Celerant Technology Corp. — Command Retail

The Pay Screen contains a calculator in the center, along with various tenders
to the left. Clicking on a credit card will display the card swipe screen, allowing
users to manually enter credit card information or swipe the card. Once payment
type is determined, the calculator is used to finalize the sale. Clerks also
have the option to cancel the sale before processing the payment and posting
the transaction. All user screens throughout Command Retail are easily navigated,
with a series of tabs that provide access to related functions, making data
entry quick and painless.

Command Retail is scalable and works with multiple platforms such as Windows,
Linux, Macintosh, UNIX, or even a combination of platforms. Module availability
is vast and includes the following: POS, Inventory, Physical Inventory, Integrated
e-Commerce, Purchase Orders, Reporting and Analysis, Warehouse, Sales Back Office,
Open to Buy and Planning, CRM and Buying Clubs, and Financials. An export function
provides GL integration with QuickBooks, Microsoft Dynamics Great Plains, and
Sage MAS 90 ERP. (The company noted that the next release, which should be out
by the time this review is published, will include its own General Ledger in
addition to the export integrations.)

User roles can be assigned in groups, and all employees are assigned detailed
rights-based security roles for each application. Command Retail can be fashioned
to suit the needs of any retail business, with the ability to arrange buttons
and tabs on the page desired. Only the top part of the POS screen is non-customizable,
with all other areas able to be modified as needed. Cashiers have easy access
to customer and item information while processing a sale using system-wide lookup
fields. Command Retail is designed for multiple locations and uses an online
database that stores data in real-time from all store locations, eliminating
the need to download or transfer data every evening.

The user interface allows cashiers to efficiently process activities, including
normal sales transactions, customer data maintenance, layaway processing, and
payment on account acceptance. Command Retail offers multiple pricing levels
and allows for creation of custom pricing strategies as needed. An enterprise-level
product, Command Retail offers the highest level of retail management, including
warehouse management, a fully functional distribution center, allocation capability,
fully integrated e-commerce functionality that easily ties to the central database,
and mail order processing. The system also offers wireless integration so retailers
can easily process orders in remote locations or from the field.

SPECIALIZED FEATURES/SERVICES:
Command Retail offers customized screen entry to suit every retail model, including
touch-screen entry. e-Commerce support is easily available, with integrated
website capabilities. All inventory totals are integrated with brick-and-mortar
totals for accurate, real-time inventory levels. The system also offers customized
tender setup, and multiple tender types can be used for each transaction.

Command Retail offers an excellent customer management tool. Cashiers can
easily enter valuable data from the POS screen, including zip code, birthday,
family members and even photos. Customer purchase history is easily tracked,
with visits within set parameters noted. Related transactions are also easily
handled, such as customer layaways, special orders, sales orders and on-hold
items.

Various other methods of payment and payment-related transactions are handled,
as well, including buying clubs (where members receive special pricing), gift
cards, and stored value cards (where customers can maintain a balance on the
card). Private-label credit cards can also be offered, and employees can cash
their paychecks at the POS terminal. Using the CRM function, along with Command
Retail’s data mining capability, makes it easy to target sales and marketing
campaigns to the correct customers.

TRACKING/REPORTING:
Reporting options are excellent with a good selection of reports, including
a long list of sales transactions such as receipts, items sold and payouts.
Other reports include hourly sales, layaways, and merchandise sold by department.
All system reports can be saved and printed as needed. Reports can also be exported
to Excel or in ASCII format. The ODBC interface makes easy work of producing
custom reports. All reporting data is in real time, with the system updated
each time a transaction is processed.

Inventory reporting is also extensive, with easy tracking of inventory movement,
as well as pinpointed detail to determine best and worst selling products. Customer
information is easily tracked, with detailed information on purchase history,
buying club status and more. Both the CRM and data mining features allow for
access to specific customer demographics. The audit trail report provides management
with detailed information on all system activity as well as cashier name and
time of transaction.

INTEGRATION/IMPORT/EXPORT:
Command Retail’s integrated modules work together for top-end performance.
The application also offers third-party integration with accounting applications
such as Microsoft Dynamics Great Plains, QuickBooks and Sage MAS 90 ERP. Integrated
shipping tools are available for UPS, FedEx and USPS. It also works with all
necessary hardware peripherals such as touch-screen monitors, barcode scanners,
receipt printers and pole displays. A time clock is available for cashiers to
punch in/out for easy recording of shift hours.

HELP/SUPPORT:
Command Retail provides users with a login link in order to access system updates
as needed. System support is required during the first year but is optional
after that. A user community is also available.

SUMMARY & PRICING
Command Retail pricing starts at $3,750 for the server license, with a $2,500
fee for each concurrent user. A complete single-user system starts at $12,000.
This is a top-notch POS product that is ideal for small to mid-size retail businesses
with multiple locations. Designed to fit the needs of the most demanding customers,
this full-featured product truly does have everything.

2010 OVERALL RATING: