LAS VEGAS– Three operators with minimal technological advantages told attendees at the 2018 NACS Show in Las Vegas how they used point-of-sale (POS), back-office and third-party software to significantly cut the time they spend on everything from margin tracking to employee training.
For Samer Ali, warehouse chairman for the Greater Houston Retailers Cooperative Association, Stafford, Texas, one of his focuses was to use POS technology to help control pricing. He was able to use electronic data interchange (EDI) invoicing to help him watch wholesale prices as they go up or down, allowing him to manage pricing and maintain a desired margin.
“We can send price changes to the register without telling the [cashier],” Ali told attendees of the session “TechEdge: Using Technology to Get Time Back.”
Mahendar Vuppala, owner of the two-store Kwik Market Corp. in Jefferson City, Mo., found four significant areas where he saved time using technology:
- Price changes. Vuppala was able to find a software solution that would alert him to vendors’ pricing changes. “I need to pay attention and gain the confidence that I’m not losing money,” he said.
- Shrinkage. He was especially focused on high-cost items such as cigarette cartons and scratch-off lottery.
- Complaints between co-workers. He needed to keep track of how employees got along, especially because turnover is a constant issue.
- Communications with vendors and others. Vuppala was very concerned that vendors would visit stores and express concerns, but that store employees wouldn’t relate those communications to him.
Like Vuppala and Ali, Irfan Tejani, president of Tejani Holdings, Sugar Land, Texas, said technology allowed him to save time. But it also allowed him to scale up his business. Tejani's chain grew by several stores recently and he plans yet another expansion soon, but it wouldn’t have happened if he hadn't employed technology.
“You have to ask yourself, ‘Can I work remotely?’ ” Tejani said. “It’s an evolution. You have growing pains, but you learn from your mistakes.”
Irfan Tejani (from left), Tejani Holdings; Mahendar Vuppala, Kwik Market Corp.; and Samer Ali, Greater Houston Retailers Cooperative Association. Photograph by CSP Staff
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