The advantages of using a customisable POS for butcheries

The beauty of a good POS system is that you can customise it to suit your businesses’ exact needs. There is no one-size-fits-all approach, but there is a more flexible and dynamic system that allows different businesses to get the most out of their POS. Here we look at how butcheries can benefit from this.

Butcheries are not as simple to operate as regular retailers. A butcher will buy in bulk, then cut the meat into smaller portions and package accordingly. Raw meat might arrive as a full carcass, or as large strips of meat, but it will leave packaged as biltong, steak, mince or stewing beef. Some pieces might be fat free, some might contain all the fatty bits; there are a number of different ways to sell

meat, and the prices will be different for all of them. This presents a number of challenges for the butcher.

Butchers want to be able to manage and control all of the above. How much comes in, how much leaves, and in what form it leaves. Most importantly, they need to know what they are making on every gram of meat that they sell. A POS, if used properly, will allow them to easily calculate all of this.

These are all critical factors in running a successful butchery. A POS will allow butchers to make informed decisions, and ultimately ensure the running of a profitable, or not, business.

Here’s what you can do with your customisable POS

• Keep control of your meat stock

As your meat comes in, you can record its cost, weight and type.

• Manufacturing process

You’ve recorded the arrival of bulk meat, now yo

u need to record the manufacturing process. This means you can quantify the amount of work done on each piece of meat. From spicing, mincing and chopping, to making biltong, boerewors and any other variations.

• Cutting up and packaging

Using the above records, you can now package your meat into different varieties, and using your costing methods, you can price your meat accordingly.

• Sales and Promotions pricing

By looking at your records, and seeing what is selling well and what is nearing its sell-by date, you can easily offer discounts or special deals on the slower selling items.

• Returns to suppliers

If meat needs to be returned to your supplier for whatever reason, you can easily locate it, see when it arrived and what you paid for it, and then adjust your records once it’s returned.

• Manage stock in multiple locations

Once you have recorded all your bulk meat arrivals and the repackaged items, you can now keep control by ensuring you know exactly where every gram of meat is located. Whether it’s in your refrigerated storeroom, on your shelves, or has been moved to another branch.

• Barcode printing and scanning with descriptions

Print whatever barcodes you need and package your meat with accurate descriptions. This not only makes it easy for you to sort and place on your shelves, but also makes it simple for customers to identify exactly what they are buying; the type of meat, quantity and quality.

• Reporting

Your POS can tell you at the end of the day, or at any time, exactly what has been sold. You can generate a number of useful reports, allowing you to identify selling trends, whether it’s on a weekly, monthly or yearly basis.

• Benefits for Customers

A POS allows you to offer a loyalty programme to customers and keep track of all their purchases. This means you can offer automatic discounts to restaurants, bulk purchasers or specific people you have recorded on the system.

• Efficient checkout process

Every sale is recorded automatically and stock levels adjusted accordingly.

An investment in a customisable POS system will make managing your business simple and accurate. It offers greater flexibility and numerous ways to manage stock levels and enjoy real-time access to the latest information, allowing you to make informed decisions.

If you looking for a POS system to take your business to the next level contact your local specialists at Arch software.