Setting up Consign Pro in existing shop

[Brenda]

I want to start using my Consign Pro software in my existing shop which currently runs on old school methods (really old). Has anyone out there integrated the software with an existing shop? I'm curious and hopeful someone can share the pitfalls and save me from frustration when I begin the process of switching over to the real world.....Thanks in advance!!!!!

[nfusch]

hi brenda,

i started working in a consignment shop this past spring, and was shocked at how antiquated their "system" was. i'm talking a step above a stone tablet and chisel LOL.

i think that different shops have different types of challenges when switching over. i've noticed that some of the people here are affiliated with "clothing only" shops, or "furniture shops," etc., etc. we are a shop that deals with collectables, china, crystal, silver, decorative items, small furniture pieces, lamps, paintings, handbags and plenty of jewelry. which means we have many items that are very similar.

since ive been there, the shop has implemented the designpro system, and we are still working out a lot of the kinks. there will be quite a bit of pain involved in the transition, but it will certainly be worth it in the end.

the hardest thing is tagging all of your existing inventory. one of the biggest, "holy crap why didn't we realize this moments," centered around the tagging process of our inventory. when entering items into inventory, whether from a spreadsheet download, or item by item, the "item description" field only recognizes the 1st 25 characters that are typed in. even though the system will let you type to your hearts content in this field, when your tag comes out, it will only print the 1st 25 characters. so rule of thumb, make sure to put your most critical identifying item information 1st. otherwise, if you have many items with similar descriptions, IE, pink depression glass, blah, blah, blah, you will have numerous labels that look exactly the same! and when trying to tag thousands of items at once, its not easy.

also, we are realizing the need for an addition laptop or computer strictly for taking in consignments is a must for us. many shops only take in consignments on certain days, or at certain times. we don't, and thus far there has been a lot of resistance to changing that policy..

we've also realized that we will likely need a 2nd printer just for jewelry labels. changing the configuration from one label type to another is quite time consuming, and often doesn't work, so for us its going to make sense to have 2 printers.

i'd be interested in hearing other tips from anyone else here who has gone through the process, as i said before, we are still working out the kinks!

[tarabornagain]

Our tags were all hand-written when we switched to a computerized system with ConsignPro software. I elected to just go forward from there, NOT tagging already existing inventory. As those "old" items came to the register, I simply entered them as "new items" on the Make Sale screen and made sure to put the consignor number in correctly so the consignor would be credited.

Since we have a 60 day consignment period, I knew most of the hand-written tags would be gone w/in 60 days anyway.

Probably the biggest challenge for us has been standardizing our prices. Computerization and using the SmartPrice feature inside ConsignPro was a HUGE help. However, you still have to decide how exactly you will make that happen. It took me about six months to come up with the first way that I did that.

After using it for a while more, I realized I needed something more far-reaching if it was going to work for everything we carry in the store (kids clothing, equipment, toys and accessories, formal dress for adults/teens, casual clothing, shoes and accessories for women and teens). It was another two years before I perfected the system we now use, and I continue to make improvements. I've even sold that system to a few shops in other states to help them get started. Anyway, that's beside the point.

If you elect to use the SmartPrice system, it can be a huge help to you as well. But you have to sit down and decide how to make your departments and descriptions so that you can group like items and assign a price for that group. There are many advantages to this, not the least of which is that other employees can tag items and no matter who tags something the price will be the same. Then you don't have two identical items sitting on a shelf/rack together priced differently.