful features MYOB RetailBasics entry-level EPoS system is its ability to provide detailed statistics on which member of staff is responsible for which sales. Of course, this means that before each sale the relevant sales person must log in to the system with a PIN and this can create irritating delays at the till.

For the growing independent retailer giving staff the necessary training in good practice can be a time consuming & distracting problem for management.

Here is a guide which identifies most of key areas which the retailer needs to address with their staff. It suggests that setting these out in the form of a manual can be very helpful in providing staff with assurance that the business has been well thought out with clear policies & procedures which will be consistently & equitably applied.

Sometimes intoducing a little bureaucracy can be helpful, if it is applied with common sense.

Affordable Technology for the Smaller Retailer

The Retail Bulletin reports that a senior Conservative MP has launched a Commission to review the future of small shops in Britain’s High Streets with a view to helping regenerate town centres across the country.

Affordable Technology for the Smaller Retailer

Philip and Angela opened the Rowan Tree, a delicatessen specialising in additive and gluten-free organic food. The shop stands in the small town of Lochgilphead, overlooking Loch Gilp on Scotland’s west coast.

Read how RB’s affordable EPoS system has benefited their business by clicking in the link

Then contact us to explain how we can do the same for your retail business.

Affordable Technology for the Smaller Retailer

MYOB RetailBasics is a simple system which does not offer any stock control facility. However, the software does provide some reporting capability which can be used as the basis of a simple system which will track the numbers of stock items on hand and act as a trigger for re-ordering from suppliers.

We set up & support these and other similar applications as required by customers.

For further info please contact us

Affordable Technology for the Smaller Retailer

PC World has been listing MYOB RetailBasics since Sept 2006, but we do not believe they have been selling many. And now that their RetailReady equipment package is beginning to hit the same shelves we don’t think the situation will change much. We believe that this is largely because browsing retailers are not confident that they can easily unlock the conspicuous benefits of the package without some hands-on help. Now this situation is about to change.

We are pleased to launch a comprehensive package of training & support, starting with the all-important installation and set-up of the product catalogue database and complimented with a 24/7 telephone helpline & on-site visits where necessary.

We are also able to adapt the software to provide a useful but simple stock control & re-ordering system.

For further info please contact us

Affordable Technology for the Smaller Retailer