Boy am I glad I found this forum...Garden Center POS help please! 3

[wahnula]

Hello all,

I was quite encouraged to find this forum, in case you cannot tell from the title

I live on the hardware side (forum602, I love helping people).

I'm a Sysadmin/Landscape Architect for a medium-sized ($3-4M/year) design/build landscape firm. I have several years of hands-on PC knowledge, I have built all 14 machines on our network (including a laptop & SBS2003sp1 Server and migrated the server from NT4.0 single-handedly. Oh I also tend to all the office machines except the large-format copier. I'm "the guy". I am also the main revenue generator for the co., I like being busy, truly enjoy drawing & coloring all day, and LOVE all things tech. Can't get enough. With PCs/tech as my hobby I have avoided CAD and free-draw & render everything. Okay enough about me. Here's the skinny:

Our garden center division (pathetic and a $$$ drain) is rolling out a new Water Garden Center campaign, and we hope to attract a lot of folks to our place. Our gazebo, where we do our sales, is open to the Texas heat & humidity. We need to develop a POS system that:

1) Is a cash register with receipt printing;
2) Can print exterior-grade plant tags & waterproof labels w/ bar code (this can be done indoors, on a separate PC as needed;
3) Can read & ring up those bar codes;
4) Can index customers via phone # etc. to create customer DB
5) Has durable hardware, possibly touch screen, for humid, dirty environment;
6) Can interface w/ Quickbooks (asking too much?);
7) Can be used by $7/hr Garden Center workers
8) Hopefully be connected to a PC in the secure climate-controlled office ~30' away...either via CAT5 or 802.11G
9) Is professional and reliable

To date, the only POS solution I have even heard of is WASP while browsing PCConnection brochures, I did some research tonight that only led to more confusion. I am hoping my Tek-tips karma will pay off and some of you experts can at least spoon-feed me a little bit about how this goes together and what products to seek and which ones to avoid.

Our budget is flexible, maybe ~$5K max (maybe more) but I would like to keep it around $3.5-4K if possible. I have no clue what this stuff costs. Remember I can create whatever PC is needed to run this thing, the most important things are being able to communicate with the machine from the network and QuickBooks integration. If it costs more, so be it.

I look forward to meeting you all, harvesting your wisdom, learning your jargon, and finding my best possible solution...what this site is all about...sharing and helping others!

Tony

http://www.lynnslandscaping.com

(forgive the cheesy flash...I am a Landscape Designer not a Web Designer...

 

[DTSMAN]

Quick Books has a POS system.

http://www.quickbooks.com/helpcenter/Products.aspx?product=aa3e5f16-1733-40d4-90c7-bbe781a9d1bc

You will need to check with them on what kind of label printers they can work with, Cognitive, Zebra, etc. and then find out which one of those printers can print those outdoor labels you want.

There are many Retail solutions, most that I am aware of interface with quickbooks via GL account importing. Do a search for 'Garden Center POS' and see what some of the speciality products are. Here is an example:

http://gardenpos.wws5.com/

Bo

Remember,
If the women don't find you handsome,
they should at least find you handy.
(Red Green)

 

[wahnula]

DTSMAN,

Thanks for the reply. As I see it these are both software solutions, I have already discovered the gardenpos site but no sign of hardware. I was unaware of QB POS. I am seeking recommendations on the whole package, would it be best to contact one of these co's to help set that up, or, like the PC world, is it best to mix & match compatible components to get the best overall setup? User experiences will be valuable.

I am looking for "stay away from ABC printers" or "DEFG touchscreens are the best" or a recommendation of a company that will design a system based on quality and my needs, not selling all their own products. I can handle setup & install.

Tony

 

[bam720]

wahnula,
If you're going to go with a POS company, they aren't really going to like you to build your own hardware. I understand that you may be an expert, but it can become a pain to maintain for the tech guys, and installation can go awkward. Furthermore most POS companies will refuse to support products not purchased through them. Aloha is big restaurant POS system, and I'm not sure how adaptable it would be to your situation. There is a smaller company Aspex Corp which tends to work with individuals and has very customizable software to work with various needs.

http://www.aspexpos.com

3) Can read & ring up those bar codes - Most companies offer a scanner which can do this

4) Can index customers via phone # Aspex can do this, I'm sure others can too

6) Can interface w/ Quickbooks - Are you talking for inventory or sales tracking or both?

8) Hopefully be connected to a PC in the secure climate-controlled office ~30' away...either via CAT5 or 802.11G - Does the Gazebo have a Cat 5 termination already dropped? Would the POS need to be moved indoors at night, or more permanent?

 

[wahnula]

bam720,

Thanks for your reply. I realize that most will want me to use their gear...will cross that bridge when we get there.

The QuickBooks compatibility would be strictly a financial info thing, how many sales that day, how much is going into CC account etc. I don't think inventory is an issue, but I've never been here so really don't know.

The POS hardware would ideally stay in the outdoor gazebo, it has a roof & sides, so it is not exposed to rain or sun. I can foresee nightmares moving it back & forth everyday, dropped stuff, bent pins on connectors etc. It has the capability for a room AC as it's only ~150 s.f. There is currently not a CAT 5/6 drop but setting conduit would be very easy...I have guys that will dig to China if I ask them to... easier still would be to hop on our office wireless G which reaches the gazebo already.

Thanks again!

Tony

 

[bam720]

I'd recommend checking out Aspex Corp (ignore their cheesy website). It sounds like they could do what you need, and be within your ballpark price range.

I think Cat5 is a lot better solution then wireless G. Personally I do not believe wireless is as refined as Cat5. Cat5 is easy to diagnose if problems occur (which can happen), but how do you diagnose Wireless problems?

It sounds like a non-movable solution would be best (for your reasons mentioned above), and as long as it can be secured then you are good to go.

 

[DTSMAN]

Posiflex -

http://www.posiflexusa.com/

Touch Screen Dynamics -

http://www.touchdynamic.com/

Dell -

http://www.dell.com/content/topics/topic.aspx/us/segments/bsd/verticals/retail?c=us&cs=04&l=en&s=bsd

Again, many POS software resellers will already have a hardware platform that they recommemnd.

Bo

Remember,
If the women don't find you handsome,
they should at least find you handy.
(Red Green)

 

[wahnula]

DELL...it's a D'OH moment ***smacks head***

Thanks all. I already have a call in to PCConnection about their solutions, as well as Aspex,

ignore their cheesy website

easy for you to say but impossible to ignore the bleepin' music...what were they thinking???

Posiflex -

http://www.posiflexusa.com/

Touch Screen Dynamics -

http://www.touchdynamic.com/

Will both get a call today. Excellent leads much appreciated. I would also like a "stay away from" list for hardware/software from you guys. I'm on my way...

Tony

 

[buck2506]

Tony,

Take a look at

http://www.arss.com/

It is some very nice software that includes training in the purchase price. I know you can install the software on hardware not purchased from them. I also built the computers for our POS/IMS.

As for hardware look at

http://www.systemid.com

 

[wahnula]

I also built the computers for our POS/IMS.

A man after my own heart, have a star. I briefly entertained the Dell solution...well really really briefly, but still an excellent lead for someone in my position and much appreciated. It's not so much the fact that I want to build (which I do) but I also want to be able to support, and the more hardware I get hands-on with the better my support.

One thing I have learned today...this is not an easy or fast decision or purchasing process. Our Garden Center started 51 years ago as a growing area for unsold plants or divided plants, once a year we count what we have, never made much coin. If we buy something, we look at the invoice to see what we bought and how much we paid, that is the extent of our "inventory control".

Now it's time to get serious...get busy living or get busy dying... the owner has 50K to pump into the water garden business, 20 spent so far. Our grand opening is March 24th, I will study these materials and hope to have the system online by then. Oh yeah and draw some Master Plans so we can sell some landscaping!

I will post back with my progress, please feel free everyone to offer positive/negative input, I am a sponge...a HAPPY sponge...

Tony

 

[buck2506]

If that's the case definitely talk to the ARS people.
Where I work we installed everything in July 05 and went live with the system August 1 05. Personally, I have been very happy with both the software and support.

Is any of the inventory in a db or spreadsheet?

 

[wahnula]

Is any of the inventory in a db or spreadsheet?

Miraculously, some of it is, but we are talking mostly new inventory here. Stuff is arriving fast, and someone has made Avery labels with our logo and the prices on the pots, so it is probably on a .xls spreadsheet on the server. I have a capable retired teacher that can/will do all the data entry and handle label printing/application. The main problem w/ our store is nothing is priced, really. And nobody knows the price. This has been going on for some time but is getting ready to change in a hurry. I will give ARS a call tomorrow.

Tony

 

[cetinc]

Here is another solution that might get the job done.

http://posnation.com/retail-pos-1-station

There is also a system that allows you to bring your own computer.

http://posnation.com/retail-pos-BYOC/byoc_cre1t

 

[daniellee4874]

Depending on where you are located I might be able to help you out. We work with 400 clients right now doing between 5 million and 120 million a year. Everything from POS to Wholesale Distribution Software.

http://www.compsolution.net

All the "products" listings are outdated due to various companies copying our producst in the past. Currently we use ASP.net and VB.net for most of our products.

Shoot me an email and I will be able to help find someone for you if our inhouse solution does not fit your needs.

daniellee@compsolution.net