Requirements checklist
What to ask for when choosing software for organic stores.
A checklist built from how organic stores work, to print or save as a PDF and bring to any supplier meeting.
What the software should cover
Tick each one that matters to your business.
- Lots with grower and certificate
- Counter billing by weight and piece
- Bin and repack records
- Weekly box planning
- Delivery rounds and orders
- Short date and reorder alerts
- Grower and supplier ledger
Roles that need their own access
Who logs in, and what each person may see or change.
- For owners
- For counter staff
- For the receiving and packing team
- For delivery drivers
- For the buyer
Reports to ask for
Ask to see each one with your own sample data.
- Lots on the shelf by best before date
- Certificates expiring by grower
- Weekly box cost against box price
- Repack and bin history by source lot
- Sales by item, weighed and packed
- Delivery rounds completed and payments collected
- Grower and mill balances payable
Systems it may need to connect to
Note which ones you already run.
- Weighing scale
- Barcode scanner and label printer
- WhatsApp or SMS
- Card and payment gateway
- Accounting export
Questions for any vendor
Put these to every supplier you are comparing.
- Does the system verify that a certificate is valid?
- Can one bin hold more than one lot?
- How are weighed items billed beside packed ones?
- Can a household pause a weekly box?
- What if a vegetable in the box is replaced at the packing table?
- Does it work for a store with two outlets?
- How do records get in from my current spreadsheet?
- Can I take my records out later?
- How is the cost of a project worked out?
- Is help available once the shop is live?
Where the work usually breaks today
Circle the ones you recognise. They set the order of the project.
- Certificate papers sit apart from stock
- Bins mix two lots
- Box contents drift from the promise
- Short dated stock is found late
- Suppliers are many and small
Prefer to talk it through? See the organic stores page.