The problem
A pet shop's regulars buy the same food every few weeks, and if it's out of stock they try the supermarket or an online delivery, and may not come back. If 6 sales a month are lost because a line ran out between deliveries, at $60£45€54A$86C$85 a bag, that's $359£270€321A$518C$508 a month, on top of 2 hours a week counting shelves by hand.
What the AI does
Square for Retail is Square's till and stock system for shops. Its UK page lists basic inventory on the free plan and, on Plus, advanced inventory tools and reports, automatic purchase orders and barcode label printing. Ring every sale through Square, set up each food line and bag size as its own item, and use the reports and purchase orders as the starting point for each supplier order, which you check before sending. The page doesn't explain how purchase orders are generated, so test it in your shop first.
A worked example
An independent pet shop in Derby stocks about 60 dry food lines and counts the shelves by hand each Monday. About 6 sales a month are lost when a line runs out between deliveries.
Before
6 lost sales a month at $60£45€54A$86C$85 ($359£270€321A$518C$508) plus 2 hours a week counting stock (8.6 hours a month)
After
Orders built from Square's stock figures; if 4 of the 6 sales are kept and counting drops to 30 minutes a week (2.2 hours a month)
What it's worth
About $200£150€179A$288C$282 a month: $72£54€64A$104C$102 of profit at an assumed 30% margin on 4 kept sales of $60£45€54A$86C$85 ($239£180€214A$346C$338), plus 6.4 hours of counting saved (8.6 minus 2.2) at an assumed $20£15€18A$29C$28 an hour ($128£96€114A$184C$180). Square for Retail Plus is $65£49€58A$94C$92 a month per location, and card fees are extra.
How to set it up
- Add every food line and bag size as a separate item with its barcode, so stock is counted the way customers buy it.
- Do one full count to set starting stock, then ring every sale, return and damaged bag through Square.
- Set a reorder level for each line from how many you sell between deliveries.
- Before each supplier order, review the purchase order Square suggests and adjust it for promotions and seasons.
- After a month, list which lines still ran out and raise their levels.
What goes wrong
- Stock figures are only as good as your counts; a split bag sold loose throws them out.
- Plus is $65£49€58A$94C$92 per location, so a second shop is another $65£49€58A$94C$92 a month.
- The page doesn't say how purchase orders are created; check before relying on them.
- Card processing fees are on top: 1.6% in person on Plus.