Versatile Retail POS: The Friends and Neighbors Way
“We started off using Vend but realized shortly after that it wasn’t right for us.”
–Jill Bradshaw, Friends & Neighbors, Austin, Texas
About Friends and Neighbors
When it comes to retail point of sale, versatility is king.
This was the case for Jill Bradshaw, owner of Friends and Neighbors in Austin. Jill’s versatile business offers a daring array of the new and the vintage. From clothes and beauty products, to ceramics… Definitely not ‘cookie-cutter’, but what business is?
After living in New York for 11 years (where she also ran a store), Jill decided it was time for something fresh and exciting. Friends and Neighbors was the outcome. Situated in a house, each room is associated with a different product: for example, bath products live in the ‘bathroom’ of the store, and the vintage lingerie is displayed in the ‘bedroom’.
No two businesses are the same
To paraphrase George Bernard Shaw, Jill wasn’t looking to adapt her retail business to a point of sale; she was looking for a POS that adapted to her business. After trying out another point of sale initially, she found ShopKeep.
“We’re a hybrid shop, (and) needed a point of sale system that was flexible enough to work for both business types.”
Given Friends and Neighbors’ uniqueness, it was essential to have a versatile retail point of sale system in place. ShopKeep gave Jill the flexibility to run her hybrid shop as she saw fit. ShopKeep’s Pocket app allowed her to keep on top of things, too.
“Being able to keep tabs on my store while I’m on the go is great. I use the ShopKeep Pocket app all the time. It really helps me understand what’s going on in the cafe.”
Always in the know
When you offer a wide array of products, how do you make sure that nothing falls between the cracks? ShopKeep’s BackOffice is a great start. It can be accessed from desktop or phone, and gives you an instant snapshot of what’s selling, and- just as crucially- what isn’t. It’s a surefire method of ensuring that everything on sale is there on merit.
Jill checks BackOffice as part of her morning routine. It’s the business owners’ equivalent of reading the news.
“The BackOffice in ShopKeep’s point of sale system is great for seeing what’s selling. It’s really helpful to look at first thing in the morning.”
A POS that grows with you
As one-of-a-kind as Friends and Neighbors is, Jill’s business goals are common: keep getting bigger and better.
“You can’t just grow without putting in that time and effort and extra tweaks here and there to make it better.”
At least Jill can count on her point of sale system- from ShopKeep’s reporting, to real time sales data- to give her the full picture as she continues to create her brave new world.
