retail

Franchising is booming. FRANdata says demand for franchise units is expected to increase more than 12 percent in 2014, the highest rate of increase in five years. Furthermore, the lending shortfall for franchises (that is, the difference between projected loan demand and loan supply) is expected to be one-half that of last year's figure. And yet, how frequently do you...

Most people imagine cybercrime as involving hackers from remote locations on the other side of the globe, breaking into servers to steal information and, as such, our involvement comes when the bank places a freeze on our credit cards. "Shockingly, this is not the case," reports ITPortal.com in their post, "How to Defend Against Physical Point of Sale Attacks." In...

Along with our customers, we're buoyed by news that Americans, having emerged from winter hibernation, have relaxed their purse strings at quick service retailers. In a recent blog post, "Report: Consumer Spending at Quick Serves Grew in April," QSRMagazine.com points to analysis by First Data Corporation which compared year-over-year sales data for April, 2014.  FDC's SpendTrend report tracks same-store POS...

For today's retailers, taking care of business means enterprise resource planning (ERP); efficient, tightly integrated systems, including accounting, point of sale (POS), inventory control and forecasting. "The Top Five Signs Your Business is Ready for an ERP System," a recent article on ERP provider NetSuite's website NetSuite.com, provides a quick summary of the problems and frustrations addressed by enterprise resource...

New York City is a relentless trend-setting megalopolis with many eateries that seem to change their appearance every year or two. We spotted a roundup of hot interior design trends for 2013 in Big Apple restaurants and cafes at NYCeiling.com. High demand for eco-friendliness and sustainability means more green spaces around town. The trend has been around for some time...

An article posted on ConsumerElectronicsNet.com entitled "Survey: Retailers Using Mobile POS Expected to Triple By 2018," perfectly illustrates just how quickly new technology can spread throughout the retail sector of our economy. The article points to a recent report issued by Infogroup Targeting Solutions (ITS) entitled "Breaking Through Customer Engagement Barriers with Innovative Marketing and Technologies." Results were based upon...

Today's potential franchise entrepreneurs may feel cursed for being incapable of forecasting the future. Is this the right time to make a career change? Is fear keeping your future on hold? As the only full-service POS provider, from software development to our unparalleled ongoing support, we at Sintel Systems see a lot of folks looking to make a mid-life career...

They say there's a time and place for everything. And with retail customer surveys, that time and place is at the point of sale. Gartner, the information technology research company, says retailers who survey customers at the point of sale receive 40% more accurate feedback than if the data is gathered one day later. A point-of-sale survey is typically any...

As the only full-service POS provider — from software development to franchise incubator to ongoing support — part of Sintel's commitment to our customers and industry is to share high-impact news. Whether you're a first-time franchise hopeful, a small business owner or an established chain, it's always smart to stay on top of legislative and other industry trends. Nation's Restaurant...

Report from the front on the ever-changing landscape of retail payment habits. Bricks and mortar retailers, long aware of how their customers have been using their smartphones in stores, are turning the tables and bringing more of their stores into our phones. In the first of a new series, Digiday looks at how Sephora, Sears, Walmart, Target, Ikea, Home Depot and others "are fighting back against...

In a previous blog we talked about how Facebook’s new Graph Search can help you find the customers that you do and do not want. Entrepreneur.com posted an interesting infographic on how to use social media to find customers. The infographic listed some pretty surprising and fascinating information: 77% of business to customer (B2C) marketers have acquired a customer through...

Last month Facebook launched Graph Search . By using information you have already given such as location data and different posts/photos that you have been tagged and compiling it all into a search engine. For retailers, Graph Search gives you the opportunity to locate the customers you do want and even the one’s you may not. Inc.com published an article...

Have you ever shopped in a pop-up shop? Econsultancy.com explains what they are: “Pop-up shops are temporary outlets, which allow brands to have a presence on the high street, or to extend their existing offline presence into new areas for a short time.” Larger brands in the United States have been using pop-up shops since the late 90’s. What is...

We are reminded from time to time how retail store owners are wise to keep an eye on real estate investing trends. As an example, consider this recent article in National Real Estate Investor (NREI) titled, "What Retail Estate Investors Need to Know About the Transforming Retail Supply Chain." E-commerce and brick-and-mortar stores, once competing sales channels, are now seen as each...

Columnist Herb Caen once referred to the Mid Market, a neighborhood in San Francisco as “le grand pissoir.” The neighborhood is well known for its homeless inhabitants. But, it looks like it might be making a turn around. An article by the San Francisco Business Times  titled “Mid Market retail starting to catch up”, discusses the change that is coming...

Entrepreneurs should know that the best way to protect their big ideas is by filing Provisional Patent Applications (PPAs). A recent article at entrepreneur.com titled "5 Steps to Safeguard Your Product From Patent Theft" illustrates how inventors may use PPAs to build an impenetrable wall of protection around their big idea. 1. Find all the ideas similar to yours. Develop a list of...

Entrepreneur.com  brought together marketing experts to create Team Digital.  Each week, Team Digital answers your questions on social media marketing, engagement and strategies. When they were asked about social media tips for service industries, Team Digital offered some very helpful advice: Every business should be using Facebook and Twitter. If your business is primarily B2B (business to business) then you...

While a company’s social media presence is extremely important these days the company website is becoming popular once again.   An article on Wired.com states: “The comeback is bolstered by new interlinks that make it increasingly easy for websites to suck in and selectively repurpose some of the very social content that diminished the open web in the first place...

Growing businesses need their tech to grow with them. Entrepreneur.com recently sifted through the clutter to suggest 15 tech plays including computers, displays, tablets and accessories that could help a variety of businesses, including restaurants. Designed to protect your tech assets, the "power tools" specifically selected for restaurants, the Logitech Keyboard K310 ($40) and LifeProof nuud iPad case (starting at $100), were chosen because...

An article on Entrepreneur.com gives some helpful insights on how a small business can best manage their inventory Maintaining Enough Inventory If your business is a start-up it might be quite difficult figuring out how much inventory to order, since you cannot go off of last year’s sales. The article suggests predicting your first year sales based on your business...

Retail stores provide goods and services to consumers.  These types of businesses range from department stores which sell clothes; discount stores which compete based on price; warehouse stores which offer large quantities for a lower cost; specialty stores focus on a specific category; general stores provide the most commonly needed products; to supermarkets which sell mostly groceries. If your store...