This is the simplest PC POS system possible. It uses standard, off the shelf, equipment. One computer shares selling and management. A single printer does receipts, reports, purchase orders, lists and tags. A cautious approach to automation is to start like this owner and add more equipment as growth dictates.
NatureWorks was founded by a former zoo director. His love for wildlife and nature is exhibited in the unique products found at NatureWorks. The sales station is a single 286 with a cash drawer connected to the serial port and an 80 column printer which does receipts, orders and reports. The 80 column printer requires more space so it is located under the counter.
The operations and installation are as simple and inexpensive as retail automation can be. There's no serial number tracking or bar code printing. The system reduces the quantity on hand as sales are made. This makes sales analysis, reordering and listing customers an easy task.
Price tags are printed on gummed labels as each shipment is received. The system prints the number of tags to agree with the items and quantities received. By monitoring the invoice for a shipment received, the correct prices and costs are always present in the system. The price doesn't have to be on the item. If it's necessary to display the price, a "Bin Label" can be printed.
When selling, clerk enters the item ID or Stock Number from the price tag. The description, price and cost are retrieved from the sales file. Sales reports show cash drawer reconciliation, profit per item, per ticket and for any sales period.
The owner says he gets the information he needs with much less work. Training clerks is simpler and control of the inventory and cash drawer are more assured.