Running a meat market is challenging.
A printer, a calculator, and a spreadsheet may get the job done for a time — but the more successful you are, the more it will hold you back.
Meat markets require specialized point of sale (POS) features such as scale integration, product labeling, and weight-based inventory tracking. More importantly, they need all those functions to seamlessly work together.
The good news? There are many specialized POS systems for meat markets, fishmongers, and butchers. The bad news? With so many systems out there, it can be easy to get overwhelmed.
In this article we’ll cover:
- The must-have features of a meat market POS system
- Top 5 meat market POS systems
- Tips for choosing the right software
What Features Do You Need in a Meat Market POS System?
To run at peak efficiency, meat market systems need a few functions that many general retail POS systems don’t natively support. These must-have features include:
- Weight-based inventory management
- Scale integrations
- Custom SKUs and labels
- Perishable inventory tracking
- Vendor management and streamlined ordering
- Customization and ease of use
- Flexible payment processing (e.g., support for credit cards, debit cards, contactless payments, mobile payments, etc.)
We selected the POS providers on this list because of how well they deliver on these requirements.
There are also some optional but nice-to-have features, depending on how your business is set up:
- Quick-service restaurant and order management features
- Customer loyalty management
- Marketing tools
- Multilingual support
- Real-time reporting and analytics tools
- E-commerce and online sales support
- Dual pricing
While these aren’t must-have features, they help manage all aspects of your business.
Meat Market POS Systems: 5 Top Options
Whether you’re looking to upgrade an old system or are starting a meat market for the first time, it’s important to take your time when choosing a meat market POS system.
Here are five top providers, their notable features, and pricing, to help get you started.
1. IT Retail
IT Retail is a top-rated choice for meat markets, particularly those that are part of a grocery store or supermarket. Designed by grocers with over 25 years of experience, IT Retail offers valuable features like scale integrations, weight-based inventory tracking, and more.
Notable Features
- Grocery-specific functions: Track items in display cases, in storage, or on the shelf.
- Scale integrations and sell-by-weight support: Weigh items, print a label, and update inventory after a sale.
- Customer loyalty: Keep customers coming back for more by letting them earn redeemable points on every purchase.
- Robust reporting: Monitor store performance, best-selling items, shrinkage sources, and more using pre-built reports.
Pricing
IT Retail offers flexible pricing tiers based on different business sizes, hardware needs, and more.
What Customers Are Saying
“It's easy to use and edit, and the staff goes above and beyond to keep me happy.”
“Not only am I thrilled in Tech Support, but the people working at our store were really impressed and are feeling much more confident in our new system and the vendor supporting it.”
2. Lightspeed POS
Lightspeed POS is ideal for meat market stores with multiple locations or stores looking to expand their reach through e-commerce.
This all-in-one solution provides powerful tools and seamless integration with popular marketing and accounting tools. It allows businesses to efficiently manage their online and brick-and-mortar operations from one central platform.
Notable Features
- Franchise-level reporting and management: View business performance, monitor inventory, and transfer items across all your locations.
- Built-in e-commerce: Launch your website and sell groceries online with a fully integrated e-commerce platform.
- Mobile POS support: Ring up orders from anywhere in the store using an iPad for faster checkout during peak seasons.
- Powerful marketing features: Reach customers using omnichannel marketing via SMS, email, website, and more.
Pricing
Lightspeed’s Core plan (which includes inventory management and marketing features) starts at $149/month.
What Customers Are Saying
“I love these easiness of the accounting side of Lightspeed. It has been a game changer in timely processing.”
“With the integration into QuickBooks and the exceptional level of support we're receiving, we feel confident as we move forward in our startup, Raef On Design & Print.”
3. GrazeCart
GrazeCart is built for farm stores, butchers, and meat markets that primarily sell online. With sophisticated order fulfillment features, sell by weight functions, and subscription support, GrazeCart is a powerful e-commerce tool for meat markets.
Notable Features
- Sell by weight: Sell hand-cut meats by tracking the weight of different cuts in real time and seamlessly updating actuals when you make a sale.
- Subscription box support: Offer subscriptions to upsell customers and gain recurring revenue, or create curated subscription boxes.
- No-code website builder: Build a stunning, mobile-friendly website without a designer using GrazeCart’s drag-and-drop website builder.
- Robust fulfillment options: Offer curbside pickup and delivery across the country.
Pricing
GrazeCart offers several pricing tiers and a free 14-day trial, so you can decide if it’s a good fit before buying.
What Customers Are Saying
“We've used GrazeCart to build fully integrated, all-in-one farm e-commerce websites that deliver fantastic Google visibility and conversion rates, along with polished custom design.”
“Overall an excellent experience. The folks at GrazeCart not only have a great product that we are very satisfied with but they also run an inspiring business and we continue to learn from them.”
4. National Retail Solutions (NRS)
NRS is a solid choice for butchers looking for a straightforward, user-friendly system. While not specifically built for food markets, they offer a cost-effective solution for new businesses.
Notable Features
- eWIC integration: Accept EBT, SNAP, and eWIC payments if you sign up for their in-house payment processing.
- Built-in vendor management: Easily track vendors and manage reorders directly from your POS system.
- Mobile store management: Manage your store from a mobile device using their app.
- Scale integrations: Using NRS’ higher-end Cheetah POS system, NRS can integrate directly with scales and scanners.
Pricing
NRS plans start at $29.95/month if you use their in-house merchant services, or $49.95/month for a starter plan using a separate payment processor.
What Customers Are Saying
“The overall experience was amazing. Choosing and buying the NRS POS was the best choice.”
5. Markt POS
Markt POS is our comprehensive solution built specifically for small meat markets and single-register food markets.
Trusted by small businesses across the U.S., our system is tailored to provide them with the specialized tools they need to improve the customer experience, boost sales, and stay competitive.
Notable Features
- Advanced inventory management: Track the number of cuts and the total weight of inventory in real time, then set low stock alerts to reorder right when you need it.
- Quick-service features: For meat markets serving ready-made meals, easily take orders, add modifications, and send to the kitchen from the same system.
- Seamless scale integration: Offer fast and accurate pricing of meat that’s sold by weight. This feature eliminates manual calculations, speeding up transactions and reducing errors.
- Easy customer loyalty: Quickly set up a customer loyalty program to encourage repeat visits.
- Integrated employee management: Manage employee access and let staff clock in and out directly from your POS system.
Pricing
We work directly with you to create pricing that makes sense for your business. Use our pricing configurator tool to put together a custom quote today.
What Customers Are Saying
Here’s what our customers say about Markt POS.
How To Choose The Perfect Meat Market POS System for Your Business
Now that you have a better understanding of what’s out there, how do you choose one vendor over another? While we’d love to say our solution is perfect for everyone, that simply wouldn’t be true.
Instead, start by thinking through a few facets of your business.
- Budget: How much are you currently spending on your POS system, and how much do you have to invest in new hardware and software? Additionally, how much would you save by implementing an updated system?
- Support: Who can you contact if something goes wrong with your system? Do you need help implementing your new system or with onboarding? Are phone and chat support included in the plan you pay for?
- Goals: Why do you want to implement a new POS system in the first place? What short-term problems do you want to solve, and what are some of your long-term goals?
- Your daily tasks: What tasks cause you the most trouble (e.g., receiving, creating purchase orders, tracking inventory)? Can a new meat market POS system help you with them?
Once you’ve considered these points, list specific questions and schedule a demo. A demo will allow you to see the system in action, ask questions, and get a good idea of how much the support team understands your industry.
If you’d like to see Markt POS in action, we’d love to hear from you!
Schedule a custom demo today to learn how Markt POS can improve meat market store management and give you an advantage over the competition.
