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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Being local matters to our #smallbusiness POS software company

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Local small business retailers know this more than most.

Customers like supporting businesses that support their local community. Living and being local is a valuable point of difference for local small retail businesses.

The same is true for software companies serving small business retailers: being local matters.

Tower Systems is local. We develop POS software in Australia and New Zealand for specialist retailers:  jewellers, bike shops, garden centres, newsagents, pet shops, toy shops, adult shops, gift shops and firearms retailers.

We support local suppliers, local marketing groups, local industry associations and make our management and software teams available for local business interaction.

Our local relationships help us make better software and back this with better service.

Tower Systems at Lottery West conference in Perth

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Tower Systems appreciated the opportunity to mix with lottery retailers in Perth last week at the annual Lotterywest conference.

Catching up with many clients using our smart newsagency software as well as talking with newsagents and lottery retailers not using our software, the conference was a terrific business building event where valuable business growth ideas were shared.

Networking with small business retailers away from the software company office is important – from being in the shops of customers to business conferences such as this one.

Tower Systems embraces opportunities to meet with small business owners and their suppliers for it is at gatherings such as this that we explore further enhancement of the software to serve retailers and suppliers. 

With more than three hundred customers in Western Australia, Tower is well established in the WA marketplace.

Australian #smallbusiness POS software on show at Sydney Gift Fair

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Screen Shot 2015-09-09 at 6.43.35 amTower Systems is proud to have its #smallbusiness POS software on show at the Sydney Gift Fair at Glebe Island from this weekend. We are bringing new software and new facilities to the show to share with attendees. It appears from the roster of suppliers that ours is the only Australian designed and developed POS software product on show.

Serving well over 3,000 retail businesses in Australia and New Zealand, Tower Systems is well resourced to serve specialist retail businesses in a range of niche retail channels.

We are on stand P61 at the Sydney Gift Fair.

Repairs software helps improve customer service & workshop management

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Here at Tower Systems we serve a number of specialist retail channels with repairs management software tuned to the needs of businesses in those channels. It is a core part of our smart small business POS software for these retail channels:

Workshop management software, or repairs software as we call it, can be used for managing other parts of business where services are provided including where you may outsource services outside the business. We provide tracking, billing and other tools in facilities developed with several different types of businesses offering these services.

Serving a number of specialist retail channels as we do helps us provide more comprehensive and flexible software.

Using our software for your type of business you can systemise the promotion and management of repairs services and through this drive more business for your workshop.

A good workshop is a valuable point of difference – hence the importance of promoting this and bringing consistency to the use of the services.

Sunday #smallbusiness retail management advice

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Employees are your front line of any independent retail business. They can make or break your business. You hire them, train them, motivate them and fire them. Their performance is on you.

Here are eight tips to encourage their engagement:

  1. Train them.
  2. Communicate your expectations.
  3. Congratulate them.
  4. Be open with them.
  5. Ensure they know the goal of the business.
  6. Give them responsibility.
  7. Listen to their ideas, seek their counsel.
  8. Thank them.

Small businesses are unique in many ways. Employees play a vital role in reflecting and leveraging that uniqueness.

Tower Systems helps small business employers to encourage and manage employee engagement in a range of ways in our specialty retail software.

Is your #smallbusiness POS software help desk open on a Saturday?

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The Tower Systems small business POS software help desk opens for business in five minutes, like every Saturday. This live, office based, service has been a fixture of our customer service for many years. It is in addition to our 24/7 help desk service managed via mobile phones.

The office based POS software help desk service on a Saturday service helps us deliver a more complete service on a busy day of the week, logging into client businesses at their request and under their watch to resolve questions and issues. The service also includes providing personal training and business management assistance.

The Saturday help desk service provided by Tower Systems is another point of difference for us, a point of difference of which we are most proud.

Helping small business retailers transact with structure and certainty

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IMG_9366Small business retailers can offer shoppers clear communication and certainty of Lay-By and trading rules by using smart receipts in the smart POS software from Tower Systems.

It is easy to include transaction rules on receipts for all manner of transactions. This is a core facility from the Tower software and has been for years.

What separates Tower Systems in the POS software space is the flexibility of these and other receipt presentation and management tools.

Ensuing customers receive terms and conditions, care instructions, offers and other communications appropriate to their purchase provides the Tower Systems community of 3,000+ small business retailers with certainty. Retailers, their employees and their customers love this.

This is another way smart POS software helps small business retailers compete with big businesses.

Tower Systems is Platinum Sponsor for Pet Expo next month

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Screen Shot 2015-09-08 at 7.37.52 pmTower Systems is the proud Platinum Sponsor of the 2015 Pet Expo national Trade Show on the Gold Coast next month.

We appreciate the opportunity and the recognition for our industry standard pet shop software.

We will have new software on show and exciting announcements to share with pet shop owners and managers at the expo.

Tower Systems is grateful for another opportunity to demonstrate practice support for independent business operators in the pet products retail channel.

Pet shop owners looking for the best pet shop software respected across the country and backed by excellent support are welcome to reach out to us at the expo, online and in-store to see more of how Tower Systems can help.

How a $1,474.50 voucher wins a customer for life

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IMG_9365 (1)The customer purchasing a $15,000.00 diamond ring is thrilled to receive a voucher offering $1,474.50 off their next purchase as it feels like a genuine discount off the ring they purposefully chose and an opportunity to save on another purchase.

The loyalty rewards mechanic being used here can win a customer for life for an engaged jewellery business.

While some shoppers will realise the cost of the discount is embedded in the pricing policy of the business, plenty of customers will not and will spend in a way that reflects delight a the opportunity.

The technology behind the serving of the VIP member voucher is comprehensive and powerful. It provides engaged retailers with tools that enable them to drive basket depth, shopper return and product stock turn.

While appearing to be simple, the software and supporting business practices are proving to be commercially valuable for many of the retail partners of Tower Systems.

Helping small business retailers cut theft in their shops

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Small business POS software company Tower Systems is running training tomorrow for small business retailers on how to cut theft in a retail business. This specialist delivered training will cover strategies and tactics for cutting employee theft and shopper theft in any type of small retail business.

‘Drawing on considerable experience working with retailers and the police, this free training from Tower Systems will help retailers mitigate the cost of theft in their businesses.

Independent bike retailers benefit from specialist bike shop software helping with repairs, shopper loyalty and supplier relationships

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The latest release of the Tower Systems bike shop software offers independent bike retailers even better tools for serving customers, nurturing loyalty and making the business more valuable.

As the largest specialist bike shop software supplier in Australia and armed with new stronger bike shop software Tower Systems is set to help even more bike retailers drive efficiency and compete through high street stores with aggressive online bike retailers.

We back our specialist bike shop software with specialist bike shop software training – developed specifically for this purpose to help bike retailers learn more from their software and to extract more value for their businesses. This is core to our service as a vertical software company – ensuring we deliver tools unique to the needs of our customers so they may, in turn, deliver services that are unique to their customers.

Our customers love that in dealing with us they are able to deal directly with the software development company. We develop our software. When we promise a change we deliver it. We are not relying on another company to deliver this. This is important as our customers can trust us to deliver tools that help them build trust with their customers.

To consider the Tower Bike Shop Software for your business, call one of our account managers and they will arrange a personal face-to-face demonstration where you can have your questions answered and where you can see the software for yourself in your own situation.

Bike retailers love the Tower Bike Shop Software for many reasons:

  1. It is software designed specifically for bike retailers.
  2. Includes bike workshop management facilities.
  3. Excellent shopper loyalty facilities with four different loyalty approaches available.
  4. Regularly updated software. You choose when you update – to suit your business.
  5. Software enhancements based on bike shop user suggestions.
  6. Live in-store face-to-face training.
  7. More than 130 training videos for refresher training.
  8. Live help desk support where you talk to a human on the phone. No faceless email type support here.
  9. Electronic invoice and stock file connections with bike shop suppliers.
  10. Free weekly online user workshops for bike shop owners and staff offering group training and networking opportunities.
  11. Large user community. More users = more value for you.
  12. Australian made.

No matter what size your bike shop, this software is certain to be ideal given that it’s already in use in large and small bike retail businesses.

How specialist garden centre software helps small business garden centres compete against national chains

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Locally owned garden shops are specialist businesses with local community connections. They are staffed by people with good knowledge and owned by people with a local commitment beyond what any mass retailer could match.

These highly specialised and locally connected garden centres need software that can help them leverage their local commitment and service focus. This is one reason they need specialist garden centre software and it is one reason garden centre owners love the Tower Systems software.

The specialisation in our garden centre is extraordinary. In our specialist garden centre software offer access to facilities and tools that are unique to garden centres. This is what sets us apart. We are able to do this thanks to the wonderful support and assistance from our garden centre colleagues who guide our software development and take us deep into their businesses to understand needs that would otherwise not be evidence to software developers.

This is what being a vertical market software company is all about – going deep into the requirements for a retail niche and deeply understanding these so that the solution you ultimately develop is useful and valuable to the needs of the business.

Take repotting. This is a task that is important to many garden centres and nurseries. In the Tower Systems software there are facilities to help manage this and the commercial implications of this. What we do is unique and useful in many garden centre situations. It helps them accrue greater value from growing plants.

Packed with time saving facilities that guide efficiency, provide valuable business insights and help garden centre owners and managers transact sales accuracy, this software is made for you.

Developed with garden centre owners and managers, our software is regularly enhanced – to keep it current and relevant to your evolving needs.

Garden centre owners love our shopper rewards and customer loyalty facilities. These tools help bring back shoppers sooner.

In businesses affected by seasons, our easy to use rewards tools could be the competitive edge you need to compete.

The latest release of the Tower Systems garden centre software is on show this week at an NGIA event. We are thrilled to be showing offer a new outdoor labelling tool that boosts the professional representation of plants outdoors in a weatherproof way.

Sunday retail management advice: five tips to save any retailer time

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  1. Tell suppliers who do not provide you with an electronic invoice that you will cut them off – they are costing you time.
  2. Put barcode and price labels on fewer products. If they have a barcode, use it.
  3. Stop ordering replenishment stock manually.
  4. Stop entering sales data into a spreadsheet for analysis.
  5. Run your business with processes as well as checks and balances that enable it to open and close without you.

Aussie POS software helps specialist retailers improve customer service

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The POS software developed by Australian POS software company helps retailers pursue better customer service experiences.

From fast and accurate processing of sales to easier reordering to easy handling of customer queries, retailers are able to use the software to drive outcomes that focus on the customer experience.

With customer service being a key differentiator for retail businesses, having access to customer experience centric tools can be a competitive advantage.

Tower Systems goes beyond providing access to excellent customer service tools. It provides training and personal business integration assistance to help retailers themselves leverage the benefits Tower promotes as being in its software.

Owning and operation retail businesses ourselves, we understand the demands for better customer experiences and the commercial value to a retail business.

Every week we offer free training opportunities, access to useful articles and access to training videos all designed to help retailers improve the customer experience in their shops.

The tell of a software company struggling for relevance

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A tell that a software company is challenged for relevance is when they respond to a competitor’s launch of innovative software by promoting software from other companies that they claim covers the same application areas.

Good software companies let their own software speak for them.

Innovation is expensive and time consuming. Promoting what someone else has done in order to spoil the innovation of a competitor takes a few minutes. It shows the operators of a business up for what they are and are not.

Software for firearms retailers helps drive business efficiency

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The latest firearms shop software from Tower Systems offers even more specialist facilities developed specifically for firearms retailers – further cementing the position of Tower Systems as best-practice software company in this space.

Offering specialised firearms business management tools in inventory management, customer engagement and regulatory compliance, Tower Systems is delivering to firearms retailers through its software a suite of tools commensurate with the specialist nature of these retail businesses.

This is why the Tower software is a preferred solution to off the shelf generic POS software packages.

Tower Systems is committed to continue to evolve the specialist firearms business management tools in the software, working with retailers and their managers to ensure the software evolved in tune with marketplace and regulatory needs.

This is what being a specialist software company, a vertical market software company, is all about – serving unique needs through unique facilities designed to be fit for purpose.

The folks at Tower maintain close contact with firearms retailers, seeking advice, feedback and suggestions for the making of even more useful and meaningful software to serve the needs of these unique and regulated businesses.

Here are some of the specialist facilities firearms retailers rely on through the Tower Systems specialist software:

  1. Age check. Bringing certainty to your sales process to ensure processes are followed. This helps if you are every audited.
  2. Permit to acquire. Comprehensive facilities developed with guidance from authorities – supporting your retail specialisation.
  3. Serial number tracking. Track everything from the moment it arrives in your business. Demonstrates professional control over all you sell.
  4. Special customer orders. These are a breeze. Bringing structure to your processes. Text your customers when their order comes in.
  5. Professional, structured and operating to your rules.
  6. Webstore Integration. With flexibility people like.
  7. Gift vouchers.
  8. Loyalty options from points through to $$ off vouchers to help encourage people to spend more in a visit.
  9. Intelligent receipts with product care information.
  10. Easy handling of bundled offers.
  11. Supplier performance
  12. Employee performance management and rewards.
  13. Importing electronic invoices from suppliers. We work with for you.
  14. Inventory management to guide you to a more efficient inventory level.
  15. Theft reduction tools to reduce the opportunity of employee theft.
  16. It’s easy to use.
  17. It’s regularly updated based on user suggestions.

Specialist pet shop software helps small business local pet shops compete against the big chains

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In the pet retail space you have the big national chains and you have local pet shops. Tower Systems only serves local pet shops with our specialist pet shop software designed specifically to serve the local needs of these community connected pet shops.

Just as a local pet shop is a specialist business, so to is our software company – a specialist pet shops software business for specialist pet shops.

With over one hundred pet shops partnering with us, we are positioned to grow the software beyond what it offers today thanks to pet shop owners and managers who work with us and guide us on enhancement we can deliver to make the software even more useful.

Pet retailers are saving time in processing invoices from Masterpet, Kongs, Pet Pacific, Dr Neil’s and Pet Premier into their businesses.

Electronic invoices from these suppliers mean you can accurately arrive an invoice in seconds.

Pet retailers using our pet shop software love this facility. The dollar savings are significant. There are other benefits too such as accurate selling, business-building loyalty facilities, easy reporting, theft management and much more.

From easy scanning of items at the sales counter to producing reorder reports for your wholesalers, this software provides the business a framework through which you can operate. It reduces uncertainly and It provides employees guidance as they go about their work.

Here is why this pet shop software is better than off the shelf POS software:

  1. It is software designed specifically for pet shops.
  2. Pet shop facilities such as powerful loyalty options.
  3. Business reports that are easy to read and understand.
  4. Includes facilities ideal for businesses run under management.
  5. Cuts employee and customer theft.
  6. Manages product pricing to ensure stock is priced to your requirements.
  7. Tracks sales by time allowing you to manage a more efficient roster.
  8. The ability to read electronic invoices from suppliers.
  9. Eftpos integrated for faster and more streamlined selling at the counter.
  10. We are members and supporters of Pet Industry Association of Australia.

No matter what size your pet shop, this software delivers valuable benefits.

How specialist gift and homewares shop software from Tower Systems helps small business gift shops to compete

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Gift shops are unique businesses. They offer a carefully selected range of products, supported with personal service and displayed in a locally appropriate way. Gift shop owners take pride in being different, offering an experience unique compared to department stores and national groups.

It is these local gift shops offering personally selected products for local shoppers on which Tower Systems focuses its services in the gift shop management space.

The Tower gift shop software has been developed specifically for locally owned gift shops. It is specialist software, packed with tools aimed to serve unique needs of these specialist retail businesses.

It is this commitment to specialisation that helps Tower Systems to be in such a strong position with gift shops, serving hundreds of businesses in this specialist retail space. These retailers help us further develop the software to provide even deeper connections with the specialist requirements of gift and homewares businesses.

In addition to providing excellent gift shop software, Tower Systems also provides sound advice to help gift and homewares retailers improve the in-store experience.

One example of gift software management advice is this advice on shop floor product rotation:

  1. Rotate gifts at least fortnightly. By rotate, we mean major change, so the gift department and every gift display looks completely fresh.
  2. Each placement / display ought to tell a story. By this, we mean it ought to appeal to the same shopper. There is no point in putting gifts mixed in with gifts for guys.
  3. Follow a treasure hunt principle: place displays to encourage people further into your shop. Displays themselves should present surprise to shoppers. Do not place gifts in a line on shelves. Be creative with displays that are visually enticing.
  4. The more targeted each display the better chance it will work.
  5. On a daily basis, through a structured (rostered) plan, clean gifts and shelves. Dust blocks sales.
  6. At least weekly, call out a gift on Facebook with a carefully written post about why the gift is useful.
  7. Be disciplined about quitting gifts that are not working for you. The longer you carry an underperforming item in your business the more its costs you.
  8. Manage your gift displays to drive traffic, not to leech off existing traffic.

Garden centre software on show at NGIA garden trade day

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11953031_10155957155505142_5730827592559010478_nTower Systems is grateful for the opportunityn to present its garden centre software to garden centre owners and employees at the NGIA industry trade day today in Sydney. It was a terrific event with plenty of attendees including prospects and existing customers.

Being out at industry events like this event today to present our software and engage is vital to the development and support of specialist software for specialist retailers.

We are a software company that appreciates being close to customers and suppliers to our customers. Days like today help us create better software.

POS software knowledge base enhancements

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Tower Systems updates articles and resources on its Knowledge Base regularly. We advise customer by email, proving links to enhanced and new content. Recent enhancement of the knowledge base included:

Here is why Jewellers love the specialist jeweller management software from Tower Systems

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In a recent Q&A, Tower Systems was asked about its specialist jeweller management software and why the software is so popular with hundreds of jewellers in Australia and New Zealand.

The Q&A started with a query about what is unique about Tower in the jeweller space:

  1. We are a software company, not a consulting business using software as a mechanism for driving consulting fees.
  2. We are in your business. Not a contractor we hire, not over the phone, when we install the system we do it in your business, working with you.
  3. Second-hand goods. These facilities have been developed with jewellers and authorities so you have the right records on hand.
  4. These facilities have been developed to help you streamline workflow and keep in close contact with customers throughout.
  5. Manufactured goods. From concept to manufacture, you can manage and track what you make for whom and when. This is a billing and management asset.
  6. Our LayBy facilities have been developed in close consultation with jewellers, making them unique and comprehensive.
  7. We offer more facilities than any other system. These offer you flexibility for driving purchases in the current visit and for bringing shoppers back more often.
  8. You have access to extraordinary customisation through settings, enabling you to represent your business how you want.
  9. Embedded in our software are facilities for tracking how the software is used. This enables us to help you reduce employee theft.
  10. Retail focussed. The big challenge of retail is to uncover opportunities which you can still leverage them. We have smart reports which unlock for you information about your business which can help you here.

Next, we fielded some other questions about our jeweller software that may be of interest to readers here.

Is the software multi-store compatible?

Yes, you can use the software in multiple retail locations as well as retail and a warehouse plus from home and even on the road or at trade shows. Through the multi-store facilities you can see stock on hand in other stores, move stock between stores and report by store or the group.

Using the multi-store facilities, additional stores don’t need to have the software installed, saving time and management overhead.

Does a retailer need to be in-store to access their system?

No, jewellers and their managers can access the software from anywhere – with appropriate security options available to protect the business data.

The security around out of store access is comprehensive – ensuring that data is protected.

What type of reports can the system generate?

This question is kind of like how long is a piece of string. The software has more than 100 reports. Each report was either in the software because we wanted it there or because a business using the software asked for it. We have many jewellery business specific facilities such as fast seller reporting, stock turn, return on investment, supplier comparison, employee sales reporting, sales by time. The opportunities are considerable.

The valuations facility includes customer documentation necessary to serve a variety of valuation needs. The valuations facility has been developed closely with a variety of jewellers and their employees.

The Tower Systems Jeweller software also offers comprehensive manufactured goods, repairs and second-hand goods facilities – all of which have been developed with jewellers in a variety of situations from single operator to multi store group – in Australia, New Zealand and several overseas countries. Each of these three areas of the software – manufactured goods, repairs and second-hand goods facilities – is specific to the needs of jewellers.

We are proud to deliver specialist software for specialist small business jewellers, software on which you can rely to create more successful and valuable businesses.

Kudos for Tower Systems POS software – Xero interface

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Screen Shot 2015-08-20 at 5.01.22 pmRetail businesses connecting with the Xero cloud based accounting software through our POS software are growing in number as word spreads about the time saved as a result of the seamless link.

As users of Xero and our software in retail ourselves we are able to speak to the difference and share practical insights into the time saved and the mistakes eliminated through the elimination of what would otherwise be manual processes.

Being approved by Xero is not a simple process – as it should hot be. Their approval process is one reason some POS software companies don’t get to the point of partnership.

The Tower Systems POS software – Xero link has featured in a Xero approved promotion this month to retailers in the specialist retail channels in which we serve.

Sunday retail management advice: how to cut employee theft in retail

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Employees can steal from retail businesses in a variety of ways. Often, such theft goes undetected because of poor or unmonitored business processes.

The best way to cut employee theft or fraud is to commit to a consistent approach to theft management:

  • Ask prospective employees if they object to a police check. Those with something to hide will let you know they have found a job elsewhere.
  • Implement zero tolerance for abuse of systems. For example, ensure that every item sold is scanned.
  • Implement zero tolerance for an end of shift discrepancy of, say, $5.00 or more. Once employees know you will be fierce about this sales will be more accurate.
  • Reduce manual eftpos transactions – connect your eftpos terminal to your point of sale.
  • Change responsibilities – sometimes changing who handles money can uncover fraudulent behavior.
  • Change your timing. Habits are what allow people to think they can get away with theft.
  • Modify your counter policies:
    • No refunds.
    • No credits without management approval.
    • No employee bags at the counter.
    • No jackets or cardigans with pockets.
    • No calculators with memories – I have seen these used to record how much cash in the register is theirs.
    • Track every sale by employees – using a card with an employee barcode and making it harder for an employee to use the system as someone else.
  • Track all cash movements from the sale through to your bank account. Many retailers do not do this and open themselves to blatant and regular theft. Employees do it because they know they can get away with it.

Cutting employee theft can be achieved with vigilance. A small time investment in developing and following processes will find you with more money in your bank account.

POS software for jewellers on show at Sydney International Jewellery Fair

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11954615_10155941710050142_4235377724170455486_nTower Systems is thrilled for the opportunity to demonstrate its latest Jeweller management software at the Sydney International Jewellery Fair that starts today at Glebe Island.

Running for three days, this fair is the preeminent jeweller trade show in Australia.

Serving more than 300 jewellers already, Tower Systems is market leader in numbers. Thanks to continuous development and guidance from its customers, Tower will today and for the next three days show technical leadership with new facilities released including cloud based told that will help in Jeweller business management.

The photo shows our trade show stand – already setup and ready for the show opening at 9:30am today. The stand itself speaks to the professionalism and consistency we bring to our service of jewellers.

Our work with jewellers in developing our specialist jeweller software helps our other marketplaces as they do jewellers. Trade shows are important as they providing us opportunities to expand our knowledge as well as make new friends.

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