by Scott DCamp
Reporter
In April 2012, Tony Dorn Sr., asked Ben Espeseth to program a cash register – which was something Espeseth had never done before.
At the time, Espeseth had been an employee of Tony Dorn Inc. for about four years. Espeseth described his role as a go-to guy for whatever was needed. That often meant heading out of town to help set up office furniture. But programming a smart cash register was foreign.
“I told him I couldn’t do it,” Espeseth said. “He said, ‘Sure you can. Here’s the book. It tells you how.’”
The machine had just five keys. It took Espeseth two hours to program, but that painful process was the start of new company that carried on the Tony Dorn Inc. legacy.
Espeseth said it was former Tony Dorn Inc., employee Trent Collins that picked up on the need to transition from traditional cash registers – a mainstay at Tony Dorn Inc. – to smart registers and fully-programable POS systems.
POS systems are basically a do-all system for businesses. They replace traditional cash registers and time clocks with a single system that ties one or more terminals into a computer.
Espeseth purchased Tony Dorn Inc. in January 2013 and changed the name to Tony Dorn POS in August 2013. He said the systems are ideal for restaurants, liquor stores, bars, convenience stores, food trucks and concession stands, clothing stores – pretty much any business with rapidly-changing inventory.
In the case of restaurants, orders that are typed into a terminal are printed in the kitchen or bar – depending on how the system is set up.
The POS systems installed by Tony Dorn POS are fully customizable from the number of buttons on the main page to the color scheme. The POS systems installed by Tony Dorn POS use Sam4S for the hardware, which is Samsung’s line of hardware, and NCC (National Computer Corp.) Reflection software.
NCC’s leading competitor in the world of POS systems is Micros, which has its own unique hardware and software but doesn’t give the user as many options for customizing.
Excluding the labor to program POS systems, customers can expect to pay about $2,600 per terminal, or $3,000 with a cash drawer and printer, Espeseth said.
Comparatively, basic tills run about $150, but require more man-hours to complete Z reports, payroll and inventory.
After purchasing Tony Dorn Inc., in 2013, Espeseth continued the trend toward modern smart cash registers and POS systems. One of his first clients to fully transition to a POS system was the Eagles Club in Thief River Falls.
“For the Eagles, it was exactly what they needed,” Espeseth said. “Sam can look back on the previous day and see that he sold 42 Coors Lights. Then he can go look at the inventory and see what he should have left.”
Eagles Club
The Eagles Club completed its transition to a POS system in May of this year.
“It’s been fantastic,” said Sam Harger, Eagles Club manager. “We used to have these older systems where a guy could never track anything. Not only does it help with inventory, but we can track time cards. People can establish tabs with debit cards. Its just been a great transition.”
Harger said one of the biggest benefits is with inventory tracking. The system is programmed to know the volume and type of alcohol in each mixed drink. Each time a drink is sold, regardless of whether its a cocktail, shot or a beer, the inventory is adjusted.
“I can track every single bottle,” Harger said, adding that he still does a manual inventory. So far, the system has been pretty accurate. “For us its been great because we could never really track them in the past,” Harger added.
“Its easier to do payroll,” Harger said. “It’s easier to track each individual employees financials throughout the night. How long each transaction takes and tips from customers. My employees love it.”
The POS system has resulted in some price adjustments at the Eagles Club.
The POS system used at the Eagles club uses two terminals in the front of the house and one in back. Each employee has to put in his or her own code, prior to placing the order. The system then keeps track of each employee’s sale for the night.
“There’s less discrepancies with till and it keeps employees more accountable,” Harger said. “For me, from a manager stand point, I can look at a lot more financials. I can look at spread sheets, make graphs and look at productivity per hour and labor per hour. Its very beneficial. You can see your true costs per night.”
If an electronic ordering system that accurately tracks orders placed and inventory within a few ounces wasn’t enough, the Eagles Club also features an upgraded security system that is connected to POS system. If there is a discrepancy, Harger can see what each employee entered for each order throughout the night.
“It keeps employees accountable,” Harger said.
Harger said an added benefit of the system is the customizable reports that it can generate.
“I can bring a lot of these things to the board,” Harger said. “Instead of it being a guessing game, I can bring a report to the board.
Other clients of Tony Dorn POS include the St. Hilaire Bar and Grill, Warroad Estates Golf Club and L&R Foods in Argyle. Tony Dorn POS is also developing systems for four other businesses. Tony Dorn POS is offering a 30-day free trial to use the system. After 30 days of Z reports, the user will be required to buy a license to use the system.