The POS Software Blog

The POS Software Blog

News from Tower Systems about locally made POS software for specialty local retailers.

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Toy shops: the serious business behind the smiles

November 11, 2026
3 Min read
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Walk into a good independent toy shop and watch for a minute. Kids pointing at everything. Parents relaxing a little. A grandparent asking what a seven-year-old might like. It’s one of the happiest places in any shopping strip, and often plenty of fun.

Behind the counter, it’s a demanding business. Toy and game retailers manage thousands of products from many suppliers, a sharp Christmas peak, constant new releases and customers who expect expert advice. The fun on the shop floor depends on a lot of good management out the back.

Range is the big challenge

Toy shops carry everything from pocket-money items to big-ticket gifts, board games, puzzles, craft kits and collectables. Some lines sell for years. Others are hot for a season and then stop dead. Without clear sales data, it’s easy to reorder on gut feel and end up with shelves of last year’s craze.

Reporting by supplier, department and tag helps. You can see how STEM toys perform against plush, or how board games compare with puzzles, whichever supplier they came from. That view makes buying decisions a lot easier.

Christmas makes or breaks the year

For many toy shops, the final weeks of the year deliver a large share of annual profit. That puts pressure on stock levels, staffing and checkout speed. Software should help you see what’s selling now, what’s running low and what needs reordering before suppliers close for the break.

Lay-by matters here too. Plenty of families still prefer to pay off big gifts over several weeks. Managing lay-bys properly, with clear records and reminders, protects both the customer relationship and your stock.

Loyalty that families notice

Toy shops benefit from repeat visits through birthdays, Christmas and school holidays. A simple loyalty approach, such as discount vouchers to regular customers, keeps families coming back without the complexity of a points scheme nobody understands.

Make it easy for staff

Seasonal and casual staff are common in toy retail. Software that’s easy to learn, with proper training, means your Christmas casual can serve confidently on day one rather than calling you every ten minutes.

What to do this week

Run a report on stock that has not sold in the last six months. Before you order more for Christmas, work out how to move those lines through bundles, a value table or a gift-with-purchase offer. Cash tied up in old stock is cash you can’t spend on what’s selling.

Tower Systems makes POS software for independent toy and game shops, with stock control, lay-by, loyalty, the AI-powered Insights Dashboard and local support from people who know specialty retail.

To talk through whether Tower is the right fit for your shop, call us on 1300 662 957 or email sales@towersystems.com.au. www.towersystems.com.au. Locally made. Locally supported.

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How to choose the best POS software for a firearms dealer in Australia or New Zealand

November 11, 2026
7 Min read
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The best POS software for a firearms dealer is built for licensed, serialised stock. It records purchaser and licence details at the sale, tracks every serial number from arrival to sale, runs gunsmith jobs, bills storage and memberships, and handles club pricing. It also comes with local support and no transaction fees. Use the checklist below to compare any system you’re considering.

Selling firearms means keeping records most retailers never deal with. One customer buys a box of cleaning patches. The next collects a rifle once the permit has come through, then books a scope fitting and pays for another month of safe storage. A basic till can process the sale. Keeping the records behind it is another matter.

Firearms dealers and gunsmiths have helped shape the firearms features in our software, and we’ve been making POS software for independent specialty retailers since 1981. The advice here comes from that work, and the checklist applies whichever system you end up choosing.

When a general POS is enough

If you sell outdoor clothing, knives and camping gear but no firearms or ammunition, a general retail POS may do the job and cost less.

That changes once you hold a dealer licence. Serial numbers, purchaser records, second-hand trade-ins, workshop jobs and storage rental all need accurate records. General systems leave that to paper registers and spreadsheets beside the till. That double handling is where errors creep in, and it’s what makes an audit stressful.

Ten things the best firearms dealer POS software should do

  1. Record purchaser details at the sale. Name, address and licence details should be captured during the transaction, so nothing is written up later. Ask to see where those details are stored and how quickly you can find them again.
  2. Track every serial number. Each firearm should be tracked by serial number from the day it arrives until the day it leaves, including second-hand stock and trade-ins. You should be able to search a serial number and see its full history in seconds.
  3. Check age at the counter. For age-restricted items, the system should stop the sale until the staff member confirms an age check. That protects a new casual on a busy Saturday as much as it protects you.
  4. Run the workshop. Gunsmith work needs job tracking from check-in to collection, technician scheduling and updates to the customer. Ask whether workshop management is included or charged as an extra.
  5. Bill storage and memberships automatically. Safe storage, locker space and membership fees are steady income, but only if they’re billed on time. Recurring billing built into the POS removes the monthly chase.
  6. Support local clubs. Club members are the core of most gun shops. Look for pricing profiles by customer type, so club members get their rate automatically and staff don’t have to remember it.
  7. Sell bundles and by measure. A starter kit with a bag, cleaning gear and hearing protection sells better at one price, and is harder to price-compare online. Bulk supplies should sell by weight or measure, in whole numbers or fractions, and apparel by colour, size and style.
  8. Cut the keying. Importing invoices from your distributors, including PDF invoices read by AI, saves hours of keying and reduces errors in costs and stock counts.
  9. Sell at field days and online. A mobile app lets you sell at shows and club events with stock kept in sync. If you sell accessories or clothing online, the POS should integrate with Shopify, BigCommerce, WooCommerce or Magento.
  10. Report clearly. You need serial number and purchaser reports on demand, plus aged stock, best sellers, gross profit by category and reordering. Reports should be quick to run, or they won’t be used.

The costs that are easy to miss

A low monthly fee can hide a high total cost. Work out what each system would cost over two years, counting:

  • Transaction fees. Some POS providers take a percentage of every card sale. On a high-value firearm sale, that’s a noticeable amount.
  • Fees per terminal. A terminal in the workshop or at a second counter shouldn’t add to your bill.
  • Is phone support included? What hours does it run, and does it cover Saturdays?
  • Add-ons. Some providers charge extra for workshop management, recurring billing, loyalty, ecommerce or accounting links.
  • If you’re locked in, a poor choice is costly to reverse.

Tower Systems has no transaction fees and no lock-in contract. As at November 2026, plans start at $145 a month including GST, billed annually, and Standard and above include unlimited terminals at one location. Current prices, and the features in each plan, are on our pricing page.https://www.towersystems.com.au/pricing.html

Questions to ask in a demonstration

Ask the provider to run the demonstration using the kinds of transactions you handle. These questions will show quickly whether the system fits:

  1. Show me a rifle being received, sold and then found again by serial number.
  2. Show me where the purchaser and licence details are kept for that sale.
  3. Show me a second-hand trade-in coming into stock.
  4. Show me a gunsmith job from check-in to collection, with a message to the customer.
  5. Show me a monthly storage charge being billed automatically.
  6. What does support cost, and who answers the phone on a Saturday?
  7. Where is your support team located?
  8. What is the process for getting to speak to a human?
  9. Where is the person providing training located?
  10. Can I speak with a firearms dealer who uses your software?

Switching without disrupting trade

Changing systems is where many owners hesitate. With firearms, getting the records right matters more than getting it done fast. Plan for three things:

  • Data first. Before you sign, have your existing data reviewed so you know which serial numbers, purchaser records and customer details will come across. Tower Systems launched a streamlined data conversion service in mid 2026, drawing on many past conversions, and it’s fast and accurate.
  • Pick a quiet stretch, well clear of the hunting season or a big club event.
  • Look for one-on-one training and a video library staff can use any time. Together, they make that first busy weekend much easier.

Australia and New Zealand

Firearms rules differ between Australian states and territories, and between Australia and New Zealand. Software can capture and store the records, but your obligations are set by your local firearms registry. Confirm what you must record with them, then check the system can capture all of it. Tower Systems has help desk staff in both Australia and New Zealand. The help desk is open six days a week, with after-hours help if a system goes down.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best POS software for a firearms dealer in Australia?

It’s software built for licensed stock: recording purchaser and licence details, tracking serial numbers, running gunsmith jobs, billing storage and offering club pricing. Compare systems against those needs, the total cost over two years and the quality of local support.

Can POS software track firearm serial numbers?

Yes, if it’s built for it. Tower Systems tracks each firearm by serial number from arrival to sale, including second-hand stock, and records purchaser details, including name, address and licence, at the point of sale.

Does firearms POS software work in New Zealand?

Yes. Tower Systems supports firearms dealers on both sides of the Tasman, with help desk staff in each country. The New Zealand sales line is 0800 444 367.

How much does firearms dealer POS software cost?

Prices vary a lot between providers, so compare the two-year total, including transaction fees, terminal fees, support and add-ons. As at November 2026, Tower Systems plans start at $145 a month including GST, billed annually, with no transaction fees and no lock-in contract.

Book a firearms dealer demonstration

Book a demo: We’ll set Tower Systems up the way a firearms dealer works, answer your questions and record the session so you can watch it again later. Call 1300 662 957 in Australia or 0800 444 367 in New Zealand, or email sales@towersystems.com.au.

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How to choose the best POS software for a garden centre in Australia or New Zealand

November 10, 2026
7 Min read
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The best POS software for a garden centre is built for living stock and bulk landscape supplies. It sells soil and mulch by measure or fraction, reprices plants as they grow, records plant losses, runs landscaper accounts and manages deliveries. It also comes with local support and no transaction fees. Use the checklist below to compare any system you’re considering.

Garden centres don’t work like other shops. Stock grows, dies, gets re-potted and goes out the gate on a truck. One customer buys a single punnet. The next is a landscaper who wants three tonnes of sand on account by Thursday. A basic till or general POS app can take the payment, but it usually can’t handle the rest.

We’ve made POS software for independent specialty retailers since 1981, and hundreds of garden centre owners have shaped the garden centre features in our software. This guide draws on that experience, but the checklist works whichever system you choose.

Our garden centre software has been chosen by hundreds.

When a general POS is enough

Not every garden centre needs specialist software. If you sell potted plants and giftware by the unit, with no bulk yard, trade accounts or deliveries, a general retail POS may do the job well and cost less.

That changes once you add bulk soils and mulches, trade customers, a delivery truck, a nursery that grows its own stock, or supplier invoices that run to hundreds of lines in spring. General systems then start relying on workarounds, spreadsheets and the owner’s memory. That’s usually where margin leaks.

Ten things the best garden centre POS software should do

  1. Sell by measure, weight and fraction. A customer who wants one and a half cubic metres of mulch should pay for exactly that. Look for selling by measure, weight or length in whole numbers or fractions, and integration with counter scales. In Australia, check that the weighing setup is approved by the National Measurement Institute (NMI) for trade use.
  2. Reprice plants as they grow. Living stock gains value. When you re-pot a plant into a larger container, you should be able to update its record and price, so your margin covers the labour and materials you’ve put in. Most retail software has no idea what to do with stock that’s worth more next month.
  3. Record plant losses properly. Some plants don’t make it. A write-off facility takes dead and damaged stock off the books and reports it by category and season. Without one, losses only turn up as an unexplained gap at stocktake.
  4. Serve landscapers and trade customers. Trade customers expect trade pricing, quotes that become orders, sales on account, credit limits and month-end statements. In the demo, ask to see the whole process from quote to invoice.
  5. Manage deliveries. If you deliver, look for dispatch tools that handle several trucks with several drops each, plus picking slips and delivery notes. Larger fleets benefit from a link to a logistics platform such as Allotrac.
  6. Load supplier invoices automatically. Spring deliveries can swamp the back office. The software should import electronic invoices and stock files from major suppliers, for example through Evergreen Connect, and ideally read PDF invoices using AI.
  7. Print weatherproof labels. Labels that fade or peel in the sun cost you sales and pricing accuracy. Ask whether the system prints high-resolution, weatherproof outdoor labels with barcodes.
  8. Bring customers back. Garden centres sell advice as much as plants. Look for plant care tips on the receipt, bundles that put a plant, pot and fertiliser at one price, and loyalty that’s built in rather than charged as an extra.
  9. Keep the shop and website in step. If you sell online, the POS should connect directly to your ecommerce platform, such as Shopify, BigCommerce, WooCommerce or Magento, so one set of stock sits behind both.
  10. Report on the season. A wet Monday is the time to look at aged stock, best sellers, gross profit by category, supplier performance and reorders based on last season. If the reports are hard to run, they won’t get run.

The costs that are easy to miss

The monthly fee is only part of the cost. When you compare systems, add up the total over two years and include:

  • Transaction fees. Some POS providers take a percentage of every card sale. On a busy spring weekend, that adds up fast.
  • Fees per terminal. Adding a second or third counter for peak season shouldn’t bring a bigger invoice.
  • Support. Check whether phone support is included, what hours it runs and whether weekends are covered. Saturday is often a garden centre’s biggest day.
  • Add-ons. Ecommerce, loyalty, dispatch and accounting links are sometimes extra.
  • Contracts. A lock-in contract makes a poor choice expensive to undo.

For comparison, Tower Systems charges no transaction fees and has no lock-in contract. As at November 2026, plans start at $145 a month including GST, billed annually. Standard and above include unlimited terminals at one location. See our pricing page for current prices and which plan includes each feature.

Questions to ask in a demonstration

Ask for a demonstration set up around your business, rather than a standard script. Take these questions with you:

  1. Show me a sale of 1.5 cubic metres of mulch, then the stock movement it creates.
  2. Show me how a re-potted plant is repriced.
  3. Show me a landscaper quote becoming an order, then an account sale, then a statement.
  4. Show me a delivery with two trucks and five drops.
  5. Show me a supplier invoice from my main nursery being imported.
  6. What does support cost, and who answers the phone on a Saturday in October?
  7. Can I speak with a garden centre that uses your software?

Switching without disrupting spring

For most owners, the hardest part is the changeover. Three things help it go smoothly:

  • Have your data reviewed before you commit, so you know exactly what can be brought across. Tower Systems released a streamlined data conversion service in mid 2026, based on what we’ve learned from many conversions. It’s fast and accurate.
  • Choose the timing. Nobody should change systems the week before a spring long weekend. Plan the changeover around your trading year, ideally in the quieter winter months.
  • Ask how training works. One-on-one training, plus a video library your staff can use at any hour, makes the first busy weekend far less stressful.

“Our transition to Tower Systems has been smooth with plenty of training and support when needed. Highly recommend!” — Garden Centre customer, May 2026

Australia and New Zealand

If you trade on either side of the Tasman, check that the software handles GST correctly for your country, that support is available in your time zone and that the supplier has people on the ground. Tower Systems supports garden centres in both countries, with help desk staff based in Australia and New Zealand, open six days a week, and after-hours help when a system is down.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best POS software for a garden centre in Australia?

It’s software built for the work: selling bulk supplies by measure or fraction, repricing plants as they grow, writing off losses, running trade accounts and managing deliveries. Compare systems against those needs, the total cost over two years and the quality of local support.

Can POS software sell soil and mulch by the cubic metre?

Yes, if it supports selling by measure. Tower Systems sells by measure, weight or length in whole numbers or fractions, so one and a half cubic metres of mulch is priced correctly. It also connects to counter scales, including the CAS PDN Scale Series.

Does garden centre POS software work in New Zealand?

Yes. Tower Systems supports garden centres in Australia and New Zealand, with help desk staff in both countries. The New Zealand sales line is 0800 444 367.

How much does garden centre POS software cost?

It varies widely, so compare the total cost, including transaction fees, terminal fees, support and add-ons. As at 2 November 2026, Tower Systems plans start at $145 a month including GST, billed annually, with no transaction fees and no lock-in contract.

Book a garden centre demonstration

See Tower Systems set up for a garden centre like yours. Book a demo. We’ll answer your questions and record the demonstration so you can review it later. Call 1300 662 957 in Australia or 0800 444 367 in New Zealand, or email sales@towersystems.com.au.

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Looking for an alternative to Epos Now?

November 10, 2026
4 Min read
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A retailer using Epos Now contacted us recently, looking for an alternative. Our software suited the specific needs of their shop. What surprised us was what they asked about most. It wasn’t features. It was everything around the software:

  • Is it developed and supported here? (Yes.)
  • Is there a lock-in contract? (No.)
  • Do I have to use your EFTPOS provider? (No.)
  • If I ring, will I get a person? (Yes.)
  • Can I suggest changes to the people who write the software? (Yes.)
  • Is AI built in, or is it an add-on? (Built in.)

We’re biased, of course. We’re Tower Systems. Our view comes from the retailers who have moved to us from Epos Now. We also know we’re not right for every shop, and if we’re not right for yours, we’ll say so.

Different companies, different markets

Epos Now is a global company. Its cloud platform is used by retailers, restaurants, hotels and other businesses in many countries, and it’s designed to work across all of them.

Tower Systems makes software in Australia for selected types of specialty retailers in Australia and New Zealand: gift shops, toy shops, newsagents, bike shops, jewellers and more.

We don’t work with franchises or chains.

Neither approach is wrong. They suit different businesses. If you run a stock-heavy specialty shop, it’s worth asking which one was built with a shop like yours in mind.

What the software does

From what we are told, Epos Now covers the POS basics well: sales, inventory, reporting, staff and payments, plus a large marketplace of add-on apps.

Tower goes deep into the work specialty shops do every day. You can take special orders, track serial numbers, sell bundles, and sell by weight or length. You can also manage repairs, run self-checkout and sell from the shop floor. These features are part of the software, so you don’t need to find and pay for an app to get them.

Read the contract first

Before you compare features, compare contracts. Check how long each one runs and what it costs to leave. Then work out what you’ll really pay over three years, not just per month.

Tower doesn’t lock customers in. If the software stops being right for you, cancel your rental with 30 days’ notice.

Our pricing is simple. You pay one price for one location, however many computers you run. Xero, Shopify, WooCommerce and Magento links are included, along with loyalty tools. You choose your own EFTPOS provider and bank, so you can shop around for better rates. And we don’t take a percentage of your sales.

Tower does not charge based on transaction volume or value.

Integrations

Epos Now has a large international ecosystem of apps.

Tower’s integrations are the ones Australian and New Zealand retailers use: Xero, Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerce, Magento, Tyro, Linkly Cloud, Smartpay and several industry-specific connections. For most local shops, a few well-built integrations with the systems they already use beat a long list of apps.

Support

Ring Tower and a person answers. The help desk team is local, many of them have worked in retail, and nobody reads from a script.

New customers get one-on-one training. There’s also a library of training videos and help articles, and an open user meeting every month. Customers suggest improvements on our public Software Ideas platform and vote on each other’s ideas, and the most popular ones shape what we build next.

Our advice: do your own thorough research

Don’t take any company’s word for it, including ours. Read reviews, search Reddit and social media, and ask other retailers in your channel what they use and what annoys them about it.

Then sit both systems side by side and run through the jobs your shop does every day: receiving a delivery, taking a special order, doing a return, running end of day. That will tell you more than any comparison article.

Ask for references.

So which one?

If you want a general-purpose system that works across many types of business, Epos Now may suit you.

If you run an independent specialty shop in Australia or New Zealand and want software built for that, supported by people here, Tower is worth a look.

If you’re happy with Epos Now, stay with it. If you’re not, we’d like to show you what we do.

Book a free, no-obligation demo. Call 1300 662 957 in Australia or 0800 444 367 in New Zealand, or email sales@towersystems.com.au. Contacting a human is easy.

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Retailers: Stop complaining about your data and fix it

November 9, 2026
4 Min read
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Most retailers won’t read this. They’d rather not work on their data, probably because they’ve never seen what good business data can do for them. They have no idea what they’re missing.

Those retailers are easy to compete with.

Small business retailers get stuck in their heads about bad data. They decide it’s so bad that they spend months, sometimes years, talking about it and worrying about it. They don’t take a single step to fix it. Being time poor becomes the excuse, and complaining becomes the only action.

We hear it all the time. Product names nobody understands. Departments that made sense ten years ago. Suppliers who stopped trading years ago still sitting in the system. Stock levels nobody trusts, so nobody uses the reports. Then the business makes buying decisions on gut feel, because the numbers “can’t be right”.

In almost every business we’ve seen and worked with, the fix is a two-day job for two people. It needs clear, firm management behind it.

Throw it out and start again

The best way to fix bad data is to throw it out and build it again.

Most retailers try to clean their data one product at a time, in between serving customers. It never ends. A fresh, firm reset works far better than a slow tidy-up that drags on for a year.

What the two days look like

Step one: do the stocktake.

Count everything. Not a sample, not just the big categories. Everything. By the end of the day, the stock levels in your system should match what’s on your shelves and in your stockroom.

Step two: clear out what’s at zero.

Run a report of every item with zero stock on hand. Then ask one question: has it sold in the last six months?

  • If it hasn’t, delete it. Don’t mark it inactive or hide it. Remove it. You don’t stock it, you haven’t sold it, and keeping it only clutters every report you run.
  • If it has, keep it, and decide whether you’ll reorder it.

Next:

  • Remove suppliers you no longer buy from.
  • Rebuild your departments around how you trade today.
  • Check cost prices on your top sellers against recent invoices.
  • Write down three or four rules for adding new products, so the mess doesn’t come back.

Two people works best. One makes the decisions, the other does the data entry. Don’t let anyone talk you into keeping something “just in case”.

A reset for the business, not just the data

Throwing out old data does more than clean up your system. It resets the business.

Once the data is clean, you’re looking at the shop as it really is today. You can see what you actually stock, what actually sells and where your money actually sits. That’s a new foundation, and you can build on it.

Reports you stopped trusting become useful again. Reordering works. You can spot the lines that make money and the ones that only take up space. Clean data gives you commercially valuable insights that you can’t get while old data clouds every number.

Keep it clean

The data didn’t get bad on its own. It got bad because nobody owned it. After the reset, give one person responsibility for keeping it right. Check it monthly. If new products go in without following the rules, say so.

Our advice

Too many retailers spend too much time worrying. Worrying does nothing for you or your business. In fact, it makes things worse.

Complaining achieves nothing. Doing something does.

And if you’re a supplier to retailers who hears the same complaints over and over, what are you doing to turn those complaints into action?

If you’re a Tower customer and want help planning a reset, this is the advice we provide.

If you’re not with Tower and your current system makes this hard, we’d love to show you how Tower handles it. Call 1300 662 957 or email sales@towersystems.com.au.

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Why sewing, fabric and knitting shops need POS software that understands them

November 8, 2026
3 Min read
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A customer walks in with half a jumper on the needles and a problem. They need three more balls of the same yarn, in the same colourway, and ideally the same dye lot. They bought the first lot from you in autumn. Can you tell them, quickly, what they bought and whether you can get more?

Moments like that matter in a sewing, fabric and knitting shop. It’s a small sale, but they’re a long-term customer. Get it right and they’ll be back for the next project, and they’ll probably tell their knitting group. Get it wrong and they’ll go looking online.

The way these shops sell is different

Most POS software is built around a simple idea: one barcode, one item, one price. Fabric and craft retail doesn’t work like that. Fabric is sold by the metre, sometimes by the half or quarter metre. Ribbon, trim and elastic go by length. Yarn is sold by the ball but managed by brand, weight, colourway and dye lot. Patterns, notions, needles and kits all sit alongside each other, often from dozens of small suppliers.

If your software can’t sell by length or fraction, staff end up guessing, rounding or keying in prices by hand. Each workaround is a small leak. Across a year, those leaks add up to real money and unreliable stock figures.

Special orders are part of the service

Craft customers ask for things you don’t have on the shelf. A specific yarn, a backing fabric to match a quilt top, a pattern that’s out of stock. Handling those requests well is one of the best reasons to shop local rather than online.

Good software records the special order against the customer, tracks any deposit, flags it when the stock arrives and helps you get in touch. That beats a sticky note on the till, and it saves an awkward phone call three weeks later.

Know your regulars

Sewing and knitting customers tend to be loyal and project-driven. A simple customer record showing past purchases lets you answer the dye-lot question in seconds. It also lets you tell regulars when new season yarns or fabrics arrive. A discount voucher sent at the right moment often works better than a complicated points scheme.

Look at what actually makes money

Many craft shops carry a huge range. Some of it moves every week. Some of it has been sitting in a drawer since 2022. Reporting by supplier, department and product tag shows which lines earn their space and which are quietly tying up cash. That’s especially useful before the next buying season.

What to do this week

Pick five recent special orders and check how they were recorded. Could anyone in the shop find them, see the deposit and know when the stock arrived? If the answer is no, your software is costing you goodwill.

Tower Systems makes POS software for independent specialty retailers, including sewing, fabric, haberdashery and knitting shops. It handles sales by length and fraction, special orders, customer history and loyalty, and comes with free one-on-one training and local support from people who understand how these shops work.

To talk through whether Tower is the right fit for your shop, call us on 1300 662 957 or email sales@towersystems.com.au. www.towersystems.com.au. Locally made. Locally supported.

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Why the local shop is worth the trip: the case against Temu

November 7, 2026
4 Min read
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Ultra-cheap online marketplaces have changed what many shoppers expect to pay. Almost half of Australian consumers now say they often or always consider these platforms, and nearly eight in ten retailers are concerned about the competition.

No independent shop can match those prices, so don’t try. Compete on what a marketplace can’t offer, and make sure customers can see it.

Stop competing on the wrong thing

When a customer mentions a lower price online, it’s tempting to discount or explain your costs. Neither helps much. What the customer really wants to know is why they should buy from you.

Have a short, confident answer ready. You know the products, you stand behind them, and the customer can take one home today.

Make your value visible

Most of what makes a local shop worthwhile is invisible unless you show it.

  • Shoppers buying online have to guess. In your shop, they can ask. Make it known that your team can help choose the right product, size or fit.
  • Products sold through Australian retailers are expected to meet Australian safety standards. Shoppers worry about this more than they used to, especially for children’s items, electrical goods and anything worn on the skin.
  • Your customer walks out with the product today instead of waiting on a delivery.
  • Easy returns. A local shop resolves a problem across the counter. A marketplace return often costs more effort than the product is worth.
  • Service after the sale. Repairs, refills, adjustments and replacement parts are part of what you sell.

Say these things on your signs, your shelf talkers, your website and your social media. Don’t assume customers already know.

Choose your range carefully

Be honest about where you can’t compete. If a product is a basic commodity and customers shop on price alone, it may not deserve prime space. Put your effort into ranges where your knowledge and curation matter.

  • Products that need explanation or fitting.
  • Quality brands customers trust.
  • Locally made or exclusive lines.
  • Gift ranges you’ve chosen with care.
  • Consumables and refills that bring customers back.

Your POS sales data will show which categories earn their space and which don’t.

Offer what an algorithm cannot

There are many ways local specialty retailers can compete with cheap online marketplaces. here are some suggestions from us based on years of experience helping small business retailers:

  1. Special orders. Getting a specific item for a customer builds loyalty fast.
  2. Gift wrapping and bundles. A thoughtful gift, ready to give, saves your customer time and stress.
  3. Local knowledge. You know your community, its events, its seasons and its people.
  4. Remembering a customer’s name and what they bought last time is worth more than any discount code.
  5. Loyalty that feels personal. A loyalty program tied to real relationships keeps customers returning. A points based program is very common, but not always the right approach.

Make the visit enjoyable

People like to shop when the experience is good. A well-lit, tidy shop with fresh displays, a warm greeting and products they can touch gives customers a reason to come in. Change front-of-store displays regularly so regular customers always find something new.

Tell your story

More shoppers understand that spending locally keeps jobs in town and the main street alive. You don’t need to lecture anyone. Show, don’t tell – that you’re part of their local community.

What to do this week

List the five reasons a customer should buy from you instead of a marketplace. Put at least two of them on signage in your shop and on your website. Then review your range for one category where you compete on price alone, and decide whether it deserves its space.

If you would like to see how Tower supports special orders, loyalty and gift-focused selling, Tim and Justin are happy to help. Call 1300 662 957 or email sales@towersystems.com.au.

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Being found by AI search: what helps a shop get recommended

November 6, 2026
4 Min read
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More shoppers now ask AI tools questions like “Where can I buy a good fountain pen in Geelong?” or “Which garden centre near me stocks fruit trees?” Instead of a list of links, they get a short answer naming a few businesses. If your shop isn’t in that answer, the customer may never know you exist.

There’s a lot of hype about this. Most of what gets a shop recommended by AI is what has always got a shop found: accurate, consistent information about you, in more than one place.

Get your Google Business Profile right

For local shopping, start with your Google Business Profile. AI answers on Google draw heavily on it, and other AI tools often use the same information.

  • Use your exact business name, address and phone number.
  • Choose the most accurate primary category, then add relevant secondary categories.
  • Keep opening hours current, including public holidays.
  • Add real photos of your shopfront, interior and products.
  • Write a description that says plainly what you sell and who you serve.

Keep your details consistent everywhere

AI tools build a picture of your business from many sources. If your name, address or phone number differs between your website, Facebook page, industry directories and local listings, that picture becomes less certain. Check each listing and make them match.

Reviews matter, so ask for them

Reviews carry weight in local recommendations for sure.

Make asking for reviews part of your routine. A card at the counter, a QR code on receipts or a follow-up email after a special order all help. Ask every customer, not just the happy ones. Selectively asking only satisfied customers, or offering rewards for reviews, breaches Google’s rules, and fake reviews are unlawful in Australia.

Reply to reviews, including the critical ones. A calm, helpful reply shows future customers how you treat people.

Let others talk about you

AI tools pay attention to what other people say about you. Mentions in local news, community websites, supplier stockist lists, industry associations and event pages all help.

Ask your suppliers to list you as a stockist. Join your local business association. Support a community event and make sure your shop is named. Each mention is another independent source confirming you exist and what you do.

Put your range online

An AI tool can’t recommend you for a product it doesn’t know you sell. If your website only says “gifts and homewares”, you’re unlikely to appear when someone asks about a specific brand or product.

Even if you don’t sell online, a website that shows your key brands and categories gives AI something to work with. If you do sell online, clear product titles, accurate descriptions and current stock levels all help. A POS connected to your online store keeps this information current without extra work.

Answer the questions customers ask

Think about what customers ask at your counter. Do you do repairs? Do you take special orders? Can I find a particular brand? Is there parking nearby?

Put those answers on your website in plain language. A simple frequently asked questions page is easy for AI tools to read and quote. Avoid filling your site with generic AI-written pages or near-identical pages for every suburb, because these can work against you.

You do not need special AI files

You may be offered services promising to “optimise for AI” with special files or code. Google has said no special AI file or schema is required. Spend your time on the basics above instead.

Check what AI says about you

Ask ChatGPT, Gemini and Google a few questions a customer might ask about your shop or category. See who is recommended and why. Answers vary from day to day, so look for patterns over several checks rather than reacting to one result.

What to do next

Update your Google Business Profile, check that your details match across your top five listings, and set up a simple way to ask every customer for a review. Then write five answers to questions your customers ask most often and add them to your website.

If you would like to see how Tower connects your stock to your online store, Tim and Justin can take you through it. Call 1300 662 957 or email sales@towersystems.com.au.

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Australian-made software for mobility scooter shops

November 5, 2026
3 Min read
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Mobility scooter and mobility product shops are a different kind of retail. Customers often need time, advice and follow-up long after the sale. The relationship matters as much as the product.

These businesses are vital in local Australian communities. They help people stay independent and connected. Running one well means balancing personal service with the practical side of sales, orders, repairs and servicing.

Software built for that mix makes the job easier. Tower Systems point of sale software is made in Australia and supported in Australia, and it’s available for just a few dollars a day.

Eight reasons for a mobility scooter shop to choose Tower

  1. Loyalty for customers who visit less often. Mobility customers don’t come in every week. Built-in loyalty tools help you make each visit count.
  2. Pre-orders. Sell products before they arrive in stock, and keep customers informed while they wait.
  3. Buy Now, Pay Later and lay-by. Offer both through the software, so customers can spread the cost of a bigger purchase.
  4. Bundles and packages. Put together products that suit a customer’s needs, such as a scooter with accessories, and sell them as one package.
  5. Offers for groups. Set up specific offers and pricing for retirement villages, clubs and other local groups.
  6. Special orders. Track special orders from request to pick-up, with fewer errors, and take a deposit up front.
  7. Repairs and servicing. Track parts and labour for every repair, including work done by outside technicians. Recall customers based on activity, such as their last service date.
  8. Serial number tracking. Record serial numbers on stock for servicing, insurance and other records, so you can answer customer questions quickly.

Why local matters

We value local specialty retail, and we built our software to help you make the most of your local presence.

  • You support your community. Your shop helps local people and families. The right tools help you do more of it.
  • You and your team are the difference. Customers come back because of the people who serve them. Our software helps you build on that.
  • Loyalty that means something. Go beyond generic points with loyalty tools that reward your customers and help your bottom line.
  • Better decisions from better data. Clear reports show what’s selling, what’s not and where the opportunities are.
  • Reach shoppers online. Not every customer walks through the door. Connect your software to a website and reach more people.

We’re grateful to serve mobility scooter and mobility product retailers across Australia.

To find out more, visit www.towersystems.com.au.

Tower Systems. Locally made. Locally supported.

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Payday Super and cash-flow routines: keeping on top of obligations

November 5, 2026
4 Min read
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From 1 July 2026 in Australia, employers must pay super each payday instead of quarterly. Contributions generally need to reach employees’ super funds within seven business days of payday. For workers it’s a welcome change. For small retailers, it means less time between paying staff and paying their super.

Quarterly super provided a buffer. That money sat in the account for weeks and helped cover the gap between buying stock and selling it. Now it leaves with every pay run. Add slow-paying accounts, higher costs and Christmas stock orders, and cash gets tight quickly.

A simple routine helps more than worrying about it.

Treat super as part of wages

The easiest mental shift is to stop thinking of super as a separate bill. It’s part of the cost of every hour worked. When you look at your wages figure, look at wages plus super. When you plan your roster, plan for both.

Make sure your payroll software is set up for Payday Super, with correct fund details for every employee. If a contribution bounces because of an incorrect account number, it’s still your responsibility to fix it on time.

A weekly cash-flow check

Set aside half an hour at the same time every week. Put it in the diary like any other appointment.

  1. Check your bank balance against what is due. Look at wages, super, supplier payments and rent over the next fortnight.
  2. Review sales against last year. Your POS should show this at a glance. A soft week is easier to manage when you notice it straight away.
  3. Look at accounts receivable. If you sell on account, follow up anything overdue. Late payment is now common, and a polite reminder works best when it’s early.
  4. Check open orders. Know what stock is coming and when the invoices will land.

A monthly routine

Once a month, go a little deeper.

  • Reconcile your accounts. Make sure your POS, accounting software and bank all agree.
  • Set aside GST and PAYG. Move the money into a separate account so it isn’t mistaken for spare cash. Many tax debt problems start when GST is spent before BAS is due.
  • Review stock levels. Stock is cash on the shelf. Identify lines that haven’t sold in 90 days and decide whether to discount, return or bundle them.
  • Compare actual costs with budget. Wages, rent, power and insurance are all worth checking, and each has risen for many retailers this year.

Manage stock as cash

For most retailers, stock ties up more cash than anything else. Buy well and you protect your cash flow. Software can help with this.

  • Reorder based on what is actually selling, not habit. Use your data – that’s what it’s there for.
  • Use minimum and maximum stock levels for regular lines.
  • Spread Christmas buying where suppliers allow it, rather than taking everything in one delivery.
  • Ask suppliers about payment terms before you place large seasonal orders.

Talk early if you fall behind

If a tax payment or super contribution is going to be late, don’t wait. The ATO is more willing to discuss payment plans when businesses come forward early. Your accountant or bookkeeper can help you work out what is realistic. Unpaid super in particular carries penalties that make the problem harder to solve later.

Let your systems do the remembering

A routine is easier to keep when the numbers are ready for you. Daily sales summaries, stock reports and supplier invoice records save you from hunting for figures at the end of a long day. If your POS connects with your accounting software, reconciliation takes minutes rather than hours.

What to do next

Book a recurring 10-minute cash-flow check in your diary. Open a separate account for GST, PAYG and super if you don’t already have one. Then look at your slowest-moving stock and decide what to do with it before Christmas.

If you would like to see how Tower’s reporting and reordering tools support a weekly routine, Tim and Justin can show you. Call 1300 662 957 or email sales@towersystems.com.au.

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Customer Theft-reduction basics: practical steps a small shop can take

November 4, 2026
4 Min read
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For many small shops, theft by customers is a daily problem.

In Victoria alone, police recorded more than 37,000 theft offences at retail locations in the year to June 2026. That’s around 100 a day. Each one is stock an owner has to replace, and often a staff member who no longer feels safe at work.

Nobody stops every theft. A few practical changes will make your shop a harder target and help you spot losses sooner.

Safety comes first

No product is worth an injury. Make it clear to every team member that they should not chase, physically stop or argue with a suspected thief. Note what happened, keep yourself safe, and report it.

Write down a simple procedure and put it somewhere staff can find it. It should cover what to do during an incident, who to call and how to record it. Staff who know what is expected of them feel more confident and make better decisions under pressure.

Make the shop harder to steal from

Opportunistic thieves rely on not being noticed.  Small layout changes help more than you might expect. Here’s our advice based on years of experience serving small business retailers.

  • Clear sightlines. Lower fixtures where possible so staff can see across the floor. Remove displays that create blind corners.
  • Keep high-value stock close. Put expensive, small and easily resold items near the counter or in locked cabinets. Display one and keep the rest out the back.
  • Use mirrors and visible cameras. A visible camera and a monitor showing the live picture near the entrance are strong deterrents. Make sure footage is clear, time-stamped and kept long enough to be useful.
  • Mind the entrance. Avoid placing tempting stock right beside the door.
  • Tidy displays. A neat, full display makes gaps obvious. A messy one hides them.

Greet every customer

The cheapest security measure is a friendly hello. G’Day or thanks for stopping by or even a simple hi could make a big difference. It tells people you’ve seen them.

. Encourage staff to move around the floor during quiet periods rather than staying behind the counter.

Know what you are losing

Many retailers only discover theft when a customer asks for something that should be on the shelf. By then, the loss may have been building for months.

Your POS can tell you a lot here.

  • Regular cycle counts. Don’t wait for an annual stocktake. Count high-risk categories weekly or fortnightly and compare the result with system stock.
  • Watch variance reports. Repeated shortfalls in the same lines point to a pattern.
  • Review refunds, voids and no-sales. Not all shrinkage walks out the front door. Unusual refund or void activity by user, time or terminal deserves a closer look.
  • Check deliveries against invoices. Supplier short-shipments are a form of loss too. Count deliveries before they reach the shelf.

Once you know where the losses are, you know what to move, what to lock up and when you need an extra person on the floor.

Record and report every incident

Reporting a $40 theft can feel pointless. Do it anyway. Reports help police identify repeat offenders and make the case for more local resources. Keep a simple incident log with the date, time, items, estimated value, description and footage reference.

Talk to neighbouring shops too. Many centres and shopping strips have informal groups that share information about repeat offenders, and some work directly with local police.

Look after your team

Dealing with theft and abuse wears people down. Check in with staff after an incident, and avoid rostering anyone alone at higher-risk times if you can. People who feel backed up stay longer and notice more.

What to do next

Walk your shop as if you were trying to steal from it. Note the blind spots and the easiest items to take. Move your highest-risk stock, set up a regular count for those lines, and brief your team on your safety procedure.

If you would like to see how stock variance, cycle counting and refund reporting work in Tower, Tim and Justin can take you through it. Call 1300 662 957 or email sales@towersystems.com.au.

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It’s Melbourne Cup Day and we’re here

November 3, 2026
1 Min read
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Today is Melbourne Cup day, a public holiday in Melbourne, where our head office is located.

We’re here tho, helping small business retailers – with human delivered support, smart AI ChatBot support and more.

All our contact points are open. And even though today won’t be busy, because the race really does stop the nation, we’ve catch up on other work.

Have a terrific Melbourne Cup day!

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Pricing after the surcharge ban: how to lift prices without upsetting customers

November 2, 2026
4 Min read
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Since 1 October 2026, Australian businesses can no longer add a surcharge to payments made by eftpos, Mastercard, Visa or American Express. For a lot of independent retailers, that small line at the bottom of the receipt covered a real cost. The cost hasn’t gone anywhere. You now have to recover it another way, and fairly.

We know of many retailers where the loss of the surcharge has hit hard. This blog post bring together advice for these retailers. What you do needs care.

Customers are paying attention. Online forums are full of complaints about businesses using the ban as cover for bigger price rises, or renaming the surcharge a “service fee” or “platform fee”. The ACCC has said plainly that businesses must not mislead customers about why prices changed. Get this wrong and you lose more than a few cents a sale.

Start with your actual card cost

Before touching a price, be sure of what acceptance costs you. Get your merchant statements for the last three months and calculate the effective rate: total fees divided by total card sales. Include terminal rental and any monthly minimums.

Many retailers find the true figure is lower than the surcharge they used to charge. If you charged 1.5 per cent but your effective cost is 0.9 per cent, a 1.5 per cent rise across the board isn’t cost recovery. Customers will notice, and some will tell you so.

While you’re at it, call your payments provider and ask whether your plan still suits your volume. Lower interchange caps are part of the reform, so it’s reasonable to ask how they flow through to you. If your POS lets you choose your payment provider, you also have room to shop around.

Lift prices selectively, not evenly

A flat percentage increase on every product is the easiest change to make. It’s also the easiest one for customers to spot. Use your sales data instead.

  • Leave known-value items alone. Every shop has products customers know the price of, like a newspaper, magazine, cat food, dog  – the everyday item people notice. Keep these steady. They anchor your price reputation.
  • Lift where you add value. Gifts, specialty lines, exclusive ranges and items that need advice carry less price sensitivity. A small rise here is rarely noticed.
  • Round sensibly. Moving $9.40 to $9.50 is gentler than moving $9.95 to $10.20. Price endings matter more than most think.
  • Review slow sellers separately. If nobody is buying it, a price rise won’t help. Decide whether it belongs in the range at all.

Your POS software should show you sales by item, category and margin. Sort by units sold and margin together, and the safest places for a modest increase stand out quickly.

Protect trust with how you communicate

Skip the sign apologising for higher prices. What you need is staff who can answer honestly when a customer asks.

  • Don’t tell customers prices rose “because of the surcharge ban” unless that is accurate and proportionate.
  • Remove all surcharge references from counter signage, invoices, receipts and your website.
  • Weekend and public holiday surcharges are not part of the card ban, but they must be clearly displayed if you use them.
  • Brief your team on a simple, truthful line, such as: “We stopped charging card fees, and like everyone our costs have gone up, so we have adjusted some prices.”

Find margin outside the shelf price

Pricing is one lever. The retailers who handle this well tend to look at their buying, their mix and their shrinkage at the same time.

  • Buying. Check supplier invoices for cost increases you haven’t passed on. Many shops absorb supplier rises for months without noticing.
  • Mix. Promote higher-margin lines through placement and counter displays. Changing what customers buy can do more than a price rise.
  • Shrinkage (theft). Every item that walks out unpaid is lost margin. Tighter stock counts often recover more than the surcharge ever did.

What to do now

Work out your effective card cost. Pick twenty known-value items to hold steady. Then look at your highest-margin categories for a small, considered increase. It’s a morning’s work, and it beats guessing.

If you want to see how sales and margin reporting can make this easier, Tim and Justin at Tower are happy to talk through your shop’s situation. Call 1300 662 957 or email sales@towersystems.com.au.

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Why local toy shops need software made for toy shops

November 1, 2026
4 Min read
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Online keeps taking more of the toy market, and plenty of local toy shops are doing it tough. A parent can order a toy on their phone in under a minute. A box turns up, and that’s the end of the relationship.

A good family-run toy shop gives you more. Someone helps you choose. Someone remembers your kid’s name and what they were into last year. The gift goes home wrapped. If it breaks, someone looks at it instead of telling you to start a return.

It’s personal.

The hard part is delivering that on a flat-out Saturday in December, with a queue at the counter and two staff. Software built for a generic shop won’t help you much there. Software built for a toy shop will.

Made here, supported here

Tower Systems has been making retail software in Australia since 1981, and we’re grateful to serve many local independent toy shops across the country. When you call us, you talk to a real person here, someone who knows the software and knows how a toy shop trades.

We don’t treat a toy shop like a café or a clothing store, because it isn’t one.

Remember birthdays for your customers

Birthdays drive toy retail. Tower can record the occasions your customers care about and remind them when one is coming up. A grandparent who bought a birthday present last March hears from you in February, before they’ve started searching online.

Loyalty for people who only come in twice a year

Most toy shop customers aren’t weekly regulars. They come in for birthdays, Christmas and maybe a school holiday treat. Points programs built for supermarkets mean nothing to them.

Tower has loyalty options for occasional and one-off shoppers, as well as for your regulars. Give an occasional customer a reason to remember you, and they’re more likely to come back to you than to a website.

Age checks at the counter

Some products need an age check. Tower flags them at the point of sale, so a casual staff member on their second shift knows to ask.

Serial numbers and repairs

Remote control cars, electronic toys and ride-ons come back sometimes. Tower tracks serial numbers, so you can find the sale, check the details and sort it out quickly.

If you do repairs, Tower manages those as well. You can log the job, track where it’s up to and tell the customer when it’s ready. Very few online sellers will fix anything.

Bundles instead of discounts

Put the toy together with the accessory that makes it more fun, or the batteries it needs, at a fixed price. The customer gets a better gift with less thinking. You get a bigger sale without marking down half the shop.

Partner with a local school, club or playgroup

This is one of the most effective ways for a toy shop to find new customers.

You partner with a local school, kinder, sports club or playgroup. Members save a percentage when they shop with you, and a percentage of what they spend goes to the group. Tower handles both at the counter.

The group then promotes you to its members, because every sale helps them raise funds. Families who’ve never been in your shop now have a reason to visit. What happens after that is up to your service.

Know what’s actually selling

Tower lets you compare suppliers and categories, and report by brand, licence, age group and more. You can look at your shop the way you actually think about it:

  • Which suppliers make you money, and which tie up cash in slow stock?
  • Which licence is hot, and which one peaked six months ago?
  • Have you got toddlers covered but nothing for tweens?
  • What sells for birthdays, and what only moves at Christmas?

Licensed lines can go from bestseller to dead stock very quickly. Seeing that early saves real money.

Shopify and Xero, connected

Tower connects directly with Shopify and Xero. Your online store and your shop work from the same stock, and your sales flow through to Xero without anyone retyping them.

It comes back to service

Family-run toy shops that do well are known for something: the advice, the wrapping, the repairs, or remembering your kid’s birthday. The software’s job is to make that easy, even when you’re busy.

If you’d like to see how Tower would work in your toy shop, Tim and Justin are happy to take you through it. Call 1300 662 957 (AU), 0800 444 367 (NZ) or email sales@towersystems.com.au.

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Is your shop haunted?

October 31, 2026
3 Min read
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Halloween has crept up on Australian retail. When we started out, 31 October was just another day. Now there are costumes in the shops, plastic skeletons in the garden centre and kids at the door expecting lollies.

The things that actually scare us in a shop don’t wear costumes, though. They hide in the stockroom and the supplier invoices, and some of them have been there for years.

Ghost stock

The system says you have four. The shelf says none. Nobody sold them, or at least nobody rang them up.

Ghost stock is sneaky because your POS won’t reorder something it thinks you still have. So the gap stays on the shelf, and a customer asks for it on a busy Saturday. Count your fast sellers every few weeks rather than waiting for the annual stocktake to give you a fright.

Zombie stock

Every shop has a few lines that won’t die. They’ve been on the shelf so long they’ve faded. You walk past them every day and stop seeing them.

Run a report of anything that hasn’t sold in 90 days. It’s rarely pleasant reading. Discount it, bundle it with something that sells, or send it back if the supplier will take it. That space and that cash are worth more doing something else.

Vampire costs

This one drains you slowly. A supplier puts a line up by 40 cents, then another goes up by a dollar. Nobody tells you, and the new price sits quietly on the invoice.

I’ve seen retailers absorb increases for six months without noticing. Check invoices against your cost prices when stock comes in, and adjust the sell price that day while you’re thinking about it.

The haunted till

The drawer opens and there’s no sale. A refund appears with no receipt. Usually there’s a boring explanation. Every so often there isn’t.

Your void, refund and no-sale reports will tell you who, when and how often. You don’t need to be suspicious of your team. You just need to look now and then.

The witching hour

It’s 6.15pm. The door is locked, your feet hurt, and you still need to balance the day. If that takes an hour with a calculator and a shoebox of dockets, your system is letting you down. It should take ten minutes.

Skeleton staff

Three people on a dead Tuesday morning and two on a flat-out Saturday afternoon. Most rosters are built on habit. Pull your sales by hour and day and roster to what the data shows, not to what you’ve always done.

While you’re at it, sell some Halloween stock

Halloween is now a real trading event for gift shops, newsagents, toy shops and garden centres. Put Halloween lines at the front of the shop for the last week of October, and put lollies at the counter. On 1 November, mark down whatever is left and clear it. Packing it away for next year just creates next year’s zombie stock.

Then look at what sold, so next year’s order is better than a guess.

If any of these sound familiar, we can show you how Tower’s reports bring us out of hiding. Call 1300 662 957 or email sales@towersystems.com.au.

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Gift shop software that helps you stay the course

October 30, 2026
4 Min read
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Gift shops come and go. Walk down most shopping strips in Australia or New Zealand and you’ll see it. A new shop opens with a fresh fit-out and a lot of hope. Another closes. A third changes hands, sometimes more than once in a few years.

There are plenty of reasons. Rent, staffing, the wrong mix of stock, an owner who is simply worn out. But we see a pattern in the gift shops that last. They’re consistent. They buy well, they know what’s selling, and the owner isn’t buried in admin every night.

That consistency is bankable. It’s what keeps a shop profitable through a slow winter, and it’s what a buyer pays for when the time comes to sell. Good software won’t do the work for you. It can make that consistency a lot easier to achieve.

A gift shop can carry hundreds of different products from dozens of suppliers. Every delivery brings paperwork. Keying it in by hand is slow, and it’s where mistakes creep in.

Tower Systems imports supplier invoices for you, with AI tools that handle most formats. Product data loads when you scan a new item, so the description and category are there without typing. Some of our customers tell us the AI tools save them hours every week.

Hampers and gift packs are another time sink in a lot of shops. Our software treats a hamper as one product made from its parts. Sell it, and the candle, the chocolate and the card all come out of stock at once. You know what you have without counting.

If you sell online, your Shopify, WooCommerce, Magento or BigCommerce store stays in step with the shop. Sell an item at the counter and the website knows. Click and collect orders are managed in the same system. Gift cards, special orders and club or group pricing are covered too.

Saving time is half of it. The other half is making better calls about stock, pricing and space.

Gift retail is seasonal. Tower Systems tracks which products sell in the lead-up to Mother’s Day, Christmas and other key periods, so next year’s order is based on what actually sold rather than a hunch. The embedded AI tools surface insights you’d otherwise find weeks or months later, if at all. Things like a supplier whose range has quietly stopped moving, or a category that deserves more shelf space.

Loyalty works the same way. Instead of a points scheme customers forget about, you can print a voucher on the receipt that brings them back within a set time. You can record special dates and preferences too, so your team can offer the personal service that sets a local gift shop apart.

None of this replaces the owner’s eye for product. It backs it up with facts, and over time that’s what steers a shop toward steady profit.

Staying the course also means having people you can rely on. Our help desk is based in Australia and New Zealand, and it’s open on Saturdays when gift shops are busiest. You talk to a person, not a script. You also choose when to install software updates, so nothing changes at the counter in the middle of December.

The cost should be predictable too. Some software companies take a percentage of every sale. We don’t. You pick your own EFTPOS provider and keep control of what you pay.

If you’re opening a gift shop, buying one or looking to strengthen the one you have, we’d like to show you how Tower Systems could help. Already on other software? Send us your data first and we’ll confirm whether it can be brought across.

You can read more about Tower Systems for gift shops, call 1300 662 957 (0800 444 367 in New Zealand) or email sales@towersystems.com.au.

Contacting a human is easy.

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POS software made for local independent pet shops

October 29, 2026
3 Min read
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Ask a pet owner where they get advice and plenty will name their local pet shop. Not a big-box store. Not a website.

That’s because the local shop knows them. It knows the family down the road has a new puppy that isn’t settling on its food. It knows which customer keeps a bearded dragon and what the enclosure needs. It remembers when the dog is due for worming.

Big pet businesses sell a lot of product. We’d argue local pet shops matter more to local pets. And we think they deserve software built for the way they work, not a generic system they have to work around.

A pet shop is not a simple shop

Think about a normal day. Birdseed sold by the kilo. A collar in a particular size and colour. A live fish. A dog in for a groom. A conversation about changing a cat’s diet.

Most POS software handles the barcode scan at the counter and not much else. The rest ends up on paper, or in the owner’s head.

We built Tower Systems for pet shops to deal with all of it. Bulk food and treats sell by weight, in whole or part quantities. Collars, apparel and bedding are tracked by colour, size and style. You can record the history and care of live animals, and track high-value items by serial number.

The customer side is where a local shop really wins. You can record microchip numbers. You can recall customers when worming, or a similar product, is due. You can print care notes on the receipt, like how to move a puppy onto a new food. And you can market to people based on what they’ve actually bought, so your offers make sense to them.

Promotions work the way a local shop needs them to. Buy-one-get-one deals. Coffee-card style loyalty. Bundles too, such as a tank, filter and starter food at one price. Bundles lift the spend per visit, and they’re harder to price-check item by item online.

If you run a grooming salon or a DIY dog wash, you can track that work in the same system as your retail sales and let owners know when their pet is ready to collect. Repairs and servicing are tracked at no extra cost, whether it’s an aquarium pump or a set of clippers that needs sharpening. Recurring billing is there if you need it.

Then there’s the admin. Supplier invoices import automatically. The built-in AI tools write product descriptions for your online store and help you make sense of your reports. The software connects with Shopify, WooCommerce, Magento and BigCommerce, plus Xero, Tanda and Deputy. You pick your own EFTPOS provider, and we don’t take a cut of your sales.

The people behind it

Our help desk is in Australia and New Zealand. When you call, you get a person who knows independent retail, not someone reading a script.

You also decide when to install updates. We release them regularly, often with improvements customers asked for, but they go in when it suits you. Not in the middle of a busy Saturday.

If you run an independent pet shop, we’d like to show you how it works. Bring your own situations to a demo: a bulk food sale, a grooming job, a worming reminder. If you’re switching from other software, send us your data first and we’ll confirm whether we can bring it across.

You can read more about Tower Systems for pet shops, call 1300 662 957 (0800 444 367 in New Zealand) or email sales@towersystems.com.au.

Contacting a human is easy.

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Retailers: You choose when to update your POS software

October 28, 2026
3 Min read
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At Tower Systems we give local specialty retailers agency. We think you should decide when to install a software update. We don’t push it onto your counter on our schedule.

We release updates regularly. Many of them include improvements our customers asked for. When an update is ready, it’s up to you when it goes in.

It sounds like a small thing. Independent retailers tell us it isn’t.

Why forced updates hurt independent retailers

Plenty of software companies update on their own schedule. The update arrives whether you are ready or not.

For a small retailer, timing matters. Nobody wants a change to their POS in the week before Christmas, in the middle of a stocktake or on a busy Saturday morning. A new screen layout or a changed workflow can slow the counter at exactly the wrong moment.

You know your business. You know when it’s quiet, when your experienced staff are rostered on and when you have time to learn something new. That knowledge should decide when an update goes in.

What goes into our updates

Our updates are shaped by the people who use the software. Through our Software Ideas platform, customers suggest improvements and every customer can vote on them. Those suggestions guide what we build.

So an update from Tower Systems usually includes something a retailer like you asked for. It might be a faster way to process a supplier invoice. It might be a new report or a tweak to a screen you use a hundred times a day.

We want you to have these improvements. We just think you should choose when they arrive.

Why we do it this way

I’ve run retail businesses and built software for them for more than 40 years. Independent retailers are business owners. They make hundreds of decisions every week about stock, staff, pricing and the shop floor. I think it’s odd for a software company to take one of those decisions away from them.

Giving you control over update timing is a matter of respect. It’s your business and your counter. It should be your call.

Independent retailers tell us they value this. Some update the day a release is available. Others wait for a quiet Monday. Both are fine with us. If you’d like help, our local help desk team can talk you through what’s in an update before you install it.

Ask before you choose

If you’re comparing POS software, ask each company one question: who decides when updates are installed? The answer tells you a lot about how they see their customers.

To talk with us about Tower Systems:

Australia: 1300 662 957

New Zealand: 0800 444 367

Email: sales@towersystems.com.au

Contacting a human is easy.

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No script, just a person who knows retail

October 27, 2026
3 Min read
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Who picks up the phone when you call the POS software help desk?

When you call the Tower Systems help desk, a person answers. They are in Australia or New Zealand. They don’t read from a script.

It could be Mitch, Minh, Roy, James, Tash, Travis, Simon, Paul, Michael or someone else on the team. Real people with real names, not an anonymous avatar or a generic email address. Real people delivering real support. Retail is personal, after all.

W’ve built software for independent retailers since 1981. In that time we’ve watched plenty of software companies move support offshore, add phone trees and hand staff a flowchart. We understand why. It’s cheaper.

It is also worse for the retailer on the other end of the line. So we haven’t done it.

Why scripts let retailers down

A script works when every problem looks the same. Retail problems rarely do.

Think about a Saturday morning. There’s a queue at the counter. A barcode won’t scan, or a supplier invoice has landed with the wrong pricing. You don’t want to be asked whether you’ve restarted your computer. You want someone who listens, works out what’s actually going on and helps you fix it.

Scripted support makes you prove you’ve done steps one to five before anyone will think about step six. That costs you time. Time at the counter costs you sales.

It also costs trust. Most retailers can tell within a minute whether the person on the line understands their business.

What you get from a person who can think

Our help desk team knows our software well. They also know the businesses we serve: newsagents, gift shops, garden centres, jewellers, farm supply businesses and more. They know what a lotto reconciliation looks like or how a layby works, because they talk to retailers about these things every day.

Without a script, they can do the obvious thing. Ask a question that fits your situation. Skip the steps that don’t apply. Notice when a small fault points to a bigger one. Follow up when they said they would.

Being local helps too. Our team works in your time zone and knows Australian and New Zealand trading conditions. Support is available six days a week, with after-hours help for urgent system-down problems.

I think this is the part people don’t see in a software demonstration. Features matter. But the day something goes wrong, the person who answers matters more.

Where AI helps, and where it hands over

We use AI too. Our help desk chatbot has been running for more than three years. Customers tell us it saves them time on quick questions, and that it answers in plain language.

It is there for the simple things, at any hour. It is not a wall between you and a person. When a problem needs judgement, experience or a conversation, you can reach a human on our team.

We chose that balance on purpose. The chatbot takes care of the quick questions, so our team has more time for the calls that need them.

A question to ask any software company

If you are comparing retail software, call each company’s help desk before you sign. See who answers. See whether they listen or read.

Then call ours.

Australia: 1300 662 957

New Zealand: 0800 444 367

Email: sales@towersystems.com.au

Contacting a human is easy.

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Software built for the way stockfeed and farm supply businesses work

October 26, 2026
5 Min read
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A stockfeed, produce or farm supply business manages bulk stock, organise deliveries, prepare feed mixes, look after customer accounts and source products customers cannot find on your shelves. All at once.

Tower Systems brings these jobs together in specialist software. Locally made and supported, it helps connect your counter, stockroom, delivery vehicles and online shop.

Manage deliveries and charge for what you supply

Deliveries are a core part of many farm supply businesses. Your software needs to help manage the work from the initial order through to dispatch.

Tower Systems includes dispatch management for multiple trucks and multiple deliveries per vehicle. Integration with Allotrac provides an option for businesses with more advanced delivery requirements.

When selling from a bulk supply tanker or truck, you need to charge farmers for what you actually provide. Support for weight-based and fractional quantities helps you handle these sales accurately.

Retailer Roam™ also supports selling away from the shop, including from a truck. It can operate without an internet connection, helping you serve customers beyond reliable mobile coverage.

Buy in bulk and make your own mixes

Your own feed mixes can give customers a reason to choose your business.

Tower Systems supports buying raw materials and managing their mixing or packaging into finished products. This helps you connect the ingredients you purchase with the products you prepare and sell.

Buy in bulk, mix to your recipe and charge accurately for the finished product. Whether customers buy a standard bag or a specific quantity, your software should support the way you trade.

Keep customer accounts, quotes and invoices under control

Strong general debtors facilities are important when account customers represent a substantial part of your business.

Tower Systems combines customer account management with quote and invoice management tools. You can prepare quotes, manage invoices and keep track of what customers owe within the same system you use to run the shop.

That matters when a customer’s purchase involves more than a quick counter transaction. A quoted order, a scheduled delivery and an account sale are connected parts of the same customer relationship.

Loyalty options provide another way to recognise repeat business. Choose an approach that farmers value and that makes commercial sense for your store.

Say yes to special orders

You cannot carry every product every customer might need. You can, however, make special orders part of your service.

Tower Systems supports bringing in and managing special orders for customers. This helps you look beyond the stock on your shelves when responding to a request.

For an independent farm supply business, that is an opportunity to compete through service. You can help customers source what they need while keeping the order organised within your retail software.

Spend less time entering supplier invoices

Supplier paperwork can consume time that would be better spent serving customers or managing the business.

Tower Systems includes AI tools for importing just about any supplier invoice. These tools help reduce manual data entry and the work involved in bringing supplier invoice information into your system.

An integrated barcode lookup tool provides access to 1.6 billion barcodes, helping you find product information without starting every product record from scratch.

Together, these tools target everyday administration that can otherwise slow your team down.

Connect your shop with Shopify

Online selling should be part of your business, not a separate stock-management task.

Tower Systems integrates with Shopify, synchronising product descriptions, pricing and images. Online sales flow back into the software to help keep inventory accurate.

This gives customers another way to buy while connecting online activity with your existing retail operation.

See business performance without preparing another report

You should not have to find spare time to assemble reports before you can understand how your business is performing.

The Tower Systems Insights Dashboard provides business performance insights around the clock, without you having to prepare them manually.

It gives you a way to check performance when it suits you, rather than adding another reporting job to your day.

Choose local support and a voice in future development

Software is a long-term business relationship. The people behind it matter.

Tower Systems is locally made and supported, with a help desk team based in Australia and New Zealand. Human-delivered support is available six days a week, with after-hours assistance for urgent system-down issues. Training and ongoing software updates are included in its monthly rental model.

Local produce and farm supply businesses also have an opportunity to influence the software’s future direction. Tower Systems draws on feedback from its community of store owners to guide development.

As retail evolves, that connection matters. Your practical experience can help inform the tools you will use next.

Put your real business needs into a demonstration

Ask Tower Systems to demonstrate the work you do every week: importing a supplier invoice, preparing a quote, managing a customer account, organising a special order and dispatching a delivery.

Include a bulk sale from a truck, a product made to your own recipe and a Shopify order. Then look at how the Insights Dashboard helps you monitor performance.

To arrange a demonstration, call Tower Systems on 1300 662 957.

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The Sunday reset: four questions every retailer should ask

October 25, 2026
3 Min read
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Most small retailers spend the week reacting. A delivery arrives, a staff member calls in sick, a customer needs something now. There’s rarely time to step back and look at the business as a whole.

That’s why we like the idea of a Sunday reset. Set aside 30 minutes, ideally away from the counter, with a coffee and your numbers. Look back at the week just gone and decide what you’ll do differently in the week ahead.

It doesn’t have to be Sunday. What matters is the habit. A short, regular review beats a long one you never get around to.

What’s working?

Start with the good news. Which products, categories and suppliers did well this week? Was a particular day or time of day stronger than usual? If a display or a promotion lifted sales, note it so you can repeat it.

It’s easy to skip this question. Don’t. Knowing what works tells you where to put more stock, more space and more of your team’s attention.

What’s not working?

Now the harder one. Look for stock that hasn’t moved in weeks, categories losing ground and margins that have slipped. Dead stock ties up cash and shelf space you could use for something that sells.

The answer might be a markdown, a better position in the shop or a decision to stop reordering. The point is to make the call rather than let slow stock sit.

What am I missing out on?

This is the question most retailers never ask. Are there products customers keep asking for that you don’t carry? Lines that sell well in similar shops but not yours? Times of the week when you could do more with the foot traffic you already have?

Missed opportunities don’t show up as a loss on a report. That’s why they’re easy to overlook, and often worth more than fixing what’s broken.

Is theft an issue?

Behind the scenes, in a quiet and secure way, we track keystrokes and let you know if we think theft may be an issue. We show you where to look. This has saved local indie retailers tens of thousands of dollars.

Most weeks you’ll find nothing. Checking regularly is what lets you spot the week when something is wrong.

Where the answers come from

The trouble with a Sunday reset is the preparation. If you have to pull reports, export spreadsheets and work through the figures yourself, 30 minutes quickly becomes three hours. Most owners give up after a few weeks.

For Tower Systems customers, that work is already done. The Insights Dashboard is an AI-facilitated tool that gives you answers to all four questions, ready when you sit down. There’s nothing to prepare and no report to build. It works around the clock, so the insights are there on Sunday morning or any other time that suits you.

Every Tower Systems customer gets the Insights Dashboard free. It isn’t an add-on or a premium tier. We include it because we think every independent retailer should be able to see clearly how their business is going.

If you already use Tower Systems, open the dashboard this Sunday and try the four questions. If you don’t, we’d be happy to show you what it would reveal about your shop. Call 1300 662 957 (0800 444 367 in New Zealand) or email sales@towersystems.com.au.

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