EPOS or similar?

[oldhasbeen]

Hi All

Bit of brain picking needed if you don't mind!

We're currently using Act purely to create our website and download orders so would want to use more of its features. Alongside this, were using Quickbooks to manage stock/customers/vendors and everything else.

We need to dump Quickbooks except purely for daily totals etc as it can no longer cope (and nor can we!!). So it looks like we need some sort of EPOS for stock in, stock out with a customer/vendor interface. We don't need a till type system as we don't serve customers in a shop environment.

We would need something that could take as much information from our current data as possible as there is no way we could bash all this in from scratch.

Or if somebody uses some sort of system that automates the process as much as possible that they could recommend. Totally fed up of manually inputting every order, every delivery etc. Have considered Act business linking into Quickbooks but this wouldn't work for us.

Any suggestions or recommendations?

TIA - Helen

[buspassjohn]

Epos System

Try Minipos http://www.nicheinternational.com , you can use it as you describe with a virtual till for sales output, it won't do your accounts but you could retain Quickbooks for this and easily input your daily sales figures.
Have a look, hope it works for you, we,ve used it for about 6 years and are now working on integrating with our recent website.

[oldhasbeen]

Hi John

Thanks for that - looks good on a first glance, will have a more in depth look later.

Would you mind me asking - did you use this to set up from day 1 or did it take existing data (i.e from an accounts package) against which you would then match to bar codes?

Are you hoping to integrate with actinic as in being able to download orders directly in? It would be most interesting to know if this possible.

Our main criteria is the ability to take existing data and do "something" with it. We're also looking a Merlin software from Chatsworth Computers so if anybody has any feedback on that, it would be good.

Thanks for any help - it's a minefield out there and as this will probably cost an amount with lots of scary zero's on the end, we're hoping to get it right first time!

Regards - helen

[buspassjohn]

We originally set it up from scratch but you can migrate data from most databases into Minipos, just depends on mapping. We are hoping to integrate only in terms of stock control, order fulfilment will still be via Actinic/Mole End plugins. Any decent epos system will be able to take your existing data, if it can't its not worth bothering with.
We use touch Screen tills in the shop and are plannning to make website a touchscreen virtual till, (much easier to put on new items too small for bar coding). Cost should not be too high as you don't need tills, printers etc.