The problem
A farm shop buys from 30 or 40 small producers: eggs, cheese, chutney, bread, ice cream, each with its own order day. Reordering means walking the shelves and the chiller before each producer rings or calls in. At 20 minutes for each of 12 producer orders a week, that's 4 hours a week, about 17 hours a month, and chilled lines still run out on a Saturday or go out of date at the back of the fridge.
What the AI does
Square for Retail is Square's till and stock system. Its UK page says it can alert you when stock gets low and send automatic purchase orders to your vendors, with automatic purchase orders, advanced inventory tools and reports, and barcode label printing on the Plus plan at $65£49€58A$94C$92 a month per location. Set each producer up as a vendor with their lines, ring every sale through Square, and review the stock report and draft order before each producer's order day. Sell-through reports show which chutney or cheese is slow, so you order less of what goes out of date. The page doesn't explain how purchase orders are worked out, so check each one before it goes.
A worked example
A farm shop in the Cotswolds with a butchery counter, 3 staff and about 35 local producers stocks around 600 lines. The manager reorders from 12 producers a week, mostly chilled and short-life goods.
Before
12 producer orders a week at 20 minutes each: 4 hours a week, about 17 hours a month
After
12 orders a week checked from reports and draft orders at 8 minutes each: 1.6 hours a week, about 7 hours a month
What it's worth
About $246£185€220A$355C$348 a month in time saved, against $65£49€58A$94C$92 for Square for Retail Plus. That is about 10.3 hours a month (17.2 down to 6.9, from 4 and 1.6 hours a week times 4.3) at an assumed $24£18€21A$35C$34 an hour for the manager's time. Plus is $65£49€58A$94C$92 a month per location; card processing fees are extra, as with any till. Less short-life stock thrown away is a further gain that isn't counted here.
How to set it up
- Start on Square for Retail's free plan, add your items with producer, cost and price, and count stock once, carefully.
- Add each producer as a vendor and note their order and delivery days.
- Move to Plus when you want automatic purchase orders and the advanced inventory reports.
- Before each producer's order day, check the draft order against the chiller and the weekend forecast, then send it.
- Each month, read the sell-through report and cut back lines that keep going out of date.
What goes wrong
- Stock figures only work if everything goes through the till, including wastage and staff lunches. Record write-offs as they happen.
- Square's retail page doesn't mention selling by weight, so check how loose veg and meat cut to order will work on your counter before switching.
- Plus is $65£49€58A$94C$92 per location; a café on its own location is another $65£49€58A$94C$92.
- Small producers may not read emailed purchase orders. Use the draft as your list and ring them if that's how they work.