Canadian Grocery Businesses: Prevailing through Challenges on All Sides

As an independent grocery business in Canada, you’re a fixture in your communities. Canadian grocery stores make healthy foods available and accessible while also taking active roles in local culture and supporting local causes. However, doing business today comes with more challenges than in the past, so much so that the Grocery Innovations Canada show included an education session on thriving in the wake of a changing industry. You face rising labor and operational costs, razor-thin margins on grocery items, and aggressive price strategies from enterprise competitors. Furthermore, while economic and competitive pressures heated up, consumer behaviors changed, with shoppers expecting personalized experiences and their choice of digital engagement methods. Still, Canadian independent grocers are finding a way to stay competitive, so much so that larger grocery businesses that entered some markets have had to rethink their plans. 

How Canadian Independent Grocers Can Rise to the Top 

Savvy grocery businesses are responding to changes in the industry with new strategies, with a strong emphasis on technology. Legacy, paper-dependent processes aren’t enough to provide the real-time visibility, data, and efficiency necessary for successful grocery store management. Optimizing retail success takes a flexible point of sale (POS) and grocery store management system that allows Canadian independent grocers to modernize operations while maintaining a family-run business atmosphere that has helped capture customer loyalty.

A grocery POS system designed for your business will have all the features you need for day-to-day operations, including:

Supply Chain Management

A solution designed for your grocery business will make it easy to work with your wholesalers to keep in-demand items in stock, track items from order to sale, and, when necessary, transfer items to other stores or your online ordering operation. 

Self-Checkout & Mobile POS Options

Hardware-agnostic grocery POS software allows you to use your software on any device and adapt screens for the best user experiences. Software with this design lets you easily add self-service ordering, self-checkout, mobile POS for outdoor sales — any type of customer experience you want to offer.

Centralized POS System Management

Whether you have one store or a chain, you’ll benefit from managing all lanes from a centralized location. You’ll save time when you can configure screens, manage peripherals, and push updates without sending a technician from terminal to terminal. You’ll also ensure consistency and standardization that will help define your brand and increase customer satisfaction. 

Flexible Loyalty Rewards Programs

Loyalty rewards have become an expectation, but creating a program or club that increases store traffic and basket size can be a challenge. Choosing grocery store POS software with robust loyalty rewards features will let you offer an innovative program, for example, by tying it to a charitable cause or cooperating with a partner to give shoppers more reward options. It should also allow you to adapt your program as consumer preferences change. 

Take Your Grocery Business to the Next Level 

While grocery store management basics are non-negotiable when running your business, a grocery POS system that will give you a competitive edge will also provide you with advanced capabilities, such as: 

Complete Control of Your Data

Data-driven decision-making is the key to success, and your grocery POS system should never tie your hands when it comes to where you store data and how you use it. Choose a system that allows you to access the data and reports you need, when you need them. Leading systems will also help you make the best use of your data, for example, with computer-assisted ordering, costing and pricing, or using AI to determine which products get customers through the door. 

Data analysis empowers you to answer questions about your business as a whole or drill down to understand store, product, or employee performance. This data insight also helps stores like Meridian Farm Markets with store balancing and integrating with other software to avoid redundant data entry. 

Integrations

You need a grocery store management and POS system that gives you the freedom to implement new technologies. Choosing a future-proof platform allows you to add options like electronic shelf labels (ESLs) for easy, accurate price updates or Over-the-Counter (OTC) or Healthy Benefits card payments. It’s smart to work with a software vendor that offers a comprehensive suite of solutions, but ensure you have the freedom to expand your system for maximum efficiency and revenues. 

Scalability & Manageability 

Even if you choose to use advanced data analysis and integrations, your grocery POS system shouldn’t make it difficult to scale or manage. Choose a platform designed to grow with your grocery business without negatively impacting performance. 

Canadian Independent Grocers: Take Control! 

Operating as a Canadian grocery business is complex and will likely grow more challenging as more enterprises set their sights on your market. Empower yourself with technology that helps you increase operational efficiency, control costs, and build a strategy that keeps shoppers returning to fill their baskets at your store. 

The LOC team has more than three decades of experience in providing grocery businesses with the tools they need to optimize retail success in their own way. Take the first step toward giving your business that advantage by contacting us!