I am at the TPSA show in Texas!

 Quick note that I am at the annual Texas Package Store Association conference and trade show today and tomorrow in San Antonio, Texas. Be sure to stop by booth #250 for some free swag!

Trade Shows and Conferences that Cloud Retailer will be at

 

Texas Package Store Association 2022

 Just a quick note that I am headed to the annual Texas Package Store Association conference in Dallas, TX. Be sure to contact me if we should meet while I am at the conference!

Here is more information on the annual event: https://www.texaspackage.com/tpsa-convention-and-trade-show

2016 Retail Realm Partner & User Conference

The 2016 Retail Realm Partner and User Conference is wrapping up. I wanted to pass along some news as this conference relates to the majority of the retailers that I work with as they mainly use the Microsoft RMS point of sale software in their stores.

I'll update this post as I come across news that would be of interest.

You can always contact me directly at 208-340-5632 or kevinantosh@gmail.com for no-cost retail point of sale advice and information.

Upcoming Events and Speaking Engagements

A quick update on my upcoming speaking engagements specific point of sale and EMV workshops:

Boise State University location of the Idaho Small Business Development Center.  September 22nd, 2015, 2:00pm to 4:00pm. Registration link and more details: https://business.idahosbdc.org/workshop.aspx?ekey=40350090

Envision Retail Conference - Denver, CO. September 17th and 18th at the Denver Marriott City Center.  I will likely have a workshop designed for businesses searching for a new point of sale system or wanting to replace and older system on both days. Time and further details to follow. Link to more information about the Envision Retail Conference can be found here: https://www.retailcontrolsystems.com/envision-conference/

I'll post more details  on other events as they become available.  

Are you  in the US and in need of no cost retail point of sale advice?  I'm happy to help and can be reached on my cell at 208-340-5632 (I am on Mountain Time) or via email at kevinantosh@gmail.com. There is also a contact form to the right that can be used to reach me.

Take Aways from the 2015 Retail Realm Conference for Microsoft Dynamics RMS and HQ Users

Updated information on the upcoming Retail Management Hero Software (or what I am coining "RMS 3.0 for 2015 and beyond") can be found here: http://retailpospondering.blogspot.com/2015/06/new-option-for-rmshq-users-retail.html

The recent Retail Realm Conference in April of 2015 helped clarify the current situation related to the Microsoft RMS and HQ point of sale programs. Here are the highlights:

• Sales of RMS to new users will end July 2016
• Extended support for RMS will end July 2021
• Right now complying with the October 1st 2015 EMV Liability Shift Date in the US can only be accomplished using paid third party payment gateways or using payment terminals that are not connected to RMS
• If you do not stay current on your annual software maintenance agreement, you will not qualify for any updates or license swap options for new point of sale programs
• Retail Realm Essentials is a new point of sale program that is a possible replacement option for stores with multiple locations that also currently use HQ.
• Retail Management Hero is a new program under development that is designed for single location RMS users and they will be offering license swap options to RMS users who are current on their annual maintenance. No word on when Retail Management Hero will be available other than that the software presently is about "40% complete". 

There are obviously some trends that you need to be aware of based on the above information:

• If you are not current on your annual maintenance for RMS and/or HQ - your options are very limited for EMV/Chip Cards and switching to Retail Realm Essentials or Retail Management Hero.
• It does not make sense to invest in RMS at this point if you are searching for a point of sale system for your business or organization (would you buy a car if you knew that you could no longer obtain service for it after a specific date?).
• If you are current on your software maintenance then Retail Realm Essentials might be an option if you presently also use HQ and have multiple store locations.
• Retail Management Hero may be a good option for single stores using RMS or stores that do not use or need HQ and are also current on their annual maintenance agreement. However it is not clear when Retail Management Hero will be available.

My advice to RMS and HQ Users:

1. Make a plan for EMV/Chip Cards
2. If not current on software maintenance, look at either replacing RMS or look at the cost to renew your software maintenance
3. Make a plan as to whether you want to keep investing in RMS/HQ, for how long, and whether Retail Realm Essentials or Retail Management Hero are possible replacement programs
4. Look at other point of sale options just to see what might be of interest to you - a lot has changed over the last couple of years and you may find that a much better option exists for your business or organization that is well worth the cost to switch point of sale systems.

If you need some unbiased advice, please visit my contact page for information on how to reach me. I've worked extensively with QuickSell 2000, QuickSell HQ, QuickSell Commerce, Microsoft Dynamics RMS, HQ, and multiple other point of sale programs and apps. Currently I'm offering  advice and information to around 700 stores in the US using RMS of which around 15 also use HQ.

Are you  in the US and in need of no cost retail point of sale advice?  I'm happy to help and can be reached on my cell at 208-340-5632 (I am on Mountain Time) or via email at kevinantosh@gmail.com. There is also a contact form to the right that can be used to reach me.

Retail Realm Technology Conference - information on Retail Realm Essentials

Wanted to pass along the following link related to the annual Retail Realm Technology Conference taking place in Las Vegas later this month (April 25th-27th, 2015).

If you have questions about whether the new Retail Realm Essentials (RRE) - powered by Microsoft Dynamics point of sale software is a good fit for your business, attending the conference would be a great way to get information about RRE right from Microsoft and Retail Realm.

There is a chance that I may be attending the conference as well.

Here is a link to more information about the conference: http://www.rrdisti.com/events/upcoming-events

Are you  in the US and in need of no cost retail point of sale advice?  I'm happy to help and can be reached on my cell at 208-340-5632 (I am on Mountain Time) or via email at kevinantosh@gmail.com. There is also a contact form to the right that can be used to reach me.

Point of Sale/EMV Workshops & Speaking Schedule

So I am starting to line up some speaking events for 2015. I'll share details as everything is finalized but wanted to let folks know that I am including more about EMV in my workshop presentations as EMV is something that all of us will have to address before the EMV Liability Shift Date takes place in October of 2015 (in the United States).

The point of sale workshops that I conduct are completely vendor neutral and can be scaled to run anywhere from 45 to 90 minutes. Here are the main topics that I cover in the workshops:

1. Differences between mobile and computer-based point of sale systems
2. How to select the right point of sale system
3. Common "gotchas" to avoid
4. EMV and Merchant Services
5. How to determine your point of sale "budget"
6. How to use a weighted point spreadsheet to make a final purchase decision

Again, all of this is conducted in a vendor neutral environment (not a sales pitch at all) and folks leave the workshop with actual data and information they can use to find the best point of sale system for their business or organization.

Are you  in the US and in need of no cost retail point of sale advice?  I'm happy to help and can be reached on my cell at 208-340-5632 (I am on Mountain Time) or via email at kevinantosh@gmail.com. There is also a contact form to the right that can be used to reach me.

Anyone Headed to MAGIC or IFA in Vegas Next Week?

So - I tried to clear my schedule due to several requests that I attend MAGIC and IFA in Las Vegas next week (Feb 17th - 19th 2015 for Magic at the Las Vegas Convention Center and Feb 15th-18th 2015 for IFA at the MGM Grand) but I was unable to clear my schedule.

I was, however, able to connect with some folks who will be in Vegas next week and have offered to buy dinner for anyone that is searching for a retail point of sale system.

Be sure to contact me for an invitation and more information!

Future of Microsoft RMS and RMS HQ

Updated information on Retail Management Hero as a direct replacement for RMS as of December 3rd, 2015: http://retailpospondering.blogspot.com/2015/12/updated-information-on-new-retail.html

New video discussing options for Dynamics RMS and HQ users as of December 5th, 2015: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evVWS7dj0Bs

A quick reminder that sales of Microsoft Dynamics RMS and HQ to new users as well as mainstream support ends next year (2016) so please keep that in mind if you are thinking of purchasing RMS or HQ as point of sale software for your business or organization (not a wise investment at this point).

Update 28.June.2015 - special discount and incentive from a national NCR CounterPoint Partner for RMS and HQ users: http://retailpospondering.blogspot.com/2015/06/big-discount-and-incentive-for.html

For the 38,000 users of Microsoft RMS Store Operations (of which I know many of you personally):

Just a quick reminder that the Microsoft Retail  conference is this weekend (25.April.2014 - 26.April.2014). Microsoft has indicated that information will be shared related to the future of RMS and HQ.  This will finally allow the 35,000+ users of RMS to start planing for any upgrades or migrations that will need to be made over the next year.

I will post any and all information related to RMS as quickly as it becomes available to me (so please ignore any spelling and grammer errors).

I have also scheduled a meeting with a national RMS partner in May so I can also pass along information related to how a Microsoft Partner can assist both my personal former client base as well those of you using RMS and/HQ that I have not had a chance to meet yet.

-Kevin