Square rolls out new inventory management features for retailers

The launch seeks to help automate and improve one of the most challenging, but critical, processes businesses of all sizes face. New features like Easy Item Create, Quick Inventory Counting, and Smart-Stock Alerts provide sellers greater control over their inventory management, and improve efficiency with better ways to create, count, and reorder inventory.

The ability to reach buyers wherever they are – whether that be in store, online, or across social media – is more important than ever. As a result of shifting consumer preferences, the impact of staggered reopening schedules, and a shift to online selling, an omnichannel presence is no longer a ‘nice to have’, but has become critical for long-term success. In fact, a recent survey by Square revealed that nearly 90% of retailers are now selling online.

For retailers, access to real-time insights into what products are available, when, and where, is key as businesses look to expand their sales channels. Many sellers view inventory as one of the most frustrating and difficult tasks they encounter because building out a product catalogue, counting inventory, and keeping stock at the right levels is traditionally a manual and labour-intensive process.

With the introduction of Easy Item Create, Quick Inventory Counting, and Smart Stock Alerts in Square for Retail, retailers will be able to perform a full or partial inventory count and get a heads up when they’re running low on an item so they can reorder. Quick Inventory Counting helps sellers keep their stock counts accurate with simple barcode scanning, and Smart Alerts use machine learning to anticipate when an item is going to run out of stock and automatically helps sellers reorder. Finally, Easy Item Create helps sellers build out their catalogue and get it ready for sale across any channel, by populating item information with just a scan of a barcode.