How has the recent POS subscription change affected small businesses?

Shopify Discussion
1

We’ve been using Shopify POS for six years now. and I’m dismayed at the recent changes to Shopify POS.
Shopify has always been great at delivering an e-commerce website that is functionally workable and easy to customize. however, the POS has always been an afterthought and terribly crippled in design and functionality. Lacking many basic features that a working POS needs, the only solution to these failings have been to download and pay for third-party apps.

I’ve grown to tolerate the failings of the POS and learn to work around them as the price package for both systems has been agreeable.

However, the recent changes to the billing for Shopify POS put it out of reach of myself and my business. What Shopify has done is take away a product that I have been using for six years ( one that was never perfect) and now insists that I pay $100 USD a month extra to use it or revert to a basic POS that looks like a child designed it and would barely suit a vendor at a flea market.

The Basic plan is unworkable for my business. We are a brick-and-mortar store. I’m a sole trader and only have one shop. I have no need for multiple locations or multiple staff logins. An additional $100 USD a month for a POS is just not feasible for us.

Shopify seems to have issued two kinds of POS. One for traders at a flea market, which we are not, and one for businesses that have multiple locations, staff, and large turnovers which we are also not. Where do I as a sole trader running a small business fit into this equation?

I’m so upset at this that I’m seriously looking at changing platforms. We pay for the use of the website and Shopify payments and the POS yet are somehow penalized for being a loyal customer for six years. I’m happy to pay something for the use of a functional POS but the current price is just extortion.

The last year has been incredibly hard for small businesses, we made it through the first wave of covid lockdowns, without any support from Shopify, they still insisted we pay our monthly fees. Now here in Sydney, the Delta variant has forced us into lockdown again. Yet I continue to still pay for Shopify. Now faced with the choice of an increased bill or a POS that barely functions as it should, it really feels like Shopify does not value its customers at all.

2

Hi @Chris_Low ,

I think you should take a look at ConnectPOS. As the leading POS solution for Shopify, we’ve helped hundreds of clients from Australia who are in the SME sector. We understand how difficult it is to run a brick-and-mortar store amid this time, so we are trying our best to support Shopify retailers. We have different pricing plans so merchants can choose which is the most suitable for their current stores. You can take a look at our app here or book a free demo to learn how exactly we can help you.

Hope the best for you and your business!

3

Hi @Chris_Low

Thank you for sharing your detailed feedback on your recent experiences with the Shopify POS system and how the changes to it have also impacted your business. I would love to discuss this with you in more detail if you are open to doing so. I want to ensure that you have workable solutions for your business and if POS Pro is not an option for you at this time, I may be able to suggest alternatives or a work around to ensure you are getting the support you need for your business.

One thing I wanted to clarify is that with the new POS system, regardless of if you are on the $0 plan or the $89 USD plan, the interface for your app stays the same. Over this past year we have sunset our original POS Classic interface and all stores should be moved over to the new interface. The difference between the two plans is that certain features are unlocked and become available when upgraded to the $89 USD POS Pro plan.

On our POS website we have a list of comparison features included in the free plan and the paid plan for POS:

I want to be able to provide feedback to our retail team on your behalf. With that in mind, would you be willing to share with me some of the features for POS Pro you feel you need for your business and don’t currently have?

I look forward to your feedback!

Thank you,

-Shay