NetSuite POS & SuiteCommerce In-Store Are Being Retired

NetSuite is retiring SuiteCommerce In-Store and NetSuite POS: here's what to do next

Caleb breaks down NetSuite's decision to end-of-life its NetSuite POS and SuiteCommerce In-Store products, and what affected merchants should do about it. If you're running either one today, the clock is now on finding a replacement point of sale that still connects cleanly to NetSuite.

What NetSuite is actually retiring (and what it's not)

NetSuite is ending support for two products: NetSuite POS and SuiteCommerce In-Store (SCIS). The naming causes confusion, so it's worth being precise. This does not affect SuiteCommerce, SuiteCommerce Advanced, or SuiteCommerce MyAccount. SCIS shares the SuiteCommerce name but is a separate product, which is part of why it's going away, since only a handful of customers ever ran on these tools.

Where to start when your POS is being retired

The move is to go back to the drawing board, choose a point of sale that fits how you actually sell, and integrate it with NetSuite. Two of the options Caleb recommends are effectively built to connect with NetSuite already, so you're not starting from zero.

When In8Sync POS is the right fit

In8Sync suits lower-volume operations. Picture a wholesale distributor or manufacturer with a storefront where customers occasionally place an order and pick it up at the counter. It's a clean, lightweight option built inside NetSuite, and it makes the most sense when point of sale is a small part of a business that runs mostly on EDI or e-commerce.

When VennPOS is the better call

VennPOS is built for retail volume. If you run many locations and registers with steady foot traffic (say, a chain of clothing outlets using NetSuite as the back office for inventory), VennPOS's price point and capacity fit better. It can handle lighter workloads too, but its strength is higher volume across more sites.

Bottom line

Match the tool to your transaction volume. Most SCIS and NetSuite POS merchants will land on In8Sync, but a business with 50-plus locations and heavy foot traffic is usually better served by VennPOS, while a wholesaler running around 20 counter orders a day fits In8Sync. Either way, the goal is a POS that keeps data flowing cleanly back into NetSuite.

If you're working through this transition, or evaluating NetSuite POS for the first time, Anchor Group can help you weigh the options and handle the integration. Reach out at anchorgroup.tech.

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Video Transcript:

Caleb

NetSuite has just announced that they're end-of-lifing both their NetSuite POS solution and SuiteCommerce In-Store. Not to confuse anybody, there are multiple SuiteCommerce products, and this is just SuiteCommerce In-Store. This does not impact SuiteCommerce, SuiteCommerce Advanced, or SuiteCommerce My Account. Although they share the same name, they are a very different product, and that's part of the reason they're being end-of-lifed. There are only a handful of customers on these existing solutions, though they've been demoed in the past.

So if you're in the scenario where they're being end-of-lifed, what should you do? Now it's time to go back to the drawing board and figure out a point of sale solution that will be best for you. That means going out into the market to find the right POS solution and then having it integrated to NetSuite. There are also a couple of point of sale solutions that are already pre-built inside of NetSuite with native tools that I'll recommend as we go through this.

Let's go through some of the different options you might want to consider as you evaluate your NetSuite point of sale solution, so you finally have a replacement for SuiteCommerce In-Store or NetSuite POS. Or if you're just starting to evaluate NetSuite for the first time, you're going to want to start picking out one of these solutions too.

The first one on my list is In8Sync's point of sale solution. They have a number of solutions, and I've referred them for a handful of opportunities. I've found them to have a pretty good team, I've enjoyed working with them, and they have a really clean product, especially if you're doing low volumes. Let's say you're a wholesale distributor or manufacturer, but you have a storefront where occasionally people come in, place an order, and pick up right there at the counter. For those scenarios, and maybe some mid-volume levels, it's a good lightweight solution. This wouldn't be the point of sale solution where you're doing a crazy amount of retail, but it's a good option if you need one. It's built inside of NetSuite, fully connected, and they're leveraging their application to pass that data back and forth. It's a pretty clean solution, specifically for a lightweight point of sale when the rest of your business is not point of sale, maybe orders via EDI or through e-commerce, and the in-store point of sale is just a small component. Then I think it's a pretty solid fit.

The next option, and probably what I would go with, is VennPOS. It's a really great option with a pretty good price point for retail, specifically if you have high volume. Let's say you're a retail company with lots of outlets, like clothing outlets, and you have NetSuite as your back office for all your inventory management. That scenario plays out really well when you have lots of locations, lots of registers, and high volume and foot traffic. They can certainly do the lighter weight functionality too, so you could still evaluate it as an option. But if I were setting the differentiators between the different scenarios, VennPOS is going to be for higher foot traffic, higher volume, more locations, and more registers, with that application integrated into NetSuite. Then you're going to have In8Sync as the other option, which is for that lower transaction volume.

There are a couple of other solutions on the market. I don't have anything positive or negative to say, I'm just indifferent, so I'm only sharing my thoughts on the solutions I've come across.

If I were someone who had SuiteCommerce In-Store or NetSuite POS, I suspect you're going to be in the camp of In8Sync's point of sale solution. But there are a handful I would actually steer elsewhere. I know of a couple of clients on SuiteCommerce In-Store who would probably go with VennPOS because they have 50-plus locations and a good amount of foot traffic. And I have some that are really just a wholesaler, doing maybe 20 walk-in orders a day at one or two of their distribution centers, and I'd probably steer them toward In8Sync. That's a generalization, but they're both worth considering.

If you want me to share more of my thoughts on these solutions, feel free to reach out to us at anchorgroup.tech. I can help gather and answer some questions, and maybe tell you what I would do if I were in your position. Hopefully that helps, especially as you're navigating this end-of-life transition from NetSuite POS or SuiteCommerce In-Store, or if you're coming to NetSuite for the first time and need some type of point of sale solution.

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As both a BigCommerce Certified Partner and an Oracle NetSuite Alliance Partner, Anchor Group is ready to handle BigCommerce and NetSuite projects alike. Whether you already have one platform and are looking to integrate the other, are considering a full-scale implementation of both platforms, or simply need support with ongoing customizations, our team is ready to help answer any questions you might have. Get in touch.