The problem
A depot that fits from the shelf loses the sale when a common size runs out: the customer won't wait for the afternoon delivery. If that happens 8 times a month on $120£90€107A$173C$169 tires sold in pairs, that's $1,915£1,440€1,714A$2,765C$2,707 of sales walking out of the door, or same-day orders at a worse price.
What the AI does
Square for Retail is a till and stock system. Each tire size and brand you stock is an item with a stock count that drops as you ring sales through the till. Low-stock alerts, on every plan including Free, tell you when a count dips below the level you set, such as 4 of a fast-selling size. The Plus plan ($65£49€58A$94C$92 a month per location) adds smart stock forecasts and purchase orders for each supplier, which you review before sending.
A worked example
A single-site tire depot in Swindon keeps about 300 tires on the shelf across its 40 best-selling sizes. They set those sizes up in Square for Retail Free with alerts at 4 tires, and order from their wholesaler when an alert comes in.
Before
About 8 sales a month lost to an empty shelf, $1,915£1,440€1,714A$2,765C$2,707 of tires
After
If alerts catch 6 of those 8: about $1,436£1,080€1,285A$2,074C$2,030 of sales kept
What it's worth
About $359£270€321A$518C$508 a month in profit, if alerts keep 6 of 8 lost pairs a month (an assumption) at an assumed 25% margin on $1,436£1,080€1,285A$2,074C$2,030. Square for Retail Free costs $0£0€0A$0C$0 a month; card fees are 1.75% in person on Free, and Plus at $65£49€58A$94C$92 a month is only needed for purchase orders and forecasts.
How to set it up
- Set up Square for Retail Free and add the sizes and brands you stock as items, with supplier and cost.
- Count every tire once, carefully, so the starting numbers are right.
- Set a low-stock alert on each fast-moving size at the level that covers a day's sales.
- Ring every sale, return and warranty swap through Square so the counts stay true.
- Do a quick count of your top 10 sizes each Friday and fix any differences.
What goes wrong
- Counts drift if anything leaves the shelf without going through the till, such as a mobile job or a tire fitted under warranty.
- Square doesn't order from your wholesaler for you on Free. The alert is a prompt; someone still places the order.
- If you sell tires online through another system, Square's counts won't know about those sales unless you record them.