Point of Sale (POS)

Point of Sale (POS) refers to the system — both software and hardware — that processes customer transactions at a retail location. The "point" is the moment of purchase: a customer brings a product to the counter, the POS system records the transaction, takes payment, updates inventory, and prints or emails a receipt. For ecommerce brands, POS becomes relevant the moment they sell anywhere physical: pop-ups, flagship stores, trade shows, wholesale events, or partner retail locations.

What modern POS systems include

• Software. The transaction-processing layer that records sales, applies discounts, manages tax, and connects to inventory and customer records.
• Hardware. Card readers, receipt printers, cash drawers, barcode scanners, customer-facing displays, and the host device (iPad, dedicated terminal, or PC).
• Payment processing. The gateway that authorises card transactions, increasingly including contactless (Apple Pay, Google Pay), chip-and-pin, and tap-to-pay on phone.
• Inventory integration. Sales recorded at POS update inventory in real time so stock levels stay synchronized between physical and online.
• Customer data capture. Email collection, loyalty program enrollment, and customer history that links physical purchases to the same customer record as online purchases.
• Reporting and analytics. Sales reports by SKU, location, employee, and time period.

Shopify POS specifically

For Shopify merchants, Shopify POS is the natural choice — it's tightly integrated with the existing Shopify catalog, customers, and orders. Two tiers:

• Shopify POS Lite. Included with all Shopify plans. Basic transaction processing, suitable for occasional in-person sales (markets, pop-ups, casual events).
• Shopify POS Pro. Paid add-on (~$89/month per location). Full retail features: smart inventory, staff permissions, advanced reporting, store credit, exchanges, custom receipts. Suitable for permanent retail locations and serious wholesale event work.

Shopify POS hardware is sold through Shopify itself and third-party resellers. The hardware ecosystem includes Shopify-branded terminals, third-party card readers (Stripe Terminal, BBPOS), and standard retail peripherals (printers, scanners, cash drawers).

When ecommerce brands need POS

• Permanent retail locations. Flagships, owned stores. Full POS with all features needed.
• Pop-ups and short-term retail. Trade shows, holiday markets, brand activations. Lighter POS configurations work; mobile POS often sufficient.
• Wholesale and trade events. Brands that take wholesale orders at trade shows benefit from POS-like systems even when not strictly retail-facing.
• Partner retail with shared inventory. Some retail partnerships ask the brand to use the partner's POS or feed transaction data back to the brand's system.

Common POS considerations

• Inventory synchronization. POS sales need to update inventory in real time so the website doesn't oversell. Most modern POS handle this; verify it's actually working before opening retail.
• Customer data unification. The customer who buys in store should be the same customer record as the one who buys online. Brands that don't unify customer data lose the ability to do meaningful retention marketing.
• Tax and compliance. Sales tax in retail is handled differently than online, with location-specific rates. POS systems should handle this automatically; verify before launch.
• Hardware reliability. Card readers fail, printers jam, internet drops. Backup payment methods (manual card entry, offline mode, even cash) prevent retail disasters.