Modernisation At Wholesale Supplies Business Meant An Accounts Integrated EPOS System

Aspatria Farmers was first established in 1870 by two local farmers. The organisation sold feeding stuffs and manures, checking them to ensure good quality, 36 years before the government put their own similar checks and guarantees in place. Owned and controlled by farmers, the rural retailer now provides an extensive range of fertilisers, seeds, agrochemicals, animal health, farming sundries and fuel.

The organisation’s history is one of genuine integrity with a strong belief that the quality of their goods and services is of paramount importance. Aspatria Farmers are known for offering a flexible and personal service to customers alongside competitive prices.

Aspatria Farmers previously used a DOS based system which was out of date, slow and becoming increasingly difficult to work with. The new system implemented to manage the company’s accounting processes was Pegasus Opera II. Opera II was the ideal system for Aspatria Farmers to manage their accounts processes. However, the organisation decided to look for an EPOS solution to manage their stock control and sales too. When choosing an EPOS solution, a key factor for Aspatria Farmers was the ability to record the serial and batch numbers of all veterinary supplies in stock.

The new EPOS solution also needed to be fast, reliable and able to cater for the wide range and high volume of products the organisation supply. The system needed to allow the organisation to operate in both retail and trade modes from the same till. This allows Aspatria Farmers to deal with all customers efficiently.

After careful consideration, Aspatria Farmers chose KCPOS as their new EPOS system. During the implementation, three tills were installed at their site in Cumbria which linked together and integrated with their accounting package. All sales processed by the tills input directly into Opera II, updating their accounts without the need for the rekeying of data. Along with KCPOS, Aspatria Farmers also purchased KC Stock Manager. This includes a wireless scanner, which can be used to track veterinary supplies and medicines by barcodes, before being sent to the till.

KCPOS has improved operations for Aspatria Farmers in many areas of the business, the most notable improvement being in veterinary supplies. KCPOS prompts the user to enter the serial number of any new stock purchased which allows them to track their supplies more efficiently. This has reduced the risk of errors and made the process more efficient and secure. Their range of products is very broad, which means they require highly customisable menus, enabling them to enter the descriptions of the various products supplied. Aspatria Farmers’ staff has found KCPOS simple and straight forward to use, and consequently have needed no training!

The most recent plan for Aspatria Farmers is to develop an ecommerce side to the business. As a forward thinking company, Aspatria Farmers would like to sell all their farming products online ahead of their competitors. Targeting a small area initially, the company are looking to aim the online store at both farmers and also a niche retail sector.

Online Sales would be a natural choice for Aspatria Farmers, as it would fully integrate with their existing accounts and KCPOS systems. By using Online Sales the company would also be able to target retail and trade customers using different websites styles, for the retail and trade sides of the online store.

"KCPOS has changed the way our business manages stock, with our staff using the straight forward system with ease."