Thrift stores require more control over inventory than other stores. Because donations make pricing and stocking more difficult, there is often more to manage. With a reliable point of sale system for thrift stores, managing inventory has never been easier.
The best thrift store POS system will print barcodes to label incoming inventory. Color coding systems can be used to mark the items scanned in and out of the store. All sales history and analytics are available at any time. A POS system for thrift stores will also print traditional receipts as well as donation receipts for contributors. This means more security in tracking business operations and better organization.
There are several helpful POS systems designed for thrift stores. We’ve already picked out our favorite systems and reviewed them based on features, price, and support. Below are our top picks.
As thrift shop owners cannot possibly know what people are going to donate or bring in for sale, and in what quantity, they need to be able to quickly generate item tags and shelf labels through their POS system. Moreover, it should also be able integrate with the scales reasonably well.
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3 Best Thrift Store POS Systems
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| Deployment | Installed – Windows |
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| Training | Webinars Live Online In Person |
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| Support | Phone | 24/7 (Live Rep) |
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| Activity Reservations | |||
| Digital Signature | |||
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1. InfoTouch – Best POS System for Thrift Stores
InfoTouch’s Color Rotation feature enables you to tag and rotate items by times and dates. Thus, thrift shop owners can perform standardized rotation or discounting and sale pricing by tag colors.
There is also color-coded tagging that enables pricing and inventory rotation by month or week. It is advisable to perform tagging before you receive inventory on the retail floor.
Bar-coding and labeling are available for all the items that come through the warehouse. The warehouse module of the system provides bar-coding, costing and pricing options. With these, you will be able to manage, track and process your inventory as soon as you receive it. Best of all, these features are available with every license.
Adding Tenders
Thrift shop owners can set up and name and track additional tenders, such as vouchers. In addition, this POS system is equipped with a loyalty option that provides reward points or store credit to returning customers. This feature commonly allows in-store credits to customers, who frequently make donations to the shop. Information about all purchases is available for every group, customer, business, or organization. Price leveling and customer based discounts are also available.
Thrift shop owners can take advantage of the database tracking feature and link it directly to some big and unique inventory items such as cars, motorcycles, or computers. You can input customers as donors or vendors with this software, thus being able to track them.
Security Features
Employee-based security is available with every InfoTouch POS system that the manufacturer sells. There are up to eight standard security levels. Each and every staff member added to InfoTouchsecurity has a customizable profile. This allows you to easily set up or adjust permissions and access levels for that individual.
But that’s not all. InfoTouch’s advanced security option allows you to grant access and exceptions to different users within the same access level. This includes increasing or limiting access. All staff members can be tracked via audit reports. These reports indicate every transaction staff has performed and managers can easily see what’s going on in their thrift shop.
Fast & Easy Cost Management
The system makes it possible for thrift shop owners to estimate the cost per item or set a group default cost. Thus, they can accurately assess their shop’s expenses on processing, carrying, or tagging inventory items. If you want to perform profit analysis, you can run reports using these cost figures. In addition, you can set prices by quantity, such as “buy 2 get 1 free” or “Buy 3 for the price of 2”.
You can offer discounts with security clearance during the checkout process with any purchase by a dollar amount, or percent. This can be added for an extra donation to a special customer, a charity, or fundraiser that you are organizing.
Bottom Line
The InfoTouch POS system is a good fit for multi-location thrift shops, as well as smaller thrift shops with only one location. It is most popular for its highly customizable user interface and touch-screen monitors.
2. Ambit Technologies – Best System For Customer Loyalty Programs
Ambit is an excellent thrift store POS system provider, whose popularity in the US is steadily growing. If your thrift store needs a stable inventory management system that is capable of managing all of the items you bring in, look no further. Moreover, this POS system enables your employees to service customers faster.
Any thrift store owner knows how important it is to have access to and be able to print an unlimited number of bar codes. Ambit POS makes it possible to access an endless number of products, so you can easily track all items using bar code technology. The system can keep track of numerous pieces of clothing, furniture and other items that come in and go out of the thrift shop every day.
Similar to shoe stores, the process of buying inventory is one of the biggest challenges that thrift shop owners face. This process usually depends on what exactly you need and when you need it. Ambit’s features help you determine what specific items are in season and create donation receipts including tax ID numbers.
The reporting and customer loyalty capabilities of the Ambit thrift store POS system gives owners and managers a quick insight into which items are most popular with customers and which ones are just occupying precious shelf space without generating profit.
Ambit’s other features include email marketing, e-commerce, and mobile applications. The special furniture feature of the system helps thrift shop owners manage and maintain their merchandise. It also guarantees fast and accurate checkout and thus reduces waiting time. With Ambit, you can also calculate your profit margins quickly and easily.
Email Marketing
Ambit POS can help you figure out what types of emails you should be sending out to potential and current customers. When a customer visits your thrift store and buys an item, the system will record that information for future use. It will automatically know to send a notification email about a given sale or promotion to such customers. Coupons and recurrent discounts can also lure customers to your store. The POS system can also tell you how many people are viewing each email, making it easy for you to see which ones work best.
E-Commerce
E-commerce functionality is important, because it gives your thrift store the ability to sell items online. In addition, it will draw new customers to your location, and they can get to know your products through email newsletters and various promotions. You can manage your online store the same way you manage your business. The E-commerce feature makes it possible for you to analyze sales history and run reports.
Mobile Alerts
As a thrift store owner, you always want to know what is going on in your shop. You can always receive the latest information about your shop wherever you are thanks to Ambit’s mobile POS function. With this feature, your staff can ring up items outside. You will have the freedom to take goods from your thrift store to an event in another part of town and carry transactions out on mobile devices. In this way, you’ll never miss an opportunity to make a sale!
Disadvantages
Because Ambit Technologies is still a little-known POS solutions provider, not many shop owners across the USA are aware of its benefits. Hopefully, this review will go a certain way toward changing that.
Bottom Line
Ambit’s POS will give you the security you need with its mobile alerts. Whenever there is some suspicious activity going on in your thrift store, these alerts allow you to take the necessary measures. You’ll know everything that’s going on in your store, so you can prevent any negative developments.
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3.Bepoz POS – Stand-Alone Thrift Store POS
Bepoz’s POS system helps many businesses across the USA run more smoothly, including thousands of thrift stores. Its programs help take out some of the guesswork when it comes to cataloging, formatting, and pricing items. Its easy-to-use interface also allows thrift shop owners to keep track of their costs and expenses.
Improves Thrift Shop Sales
Bepoz’s Trace All Expenses option offers its users the opportunity to increase sales and achieve higher earnings. All business operations become much easier when you keep an eye on your expenses. Clients can see where the money is flowing in and out of their thrift shop and where costs can be cut down.
You can rely on Bepoz to tell you which items are most popular among your customers and how much profit each sale generates. Thus, you will find it easier to decide where expenses need to be cut down, and where more money is needed.
Ultimate Staff Independence
This POS system also enables your staff to make educated decisions on their own, without having to ring you up every time an issue arises. At the same time, your employees will be able to make instant decisions when they need to. It may still be necessary for them to check with the management before proceeding with any larger purchases and deals.
Having a system that tells employees how to make the right decisions is incredibly effective and enables much smoother operations overall.
No Long-Term Contracts
All clients of Bepoz subscribe for a low monthly payment and they are not locked into long-term contracts, which is very convenient The company’s sophisticated POS software is full of useful features. More importantly, it is offered at an affordable price.
Best of all, the product’s retail price includes free ongoing support, maintenance and updates. This is a major advantage if you have to deal with issues like constantly changing card payment rules and data security standards. With Bepoz, you are also covered against any major tax variations and alterations that may happen at any time.
Disadvantages
Some users have complained about Bepoz’s service proposition. More specifically, users are frowning at the fact that the company offers just three days of staff training, which is not enough for them to get familiar with all of the POS system’s functions and modes. In response, Bepoz’s customer service has said that the company is working on extending this period.
Bottom Line
This point of sale system and software has some truly amazing capabilities that make the life of thrift shop managers a lot easier. More importantly, thrift shop staff find this system easy to use. Some of them may find the back office is a little more challenging, though. Bepoz’s POS system guarantees optimal operation and organization of all work-related processes.
The Bottom Line
When shopping around for a POS system for your thrift shop, you should look for features that help your staff be more productive. Also, the system should definitely be touchscreen-accessible. Nowadays, touchscreens can be used to add inventory and print donation labels quickly and efficiently.
Versatility
Your POS system should also be able to handle fixed-price products, as well as unique items that need to be priced and named individually. Thrift store managers can make employees’ jobs easier by giving them a program that is easy to use and effective.
Easy Pricing
Thrift shops often face challenges in terms of pricing and cataloging items that come into the store. A good POS system can eliminate some of the confusion that arises when your employees have to price some unusual items. You can make it much easier for your staff to see how the shop is making money by integrating one simple program.
A lot of thrift stores manage price changes by color, and these occur quite often. A good POS system should have the ability to manage such changes simply and easily without any user intervention. All prices appear correctly at the register. The cashier does not have to worry about the price or the schedule they should be using for each item. Your staff should be able to enter products by either utilizing the touchscreen interface, or scanning a bar code. You may also be interested in our post on gun store POS.
One Response
Will quick book software work with all of these POS systems?