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Category Archive : POS Systems

Best Salon POS Systems (2022) – Forbes Advisor – Forbes

Shopify is one of the best salon POS systems for businesses that want to sell products online. Social media makes it easier than ever to reach customers not in your immediate market and this gives customers a way to purchase from you, no matter where they’re at. With Shopify, create a professional website, complete with an online store.

Customers can book appointments and buy products all in one place. Plus, Shopify integrates with popular software programs, such as Mangomint, Acuity Scheduling, Bookeo and Salonist.

Learn more: Read our full Shopify review.

Pricing:

Shopify plans start at $29 per month and Shopify POS Pro is an additional $89 per month. Due to supply chain issues, Shopify’s POS bundles are limited. However, your best solution is to get a Shopify Stand for an iPad ($99 to $185) or buying the Chipper 2X BT Reader ($49) or Shopify Tap & Chip Card Reader ($49).

Who should use it:

Shopify is best for salon businesses that want to sell products online.

Global Serial Device Server Market 2022 Growth factor – Moxa, Digi International, Advantech, Siemens Industrial Communication – The C-Drone Review – The C-Drone Review

The study on Global Serial Device Server Market from 2022 to 2028 focuses on the investigation of current market patterns worldwide. The goal of MarketandResearch.biz is to provide clients with a comprehensive view of the market and to assist them in developing development strategies. The Serial Device Server anticipates a time frame of 2022-2028 based on a thorough and professional analysis.

The study employs a variety of subjective instruments, such as mandatory and optional, to collect data and differentiate the most recent items and rivals in the industry. The research provides the basis of the Serial Device Server market: definitions, fragment arrangements, application orders, item determinations, and recent market advancements that might impact participants on the lookout. Aside from that, the report contains critical information such as item offers and information about the suppliers and merchants that are on the lookout. A concise examination of end-client projects and their interest prediction is also valued in the report.

DOWNLOAD FREE SAMPLE REPORT: https://www.marketandresearch.biz/sample-request/229011

The report is organized into categories based on its type:

  • 1-port Serial Device Server
  • 2-port Serial Device Server
  • 4-port Serial Device Server
  • 8-port Serial Device Server
  • 16-port Serial Device Server
  • Others

The report is sorted into categories based on the application:

  • Access Control Systems
  • Attendance System
  • POS Systems
  • Others

Various regional segments are indeed one of the prominent segments covered in the study.

  • North America (United States, Canada and Mexico)
  • Europe (Germany, France, United Kingdom, Russia, Italy, and Rest of Europe)
  • Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, Korea, India, Southeast Asia, and Australia)
  • South America (Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, and Rest of South America)
  • Middle East & Africa (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, South Africa, and Rest of Middle East & Africa)

Major players profiled in the study:

  • Moxa
  • Digi International
  • Advantech
  • Siemens Industrial Communication
  • Comtrol Corporation
  • 3onedata
  • OMEGA
  • Westermo
  • Atop Technologies Inc.
  • Kyland
  • Perle
  • EtherWAN Systems
  • Korenix Technology
  • Sealevel Systems
  • ORing Industrial Networking Corp.
  • Chiyu Technology
  • Tibbo Technology Inc.
  • Silex Technology America, Inc.
  • Sena Technologies
  • UTEK

ACCESS FULL REPORT: https://www.marketandresearch.biz/report/229011/global-serial-device-server-market-growth-2022-2028

The market summary comprises a number of drivers and constraints, opportunities, and challenges that the market will analyse throughout the forecast time range. In addition, the report looks into the geographical scope of the industry. The structure of the research is chosen to highlight upcoming trends and possibilities in the global Serial Device Server market in the subsequent years. The regional analysis section follows, displaying each region’s broad potential, as well as its size and volume, in the global Serial Device Server market. Our experts have made every attempt to ensure that study is as transparent and relevant as feasible.

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Best Bar POS Systems (November 2022) – Forbes Advisor – Forbes

With Toast, it doesn’t matter which bar your patron uses to open a tab. They can visit any bartender to add to the tab or close it out. The bar’s POS system will update the tab automatically so that bar staff can keep track of what has been ordered and consumed.

This is a big time saver for bar staff, who can spend more time serving customers and less time managing bar tabs. Another big selling point for Toast is its inventory management system. This feature allows bar owners to track how much liquor, beer and wine they have on hand at all times.

Toast was also rated the best restaurant POS systems, making it a titan in this industry.

Learn more:  Read our Toast review

Who should use it:

Toast is a great bar POS system for businesses with multiple locations. Its tab management system ensures that bar staff can easily keep track of customers’ orders, no matter which bar they visit.

Technology Solutions Can Help Deter Retail Theft this Holiday Season – Chain Store Age

The holidays are fast approaching and in the air, there’s a feeling of shopping.

This holiday season, experts predict more consumers will gravitate towards physical stores for the in-person experience they missed because of COVID-19. In addition to preparing for an influx of shoppers, brick-and-mortar stores today face an increasing threat of shoplifting.

New data from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce finds that 56% of small retail businesses have experienced theft in stores this past year, and half of retailers say the issue increases during the holiday season. To combat rising theft and protect customers, employees and valuables, here are technology solutions that can help retailers create a safe and joyful holiday shopping environment.

Video security cameras with embedded analytics detect incidents  

Video security cameras have undergone significant improvements in quality and added features to provide greater visibility and insights into activity throughout the store. They capture high-quality video and monitor the premises at all times, even after hours.

The analytics embedded within video cameras help detect potential threats and through the use of advanced analytics, video security cameras can increase productivity of security personnel, while making monitoring more efficient.

Video security cameras are commonly found in retail and are one of the most effective tools for catching thieves. They can identify and detect motion of a person near a register, entrances, heavily-trafficked areas and even a door or window when the store is closed, then send an alarm to the security operations center or devices for real-time response.

Video security solutions are available both on-premise or in the cloud. On-prem is installed locally, on the store’s computers and servers, while cloud software is hosted on a third-party provider’s server and accessed via a web browser. Cloud is a great option for retailers to minimize the physical footprint of a system, lower the cost of deployment and simplify long-term maintenance. 

Access control systems protect high-value merchandise and assets

Today’s access control systems enable more advanced capabilities and features than simply letting people through doors.Advanced systems include real-time data and access notifications for store managers and reduce response times when alerted to incidents.

These systems provide remote management capabilities to allow administrator access from anywhere through cloud-based platforms, lockdown capabilities in case of emergencies, and integration with other technology solutions like video security cameras.

Theft of targeted or high-value merchandise in the stock room can be reduced by restricting access to authorized personnel. For example, placing high-end merchandise like designer purses, shoes and jewelry in a specific and secure area with access control solutions, managers can be notified of attempted theft and view video footage for details.

The hustle and bustle of holiday shopping and focus on providing attentive customer service can mean a door to a back office, dock or stock room is accidentally left propped open, where additional goods and valuables are stored. Access control systems will automatically trigger a notification to staff radios for the door to be closed to deter theft from occurring.

Radio devices connect associates

Retailers rely on push-to-talk radio devices for instant and reliable group communications across different teams and departments for store safety, staff efficiency and customer service. For example, when dealing with an irate customer, employees can use radios to immediately notify their managers and team members that they require assistance.

In other cases, shoplifters may create a diversion, like starting an argument with an employee, while their accomplice steals merchandise. Team members who are dealing with a difficult customer at any point, can use radio devices to request assistance.

POS systems integrate with video security cameras

Theft can also be internal. The most common way employees steal products is by hiding them in personal items or in trash containers and retrieving them from the dumpster afterwards. Colluding with a customer by voiding transactions at the register, but still placing the items in bags, is another common example of theft.

Integrating point-of-sale (POS) systems with video security cameras allows store managers to easily access and review specific transactional data by date, time or cashier, see what’s happening at every location, including customer interactions, and root out possible internal fraud. Managers can simultaneously review transaction data and associated video footage to confirm suspicions and mitigate future loss.

Body-worn cameras de-escalate violent situations

Body-worn cameras can deter unruly behavior and provide insight into incidents when the holidays are not so merry and bright. Body-worn cameras on employees are a strong deterrent to abuse and can help keep stressful situations from escalating. When they do, the video provides objective evidence.

It’s the ‘hap-happiest season’ of all

What should be the most wonderful time of the year, even for retailers, is often stressful due to an increased risk of theft and violence against employees. Technology solutions are a crucial step forward for retailers who face security risks each and every day.

Taking it a step further, integrating often siloed solutions provides enhanced benefits. For example, access control devices can detect when a door to a dock is propped open, sending an alert to employee radios and allowing them to pull video camera footage to determine if any incidents took place.

When body-worn cameras are activated during a confrontation with an unhappy customer, the live video feed can display on a video management system and automatically notify security personnel or supervisors.

The installation and integration of technology solutions allows retailers and their employees to focus on providing exceptional customer service without worrying about safety and security for a more joyful holiday shopping season.

Sharon Hong is VP of enterprise technology, Motorola Solutions

Foodics Signs 3 Strategic Partnerships To Future Proof The F&B Sector With Qoot, Sabbar and Classera – EIN News

RIYADH, KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA., November 8, 2022 /EINPresswire.com/ — FOODICS, the leading cloud-based restaurant technology and payments platform in the MENA region, has unveiled it has signed 3 strategic partnerships to future proof the F&B sector with Qoot, The Café and Restaurant Association, Sabbar as well as Classera.

The partnerships were sealed during Seamless Saudi Arabia 2022, the Kingdom’s biggest tech event. For Foodics, the event represented a critical ecosystem gathering, and as a platinum sponsor of the event, Foodics also unveiled its latest technology stack to help restaurant owners overcome the pain points they face in running their F&B brands, be it a single outlet or a large restaurant chain.

Ahmad Al Zaini, Foodics Co-founder and CEO, commented, “Our latest tech-stack is squarely aimed at future proofing the F&B sector. In support of Saudi Arabia’s goal to promote private sector growth, we are pleased to have partnered with Qoot, Sabbar and Classera, to be able to further enable restaurant owners to navigate change and build resilience for the future, by providing them knowledge, training and job placement solutions in Saudi Arabia.”

The strategic partnership between Foodics and Qoot will see them both working together to empower the development of the café and restaurant sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Ahmad Al Zaini, commented on this partnership and said, “We’re very excited today to have signed this partnership with Qoot which will get us closer to our clients and enable them with the necessary information, tools and resources for their growth and advancement.”

His Excellency Prince Waleed Bin Naser Al Saud, CEO of Mukatafa, said, “What distinguishes Foodics, and what encouraged us further to move forward with this partnership, is that they know their clients’ needs, whether they’re micro-businesses, SMEs or big corporations, and they’re able to provide them with solutions that address their industry pain points.”

Having also joined forces with Classera, Foodics will put within reach a state of the art integrated e-learning system. Mohammad Almadani, Co-founder & CEO, Classera commented, “It is our pleasure to have this strategic partnership with a company that is such a pioneer in the F&B sector in the region. In this partnership, Classera will put all of its expertise as a global leader in e-learning and e-training to help upskill and develop the talent of the F&B industry. I believe this partnership will help excel and empower the F&B community to the next big level enabling them to reach their full potential.

The 3rd partnership Foodics signed was with Sabbar, the on-demand staffing technology provider. Combining efforts, both companies will be able to boost the recruitment process and help talent secure opportunities across the F&B sector. Faisal Al Saadi, Chief of Staff, Sabbar said, “This partnership is very important to us. Foodics and Sabbar want to improve the F&B sector as we have plenty of youth in the country who are looking for job opportunities. Foodics has a great presence in the market, so we found common strategic goals and hopefully we’ll be able to grow further together.”
Abdulrahman Joud, Director of Foodics Academy added “Having onboarded such complementary Foodics Academy partners, we will be able to both help the F&B sector enhance their knowledge and skills, as well as empower thousands of Saudi job seekers to land their dream job and grow their career.”

About FOODICS:

FOODICS is the leading Restaurant and Payment Tech company in MENA, with an innovative 360° SaaS ecosystem making it a pioneer in the regional F&B industry. Formally licensed as a Fintech company by the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), the company’s vision is to build a complete restaurant management ecosystem that enables owners to run their operations seamlessly and grow their business. Its mission is to empower restaurant and merchant owners with a comprehensive cloud-based POS system to enrich their operations. FOODICS caters to every segment of the F&B sector from traditional dine-in restaurants, cafés, quick service restaurants, bakeries, food trucks through to cloud kitchens and non-food micro-retailers. Since its inception in 2014, it has successfully processed over 6 billion orders through the platform and raised a record USD170 mil in Series C round, making it one of the most promising SaaS companies to emerge from the MENA region.

For more information, please visit www.foodics.com

About Qoot:

The Café and Restaurant Association “Qoot” was established in 2019 to contribute to developing the café and restaurant sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

It was established to serve as a single umbrella that includes all aspects in cafes and restaurants to promote joint action towards achieving change in the sector in the Kingdom, leading the sector towards a new era of prosperity.
For more information, please visit: www.qoot-sa.org/en/

About Classera:

Classera’s services go beyond the traditional e-learning systems to an integrated one, presenting new quality services that will rock the land of educational technology. A new wave of products that make Classera an integrated system (to serve all sectors) of educational facilities. Starting with the administrative and financial systems for managing your schools, passing through new distinctive features of the Classera system, ending with innovative products that benefit the students and be an additional financial resource for all Classera subscribers of educational institutions.

For more information, please visit: www.classera.com

About Sabbar:

Sabbar is an on-demand staffing platform that specializes in frontline jobs in the retail, hospitality, and entertainment industries. Sabbar enables businesses to hire casual staff during peak hours or high seasons by connecting them to highly qualified and fully vetted professionals.
For more information, please visit: www.sabbar.com

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foodics
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Best Salon POS Systems (2022) – Forbes Advisor – Forbes

Shopify is one of the best salon POS systems for businesses that want to sell products online. Social media makes it easier than ever to reach customers not in your immediate market and this gives customers a way to purchase from you, no matter where they’re at. With Shopify, create a professional website, complete with an online store.

Customers can book appointments and buy products all in one place. Plus, Shopify integrates with popular software programs, such as Mangomint, Acuity Scheduling, Bookeo and Salonist.

Learn more: Read our full Shopify review.

Pricing:

Shopify plans start at $29 per month and Shopify POS Pro is an additional $89 per month. Due to supply chain issues, Shopify’s POS bundles are limited. However, your best solution is to get a Shopify Stand for an iPad ($99 to $185) or buying the Chipper 2X BT Reader ($49) or Shopify Tap & Chip Card Reader ($49).

Who should use it:

Shopify is best for salon businesses that want to sell products online.

Electronic Shelf Label Global Market to Reach $2.89 Billion by 2027 at a CAGR of 15.5% – Benzinga

DUBLIN, Nov. 4, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — The “Electronic Shelf Label Market – Forecasts from 2022 to 2027” report has been added to  ResearchAndMarkets.com’s offering.


The electronic shelf label market was evaluated at US$1,053.980 million for the year 2020, growing at a CAGR of 15.50% to reach the market size of US$2,890.406 million by the year 2027. Electronic Shelf Labels (ESL) are used by retailers to display product prices on shelves. The main controller server updates product prices automatically every time the price changes.

The digitalization of stores and the prevalence of the retail automation trend, as well as a cost-effective and less time-consuming substitute to paper labels, high demand for price optimization among major retailers, and enhanced operational effectiveness with real-time product positioning, are all contributing to the market’s global growth.

The market’s growth is further influenced by the increasing spread of the Internet of Things (IoT) and expanding digitization in the retail sector. Consistent retail growth has resulted in the rapid development of retail outlets, particularly supermarkets & hypermarkets, across key established and emerging nations globally. Electronic shelf labels, self-checking robots, self-checkout terminals, and other comparable technology have all helped retailers increase profit margins in the retail industry.

Furthermore, due to the rising acceptance of NFC technology in many devices, such as POS systems and smartphones, NFC penetration in the sector is likely to accelerate in the future years. This enables retailers to combine these devices with current portable devices, reducing the overall cost of label installation. This is a major factor in the market’s expansion.

However, for disorganized merchants, the adoption of ESL technology may appear pricey, as a retailer must build more electrified shelves to be qualified for ESL tags, which increases installation costs. Furthermore, before installing any technology, retailers/companies always assess the benefits, particularly their capital and the time required for a return on investment (ROI).

The cost of technology is a substantial barrier to an unstructured retail market in economically developing nations like South Korea and India. The deployment of these labels also requires supporting infrastructure, which requires large expenditures from small and medium-scale shops. The aforementioned factors may hinder the market growth.

ESL solutions based on e-paper are predicted to have the largest market share by type. The ability of e-paper to project items in graphical form, combined with the possibility of improved energy efficiency, contributes to the segment’s market dominance. For ESL offerings, market participants are projected to favour e-paper. Innolux Corporation and E Ink Holdings Inc., for example, cooperated in May 2020 to produce large-scale Advanced Color ePaper panels. Through this agreement, the companies want to strengthen the e-paper ecosystem and grow the e-paper business. These e-papers will primarily be utilized for in-vehicle advertising and retail advertising, among other applications.

Segmentation

By Type

LCD Based Label

  • E- Paper Based Label
  • Segmented Label
  • Full-Graphic Label

By Technology

  • Infrared
  • Near Field Communication
  • Radio Frequency
  • Bluetooth

By Component

By End-User

  • Supermarket
  • Hypermarket
  • Pharmacy

By Geography

  • North America
  • USA
  • Canada
  • Mexico
  • South America
  • Brazil
  • Argentina
  • Europe
  • United Kingdom
  • Germany
  • France
  • Spain
  • Middle East and Africa
  • Saudi Arabia
  • Israel
  • Asia Pacific
  • China
  • Japan
  • India
  • South Korea
  • Indonesia
  • Thailand
  • Taiwan

Key Topics Covered:

1. Introduction

2. Research Methodology

3. Executive Summary

4. Market Dynamics

5. Electronic shelf label Market Analysis, by Type

6. Electronic shelf label Market Analysis, by Technology

7. Electronic shelf label Market Analysis, by Component

8. Electronic shelf label Market Analysis, by End User

9. Electronic shelf label Market Analysis, by Geography

10. Competitive Environment and Analysis

11. Company Profiles

Companies Mentioned

  • Altierre Corporation
  • Pricer AB
  • SES-imagotag
  • Diebold Nixdorf Incorporated
  • Displaydata Ltd.
  • E ink Holdings
  • Samsung Electro-Mechanics
  • Opticon Sensors Europe B.V
  • M2COMM
  • Teraoka Seiko Co., Ltd.
  • Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd.

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/vxhwma

Media Contact:

Research and Markets
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Wall Street faces a reckoning over #MeToo—and mandatory arbitration – Fortune

Good morning. Fortune Senior Writer Maria Aspan here. 

Five years after #MeToo went viral, the financial industry has remained relatively untouched by any sort of visible reckoning over gender bias and sexual harassment. But that may be about to change, as two long-simmering lawsuits head towards trial this spring, I recently reported for this Fortune feature.

One of the lawsuits is a class-action alleging gender discrimination at Goldman Sachs, according to 1,400 plaintiffs who are current and former employees. It’s an incredibly hardy case that began 17 years ago–yes, all the way back in 2005—when former Goldman vice president Cristina Chen-Oster left the bank and filed a gender-bias complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. (After the EEOC closed its investigation, Chen-Oster filed suit in 2010.) The other is an individual lawsuit brought by Sara Tirschwell in 2018 against her former employer, bond-giant TCW Group, alleging that she had been sexually harassed by her boss and then fired in retaliation for reporting it.

Goldman Sachs, TCW, and Tirschwell’s former manager all deny the respective allegations. Tirschwell’s lawsuit is now scheduled to go to trial in May, followed by a June trial date for the Goldman Sachs class-action lawsuit.

Regardless of what happens next, it’s kind of amazing that either lawsuit has survived to this point—or even exists in the first place. Big banks, like many large employers, often require their employees to sign mandatory arbitration agreements, which keep all kinds of workplace disputes out of court—and out of the public eye. About 60 million workers are subject to forced arbitration, according to a 2018 report from the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute.

Both Chen-Oster and Tirschwell told me that they were only able to file suit—and talk to me—because they hadn’t been required to sign arbitration clauses when they worked for the companies they’re now suing. And it’s clear that this was the exception, rather than the rule: In an almost 30-year career on Wall Street, “TCW is the only place that I worked where I didn’t have an arbitration clause,” as Tirschwell puts it.

Starting in late 2017, the #MeToo movement drew plenty of public scrutiny to these arrangements, thanks in part to the ongoing advocacy of former Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson. Some big tech companies and financial firms—including Google, Facebook, and Wells Fargo—eventually eliminated arbitration clauses for sexual misconduct claims.

But employers’ overall reliance on arbitration has continued to climb: Between 2018 and 2020, the number of employee disputes that were resolved in arbitration rose 66%, according to a report last year from the American Association for Justice.

A new federal law, signed by President Biden in March, decrees that employers can no longer force sexual misconduct claims into arbitration. However, the law does not apply to claims of gender bias or any other discrimination—which are at the heart of the Goldman Sachs class-action lawsuit. And Goldman, which in 2021 defended its use of arbitration clauses for sexual harassment despite shareholder pressure, spent the past 12 years successfully fighting to send many of Chen-Oster’s fellow plaintiffs to arbitration. 

(In emailed statements, a Goldman spokesperson says the bank “has a long and distinguished record of supporting and promoting women,” and has “zero tolerance for discrimination, harassment, or retaliation of any kind,” while a TCW spokesperson says the company has a “longstanding commitment to a diverse and inclusive culture, and has zero tolerance for any form of harassment or discrimination.”)

Whatever the ultimate outcome of these two lawsuits, their very existence—and endurance—sheds some light onto claims that many, many more employees aren’t allowed to air publicly. As Chen-Oster puts it: “Arbitration doesn’t allow for things to be more broadly broadcasted, or for there to be greater consequences.”

Read the full story here.

Maria Aspan
Twitter: @mariaaspan
Email: [email protected]
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VENTURE DEALS

Cover Genius, a New York-based insurtech for embedded insurance, raised $70 million in Series D funding. Dawn Capital led the round and was joined by investors including Atlas Merchant Capital, GSquared, and King River Capital

Roam, a remote-based cloud HQ company for distributed teams, raised $30 million in Series A funding led by IVP

Vaxess, a Cambridge, Mass.-based vaccine patch developer, raised $27 million in Series B funding. RA Capital Management led the round and was joined by investors including MIT’s The Engine, Mission BioCapital, and Global Health Investment Corporation

MedCrypt, a San Diego-based cybersecurity solution provider for medical devices, raised $25 million in Series B funding. Intuitive Ventures, Johnson & Johnson Innovation, Section 32, Eniac Ventures, Anzu Partners, and Dolby Family Ventures invested in the round.

Carta Healthcare, a San Francisco-based clinical data management company, raised $20 million in Series B funding. Paramark Ventures, Frist Cressey Ventures, American College of Cardiology, Asset Management Ventures, CU Healthcare Innovation Fund, Mass General Brigham, Maverick Ventures Investment Fund, and Storm Ventures invested in the round.

Way, an Austin-based brand activations software platform, raised $20 million in Series A funding. Tiger Global led the round and was joined by MSD Capital

Galileo, a San Francisco-based machine learning data intelligence company, raised $18 million in Series A funding. Battery Ventures led the round and was joined by investors including The Factory, Walden Catalyst, FPV Ventures, and other angels.

Fringe, a Richmond, Va.-based lifestyle benefits startup, raised $17 million in Series A funding. Origin Ventures and Felton Group co-led the round and were joined by investors including Sovereign’s Capital, Revolution Rise of Rest, ManchesterStory Group, Anchormark Holdings, and others. 

GoCo.io, a Houston-based software solutions provider for HR, benefits, and payroll, raised $15 Million in funding led by ATX Venture Partners.

AiDash, a San Jose-based satellite and A.I.-powered operations, maintenance, and sustainability solutions provider, raised $10 million in funding from SE Ventures

Haven, a New York-based homeownership platform for mortgage servicers and subservicers, raised $8 million in Series A funding. Fifth Wall led the round and was joined by investors including Fidelity National Financial, RWT Horizons, 1Sharpe Ventures, Conversion Capital, BoxGroup, AME Cloud Ventures, and Operator Partners.  

Retirable, a New York-based retirement solution provider, raised $6 million in funding. Primary led the round and was joined by investors including Vestigo Ventures, Diagram, Portage, and Primetime

Tiny Health, an Austin-based gut health testing company, raised $4.5 million in funding led by TheVentureCity

Sunsave, a London-based solar energy subscription provider, raised £3.7 million ($4.25 million) in seed funding. Neurone Ventures, Plug & Play Ventures, and other angels invested in the round.  

iink Payments, a Tampa-based digital payments network, raised $3 million in seed funding. Grand Ventures led the round and was joined by investors including Springtime Ventures, Simplex Ventures, Motivate Venture Capital, and Green Egg Ventures

Howbout, a London-based app for making plans with friends, raised £1.92 million ($2.2 million) in funding. ACF Investors, Snap Inc. senior advisor Claire Valoti, and ex-Paypal and Skype investor Desigan Chinniah invested in the round. 

Heylo, a San Francisco-based community group organization development platform, raised $1.5 million in seed funding led by Worklife Ventures

EXITS

Cinven agreed to acquire TaxAct, a Dallas-based tax filing assistance software and services provider, from Blucora for approximately $720 million. Pending a deal, Cinven will combine TaxAct with its existing portfolio company Drake Software.  

Coastal Chemical, a Brenntag Company, acquired Tech Management, the Houston-based production chemicals platform of Gravity, backed by affiliates of Clearlake Capital Group. Financial terms were not disclosed.

OTHER

Johnson & Johnson agreed to acquire Abiomed, a Danvers, Mass.-based heart-pump maker, for about $17.3 billion.

​​Bluefin acquired TECS Payment Systems, a Vienna-based payment solutions provider to acquirers, payment service providers, and POS system providers. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Bluewave Technology Group acquired Virtual Telecomm, a Louisville-based technology advisory and IT transformation agency. Financial terms were not disclosed. 

Emplifi acquired Pixlee TurnTo, a San Francisco-based user-generated content, ratings and reviews, and influencer marketing solutions provider. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Kajabi acquired Vibely, a Belmont, Calif.-based community-building platform for creators. Financial terms were not disclosed. 

FUNDS + FUNDS OF FUNDS

Align Capital Partners, a Cleveland and Dallas-based private equity firm, raised $620 million for its third fund focused on lower-middle market companies. 

PEOPLE

Advent International, a Boston-based private equity firm, hired Heather Kennedy Miner as managing director. Formerly, she was with Goldman Sachs.

Edison Partners, a Princeton, N.J.-based growth equity investment firm, hired Rush Baker as partner and head of investor relations, and Casey Myers as partner and head of Edison Edge. Formerly, Baker was with Snowbridge Advisors and Myers was with SundaySky

Motive Partners, a London and New York-based private equity firm, hired Bridget van Kralingen as partner. Formerly, she was with IBM.

POS Hardware Guide (2022): Get the Right Equipment For Your Business – Forbes

For most businesses, there are a few pieces of POS hardware that you’ll want to heavily consider as they can be considered vital to processing any in-person customer payment. The industry you’re in will typically dictate the amount of hardware you might need to process customer payments efficiently. For example, a restaurant will have different needs than a grocery store, and it will have different needs from a clothing store.

Listed below are the six most important pieces of POS hardware for most businesses.

1. Station

Your POS station is typically a computer or tablet that can run the POS software. It is where you’ll process all transactions and the customer will interact to confirm payment. These systems generally are touchscreens and provide a more modern look for your customer than older POS hardware systems. Many stations are all-in-one devices and that can be cost-effective. However, if one thing breaks on your all-in-one station, then you’ll be forced to send the whole device in for repairs.

2. Barcode Scanner

A barcode scanner can input products into your POS software to calculate how much the customer needs to pay. Without a barcode scanner, you would have to input all items manually into the software before processing payment. These scanners are used heavily in inventory-heavy businesses, such as grocery or hardware stores.

3. Credit Card Reader

It’s impossible to collect noncash payments without a way to read and process those payments. A card reader is vital to processing in-person payments because many customers elect to pay with a digital credit or debit card. When you collect payments via card, you’ll need to make sure that your card reader is EMV-compliant and that all data that your reader collects is encrypted.

4. POS Terminal

A POS terminal is a computerized device, similar to the station, that the POS software runs on. When we talk about all-in-one devices, these typically are known as POS terminals. These systems typically allow employees to see the details of the transaction and elect to process payments or add and remove items prior to payment.

5. Cash Drawers

A cash drawer is exactly as it sounds―a physical drawer that keeps your cash till. There is typically a way for the POS software to open the cash drawer if the customer elects to pay with cash or elects to receive cash back as part of their transaction. Businesses that don’t receive a lot of cash, such as clothing stores, don’t need to carry a cash drawer anymore if they don’t want to.

6. Receipt Printers

A receipt printer allows the customer to receive a physical copy of the transaction details. These are typically seen in most retail stores, although many businesses are attempting to save on money now by offering digital receipts. Receipts are still popular among customers, especially those that may want to return an item in the future.

Last Minute Holiday Prep: What Dealers Are Doing Differently This Season – TWICE – Twice

Just like the Grinch discovered, the holidays come no matter what we do. What are retailers doing differently this season to meet their customer’s needs and spread holiday cheer?

Published: October 25, 2022

Not meaning to mix holiday references, but why is this holiday shopping season different from all previous holiday shipping seasons?

One word: uncertainty.

The stock market is up. Inflation or recession? Corporate profits are up. Supply chains are stalled. Unemployment is down. War in Europe. The stock market is down. Gas prices are up. Gig economy and quiet quitting. Gas prices are down. GDP is up. Bitterly divided elections. Supply chains are improving. Gas prices are up.

Complicating this economic uncertainty is the stark change in consumer shopping habits, which have inalterably changed thanks to home quarantining during the pandemic. Not only have where and how people shop radically shifted, but how people pay for and receive their goods has as well, along with all their shopping experience expectations. Retailers need to be savvier and more strategic and targeted than ever before to reach, serve, and successfully satisfy their customers, all while selling a wider variety of technologies over a suddenly extended holiday sales season.

(image credit: STORIS)

“People will be shopping earlier and will continue to move more to online,” opines Lew Brown, partner at bluesalve partners, who notes that 47% of consumer electronics will be bought online this year, a rise of 15% from last year. “Online retailers are planning even earlier. Like starting November 1. I expect brick-and-mortar to follow suit. This makes brand building for direct-to-consumer even more important than ever. [It’s] less and less about the brand of the retailer and more and more about the brand of the product.”

Thanks to this holiday season’s economic uncertainty, one issue haunts most consumer technology retailers more than perhaps any past holiday season: inventory – when to order, and how much. And, in the minds of many, if you haven’t figured that out yet, it may be too late.

Have inventory/ordering plans changed for this season? “Man o’ man, have they,” Brown understates. “Long lead times still plague vendors and the pressure on ordering VERY early is the requirement of the hour.”

It’s not just longer lead times caused by supply chain or shipping issues plaguing retailer inventory decisions. “Retailers are generally taking a conservative approach to inventory levels due to economic conditions,” offers Chad Evans, VP of merchandising for AVB BrandSource. “Retailers are trying to turn older inventory as economic conditions change. It’s a tricky balance to reduce inventory while maintaining the appropriate stock for Q4 demand.”

For smaller retailers, keeping a closer eye on inventory means being picky. “We are keeping a very close watch on inventory and only going all in on the items that are a sure bet,” says Tom Priola, CEO of Rockford, IL-based Prime Time AV, “and are prepared to pivot quickly if economic conditions warrant.”

“It’s very important that retailers buy deep into their basics,” advises Danielle Savin, senior principal of digital marketing solutions for Capgemini DCX, “and perhaps change their sell-through expectations so they do not run out of stock, and/or have an ecommerce platform that has an excellent recommendation engine to like products.”

Merchandising/Promotion Prep

One slightly different aspect of selling this holiday season is merchandising. With masks coming off, customers are returning to stores, which increases a retailer’s opportunity to promote in person. “The last couple of holiday seasons have been more subdued promotionally due to lack of inventory, but there has been an uptick in promotion during Q4 2022,” BrandSource’s Evans observes. “This uptick not only reflects an increase in overall product discounts but the number of different models that are being promoted.”

For smaller retailers such as PrimeAV’s Priola, the change in consumer shopping habits means “more digital and less traditional” merchandising, with mixed levels of vendor support. “We are seeing less support from many of our smaller suppliers,” Priola notes, but “we have had much better vendor support with in-store merchandising this year as consumers return for a more traditional in-store experience with live demos. With the uncertainty of the economy, it appears that everyone is taking a wait-and-see approach before they commit to spending.”

More digital and less traditional also applies to how consumers will pay this holiday season, both in-store and online, which means that the adoption of digital payment systems such as Apple Pay, PayPal, and Google Pay is critical. “Retailers need to update their POS systems so they integrate into wallet-less alternatives,” Savin asserts. “The new Gen Z generation uses their phones as their wallets, and many do not carry credit cards or cash on them. Cash is no longer king.”

Digitally Targeting Your Consumers

Priola also observes “trends returning to the pre-pandemic challenges where promoting will be more important going forward.” Thanks to the increase in e-commerce, digital methods of targeting and promoting to consumers have increased, for better or for worse.

To help retailers get a better handle on these modern digital sales, marketing, and promotion techniques, Salesforce recently published a five-part “2022 Holiday Planning Guide for Retailers” to help resellers overcome current uncertain conditions. Among the digital topics Salesforce advises on are:

  • invest in modern POS and ERP systems to make sure you can take advantage of all modern digital inventory, sales, marketing, and merchandising opportunities
  • use data acquired in your e-commerce effort to better engage, attract, and build loyalty amongst your current customers, which can include early access to Black Friday sales, the creation of personalized offers, expedited free shipping, invitations to exclusive in-store events, even live-streaming sales sessions
  • keep your online shopping experience fresh for both desktop and mobile shopping, along with BOPIS (Buy Online, Pick-up In Store), and ROBIS (Reserve Online, Buy In Store) options
  • keep inventory levels updated and make sure expectant customers seeking a specific item aren’t ultimately and fatally disappointed
  • create more automated in-store shopping aids to help consumers check inventory, pricing, specs, ordering, checkout, and delivery in case you find yourself a little short on human sales staff
  • make multiple payment methods available to reduce sales friction, including buy-now-pay-later (BNPL), pay-over-time, or lease-to-own options both in-store and online
  • make sure your service department is fully prepared to honestly answer consumer questions and to quickly address consumer concerns, including via “conversational commerce” via messaging channels or live chat, and enable seamless returns

You’ll need to supply some contact information to download the full Salesforce “2022 Holiday Planning Guide for Retailers.”

See also: Another View: Customers Expect The Best From Online In Traditional Retail Experiences

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