LAS VEGAS, Nov. 20, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- OrderWithMe, a retail innovation and inventory solutions company which recently raised $28 Million in new funding, announces the launch of a new retail solution, ShopWithMe, to complete its offering to brick-and-mortar retailers. With a newly designed POS hardware and software ShopWithMe innovates on both sides of the counter, creating an "endless aisle" for shoppers by giving them the ability to purchase from the retailer's extended catalog of products while still in the store. The ShopWithMe solution provides better selection and expanded options for shoppers along with improved efficiencies in purchasing and inventory management for retailers. Retailers lower inventory costs while at the same time expanding in-store sales opportunities and increasing overall shopper satisfaction. With a single checkout, shoppers can purchase products on hand as well as products not currently in the store. These omni-channel purchases can have multiple delivery options including immediate take home, local pickup, or home delivery from a shared inventory of retailers in the system.
ShopWithMe has reimagined what a Point of Sale experience should be for brick-and-mortar retailers. "Current POS systems, and even the new tablet POS companies, focus primarily on the experience of the associates and are really just a way to sell payment processing services," said Jonathan Jenkins, OrderWithMe founder and CEO. "Most of these technology companies don't have the insight or background to realize that for a small business, the largest challenge and risk to their store is the cost of inventory and the threat of showrooming."
Retailers lose revenue every time a product style or size is not in stock or was never stocked to begin with.
The inability to stock as many products as an online-only retailer causes store owners to miss sales and lose revenue every time a product style, color or size is not in stock – or worse – was never stocked to begin with. Shoppers often want a very specific product type and style and will not settle for something else when they know they can find it online.
While shoppers will often leave a physical store with the intention of immediately purchasing online, the reality is that most never actually follow through with the task. The opportunity to convert shopper intention into a sale is lost the minute the shopper leaves the store.
Over the last four years, OrderWithMe has helped retailers manage inventory purchasing for their business. Retailers use the OrderWithMe platform to manage purchase orders, invoices, and payments with a network of OrderWithMe suppliers in their industries. While improving inventory purchasing logistics has solved many long-standing problems for retailers, a significant challenge remains: migrating and managing the purchased inventory to both POS and e-commerce solutions. Because these systems are not integrated into one platform, the process is inefficient, error-prone, and time-consuming – ultimately slowing down the entire supply chain. This gap means independent retailers can't receive just-in-time inventory or share inventory and fulfill on behalf of one another in the network.
The Point of Sale Reimagined
ShopWithMe reimagines the current POS system, not as the traditional piece of hardware situated in a store, but rather as a set of devices benefiting both the shopper and store associate – all connected to a broad network of other retailers, brands, and distributors who share inventory and ship on behalf of one another. The hardware can be placed on the counter like a traditional POS or deployed as a stand alone self-checkout kiosk throughout the store.
The ShopWithMe retail solution features a tightly integrated system of custom hardware and software, including:
- Consumer facing INVENTORY-AS-A-SERVICE™ POS: While current POS systems focus almost exclusively on the interaction with the store associate, ShopWithMe brings an entirely new experience to the shopper. The patent pending, INVENTORY-AS-A-SERVICE™ POS (IsPOS) includes a shopper facing 21.5" touch display, a front facing 12 megapixel ultra-wide lens camera, a barcode scanner with auto-detection, receipt printer, water resistant speaker, NFC reader, Bluetooth beacons, and wireless connectivity combined into a sleek hardware frame. At any place in the store, shoppers can scan an item at an IsPOS and find real-time stock levels while still in the store. If the size, color, or related item is not currently in-stock, shoppers can still add it to their cart and purchase the item, crediting that retailer for the sale, which will then be delivered directly to their home from one of the participating retailers, brands, or distributors in the network.
- Consumer mobile apps for iOS and Android: Shoppers traditionally carry shopping bags with them in the physical store. Now they will also carry a "virtual cart" on their phone with the ShopWithMe shopper mobile applications for iOS and Android. At any IsPOS in the store, a shopper can add items to their cart, which is immediately synced with their clouded-based account. Then, using the app, they can carry their virtual cart from kiosk to kiosk – or even store to store – as they continue to shop. Shoppers can also scan any item in the store using the ShopWithMe app and get all available colors and sizes of an item – and whether those options are in the store or not, shoppers can always buy. A shopper can combine items collected in the store with items saved to their virtual cart and then simply checkout in a single transaction. In addition, with the inclusion of a Rewards system, the more product a shopper buys, the more points they earn which can be used at participating ShopWithMe stores.
- ShopWithMe.com: Connecting the physical store POS to a retailer's e-commerce system is the easiest and most efficient way to manage their inventory. All the stores that deploy the in-store ShopWithMe solution have the option to link their products to a ShopWithMe storefront. Shoppers can go to ShopWithMe.com and browse by product, brand, store name, or location. When a shopper buys a product on the website they can elect for delivery or in-store pickup. ShopWithMe then routes an order alert to the ShopWithMe POS system of the closest retailer with that item in stock. Retailers then have 15 minutes to confirm that they have the product and hit "run and ship", which triggers a shipping label to be printed and alerts the shipping company to come pick up the shipment. If they do not confirm the order within 15 minutes, it is routed to the next closest retailer, brand, or distributor in the network who will drop ship on behalf of the retailer. "Basically, all of our independent retailers across the country become mini-distribution centers which cannot only ship out for themselves but for other retailers in the network," says Jenkins.
- Mobile POS (mPOS): Finally, ShopWithMe provides its retailers a Mobile POS for their associates to carry around the shop floor. Using iPad minis from Apple as the foundation, ShopWithMe has developed its own hardware case which has a built-in barcode/qr scanner and credit card reader. Store associates are continually synced with the IsPOS and can receive alert notifications if a customer requests a product or needs help. The lightweight Mobile POS units allow associates to check out shoppers on the floor or receive notifications when an order has been placed online or through the ShopWithMe network either for in-store pickup or to be shipped.
ShopWithMe puts the focus where it belongs, on the shopper experience, while offering retailers an affordable and flexible out-of-the-box solution at a price any retailer can afford. The solution can easily be set up in their stores and will help to predict and automate their inventory needs and ordering process while also connecting them to millions of products which other retailers and suppliers can fulfill on their behalf.
"The key to ShopWithMe is that we are giving shoppers a way to use the brick-and-mortar retailers to discover curated products and learn from experts while assuring them that they won't leave disappointed because they can order any style, size or color that they want seamlessly and it will be delivered quickly," said Brandon Masada, VP of Retail Innovation for ShopWithMe. "For the retailers, the ShopWithMe solution allows them to focus on what they are good at while having the assurance that we have their back and they can still make a sale and generate profit while reducing their overhead and satisfying their customers."
"As a small, independent retailer in Vermont, it is difficult to compete with large online stores. We lose sales daily due to not having a color or style that a customer wants or being out of their size. ShopWithMe can help level the playing field between small shops and huge online stores and allow us to be more competitive in what is now a global marketplace," says David Wood, Owner of Talent Skatepark in South Burlington, Vermont.
While ShopWithMe's core retailers are independent retail businesses that OrderWithMe is already working with, the company has discovered the need for its solution goes far beyond just a few types of stores or a certain ownership structure.
"I believe that all of retail is going through a seismic shift over the next few years. The ShopWithMe solution is the first realistic and affordable omni-channel experience which retailers of all types can deploy quickly and efficiently to provide shoppers the shopping experience they want while benefiting the fundamentals of the retailers' bottom line," said Jenkins. "In addition to our independent retailers, the interest from large brick-and-mortar chains and online retailers moving to physical stores is intriguing."
ShopWithMe is launching its first large scale deployment of the system in its hometown of Las Vegas, where it has partnered with Zappos to open its first Pop Up Shop Showroom Store.
"Zappos is a natural fit to demonstrate how ShopWithMe blends physical retail with in-store virtual shopping, by enabling shoppers to touch physical goods in-store while browsing and easily ordering related or out-of-stock products to ship home," said Jenkins. "We are excited to open the store this holiday season and I promise more details to come very soon."
About OrderWithMe
OrderWithMe is based in Downtown Las Vegas, NV. A past winner of TechCrunch Disrupt, OrderWithMe helps small businesses by offering them a single platform to manage all of their inventory purchases, invoices, and payments and also provides them innovative technology solutions for their brick-and-mortar stores.
More information can be found at OrderWithMe.com and ShopWithMe.com
CONTACT: Jonathan Jenkins, [email protected], 800-278-5419
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SOURCE OrderWithMe
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