It’s a tough time to be a small supermarket or grocery store. Between a rollercoaster of inflation and pricing changes, evolving industry trends, and pickier customers, supermarket owners have a lot on their plate.
Without a comprehensive way to manage their pricing, inventory, finances, and employees, it’s hard to stay competitive with bigger chains.
But there’s some light at the end of the tunnel. These days, supermarket software is making it easier for small businesses to do more with less — and establish themselves as local favorites.
In this article, we’ll cover:
You might be asking yourself if the cost and effort of implementing new supermarket software is worth it. The short answer is “yes.”
As budgets (both the customers’ and your own) get tighter and customer expectations change, having the right technology in place is becoming increasingly important.
Here are some of the top challenges that software is helping supermarkets solve:
By implementing the right supermarket software, you’ll be better equipped to tackle the challenges facing markets and grocers.
Better yet, far from making things more complex, the features of a modern system can actually help you significantly streamline your work and save you money.
Related Read: 4 Online Grocery Shopping Trends To Watch
Many business owners know that modern software is important for their business, but struggle to narrow down which provider to choose.
We don’t blame you. There are a ton of different systems out there, and even our top-rated solution isn’t a good fit for every business.
To make things easier, we’ve put together a list of our top picks based on different business sizes and needs.
IT Retail is created on the back of over 25 years of experience helping independent grocers and supermarkets. Our top-rated system is packed with everything a supermarket needs to succeed, including powerful inventory management tools, customer loyalty, prebuilt reports, e-commerce integrations, and more.
Standout Features
Pricing
We work closely with businesses to assess their unique needs and find a pricing option that works for them. Try our pricing configurator tool and get in touch to learn more.
Square is a generic retail system that’s very well-suited for small business beginners thanks to its affordable pricing options, modular design, and seamless online sales options.
Standout Features
Pricing
Square has several free plans with limited functionality, but their most popular retail plans start at $89/month.
Markt POS (spelled without the “E”) is another option that delivers a lot of power in an affordable package. Created specifically for small supermarkets, specialty markets, and grocerants, Markt POS includes many industry-specific features like inventory management, custom barcodes, deli scale integration, and more.
Standout Features
Pricing
Market offers several pricing tiers based on your business size, hardware needs, and more.
Based in Canada, Lightspeed supports various retail businesses worldwide with their powerful solutions. Lightspeed includes several franchise-level management features, making it ideal for supermarkets with multiple locations or that operate across state lines.
Standout Features
Pricing
Lightspeed’s basic plan starts at $89/month but doesn’t include reports or customer loyalty. Their more fully-featured plan starts at $149/month.
NRS offers easy-to-use, no-frills systems for retailers at an affordable price point. With a la carte features and reduced pricing for using their in-house payment processing, NRS is a good option for people who need a supermarket software system on a budget.
Standout Features
Pricing
NRS’ Pro plan starts at $54.95/month but is reduced to $34.95/month if you use NRS Pay.
With so many supermarket software providers out there, how do you choose the right one for you?
While we hope this list has been helpful, you shouldn’t just take our word for it. Take your time and schedule demos with all the providers you’re interested in. Sometimes seeing is believing, and you may love a system on paper but feel less enthusiastic when you see it in action.
Before you schedule a demo, create a list of questions based on your needs.
Go into any demo prepared. That way you’ll see the features and information that you care about the most.
Arguably, the most important aspect of a supermarket POS system is its ability to simplify your day-to-day. All the bells and whistles in the world won’t mean anything if they aren’t actively helping you boost profits and retain customers.
That’s why we recommend using industry-specific solutions over ones that are built for general retail. That way, you can rest easy knowing that every feature included in the system is tailor-made for supermarkets.
IT Retail was built by grocers for grocers — and we’ve spent years refining our features to be as helpful as possible for supermarkets, food markets, and grocery stores.
Schedule a custom demo today to see how IT Retail gives you the tools and resources you need to stay competitive and deliver an exceptional customer experience.