It’s hard to believe that medical cannabis was legalized over 21 years ago in California and recreational cannabis has been legal for over 5 years in Colorado and Washington. With a relatively new industry, business owners are questioning whether they should opt for a retail point-of-sale system that has been around for a long time or a system with a shorter history that has been purpose-built with features for the cannabis industry. Why not have a business management solution that does both?
Anthea, powered by Retail Control Systems, is built on the backbone of NCR’s industry-proven hardware and software. NCR was founded in 1884 and Retail Control Systems has been in the game since 1987. With all that experience what features should you expect from your solutions provider and what features will speed up your day-to-day operations?
Security & Compliance
Security is a key feature in all retail and it is especially important in the Cannabis industry. With several recent security breaches plaguing the industry, software security should be at the top of your mind.
- Level 1 PCI/DSS Data Center: being a certified Level 1 service provider is one example of RCS’ commitment to strong security.
- Closed-Loop Reporting: Keep analytics and customer details secure while providing marketing automation with NCR Customer Connect.
- In-Depth Audit Trail – Log Aggregation: detailed insights into transactions. Every action is time-stamped, logged, and aggregated for compliance reviews or audits.
- Built-in compliance reporting: ensures you provide the governing body of your state with the information they need, when they need it.
Reliability
Your business management solution needs to be reliable and notify you immediately if anything is amiss. Whether it is April 20th or the Friday before Thanksgiving, RCS is available for support. With a few key features, Anthea will hopefully prevent the need to call.
- Real-Time Operational Alerts to Mitigate Risk: NCR Smart Alerts mitigate risk by notifying key managers via text message in real time about possible issues.
- Tracking: Anthea tracks the true cost of your goods sold, and tracks sales by customer, by strain, and by plant. With reliable tracking, you will never run low on product or miss a transaction.
- Server Uptime and Offline Ticket Entry: RCS’ data center boasts a 99.9% uptime with redundant systems that allow you to keep selling no matter what.
Feature Rich Integrations
Even a well-thought-out point-of-sale system will need some customization. Make sure your POS solution has everything you need or can be customized the way you want.
- Microsoft Power BI: With the Power BI add-on, you no longer need to create spreadsheets of your data by hand. Power BI is a suite of business analytics tools with connections to hundreds of data sources including Microsoft SQL that powers Anthea.
- Axis Cameras: Premier cameras with DVR functionality, people counting, zone mapping, and advanced HD clarity that minimizes bandwidth usage while maintaining crystal clear picture quality.
- Your Specific Integrations: RCS has a staff of developers that can help customize the system to fit your business’s specific needs.
In conclusion, make sure your software and hardware are at a level that can grow with your business, it’s better to invest in a quality system now. The last thing you want is to replace everything in a couple of years when your business expands.
