Vend POS Review: Best for Growing Brick-and-Mortar Businesses

Vend operates on a custom quote system for its hardware. This means that businesses cannot buy hardware directly from Vend. Instead, if you need a hardware setup, you can reach out to Vend’s sales team, where you will discuss your hardware needs and receive a quote.

If you would rather get hardware yourself, Vend is very flexible. Because Vend is browser-based, retailers can operate Vend’s POS software on any internet-enabled device. Vend also has a POS app that can be downloaded onto iPads and iPad minis if you want to conduct mobile sales or use an iPad register system. Additionally, most industry-standard accessories—like barcode scanners, receipt printers, and cash drawers—are compatible with Vend. This flexibility means you can set up a countertop checkout with hardware that you get through Vend or from a third-party vendor.

Vend’s website also has a comprehensive help center with a step-by-step guide and expert partners ready to answer questions regarding hardware and integration.

While Vend does not have a built-in payment processor like Shopify or Square, the software integrates with most major payment processors, and there is no fee for outsourcing. Additionally, since being acquired by Lightspeed, you receive a discount on your monthly payments if you opt to use Lightspeed Payments as your processor.

Once you have chosen a payment processor, the sky is really the limit. Vend lets shoppers pay how they like, with all major credit and debit cards accepted via swipe, tap, dip, sign, or contactless technologies, like NFC and Apple Pay. Not only that, Vend complies with both PCI and GDPR standards to protect your and your customers’ information.

When you go to process a sale, there are many tender options available, including store credit and layaway. (Source: Vend)

Contactless payments through mobile near-field communication (NFC) payments, like Apple Pay, are also possible. For businesses that create custom products or operate off of work orders, you can create quotes and “park” the transaction to checkout once the order is complete.

With Vend’s integration with the Hyperspace Age Verification App, businesses that sell restricted products can verify IDs. Hyperspace is certified for the Retail Access Control Standard (RACS) as required by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Essentially, when the age verification app is integrated with your POS system, you can set age requirements for certain products. When an age-restricted product gets scanned into a transaction, an age verification notice will pop up. From there, employees will be prompted to scan the customer’s ID. Once verified, the purchase can continue.

Vend prompts you to verify set age requirements when restricted products are included in a sale. (Source: Vend)

Gift card selling, redeeming, and tracking capabilities are built into Vend’s POS system. You can create your own gift cards, order through Vend’s supplier, or get them from a third party. Additionally, gift cards are included as a tender option at checkout, making it easy for store associates to redeem.

Vend also has a point-based loyalty program built into its POS dashboard and checkout screens. Reward or loyalty balances show up on receipts when customers make a purchase, and they can also be sent by email. It also lets you customize your program, allowing you to assign points to the loyalty actions that have the biggest impact on your business.

Vend POS includes tools to build customer profiles, create customer groups (such as a VIP program), and give groups special pricing. Your customer’s information—which extends across all your sales channels—includes purchase history, loyalty points, VIP status, and account balances, and is automatically stored under each customer profile.

Each customer profile displays user activity, personal information, and store credit status. (Source: Vend)

Vend makes it easy to add to your customer list with a feature that allows you to create customer profiles during the checkout process. Additionally, all customers from all your sales channels automatically sync to your POS, so all your online customers will have profiles when they visit your storefront.

The only major shortcoming of Vend’s customer management is that it lacks customer reporting capabilities (like you see with Lightspeed POS).

Vend has powerful inventory management tools for brick-and-mortar retailers. The platform makes it easy to add inventory to your POS catalog. You can either add products individually through the dashboard or upload them in bulk using a spreadsheet. Moreover, it is designed to handle many variants (like different sizes and colors) and composite items (like gift baskets or discount bundles).

One of its most unique features is its corresponding free barcode scanner mobile app. When you download this app, your mobile device camera becomes a barcode scanner. Employees can use the mobile scanner to perform full or partial stock counts, receive shipments, or even check if a product is in stock at any location, verify pricing, and confirm product specs.

Vend’s scanner app makes inventory counting easy and more accurate. (Source: Vend)

In addition to its scanner app, Vend can also track inventory in real time, set automatic restock points, track vendor information and purchases, and make detailed product pages that include pertinent product information.

Vend’s product pages let you add tons of information about the product, its vendor, and much more. (Source: Vend)

Another notable inventory capability that Vend brings to the table is its fully integrated order management features. Vend lets you create, send, and track purchase orders (POs) from within the POS.

Most other systems, like Square, will generate reorder reports but require you to export or create POs in a separate program. Vend lets you manage POs across all locations from one place and provides employees visibility into what shipments are on the way.

Not only can you manage purchase orders with Vend, but the software also has full order management. This includes built-in stock receiving, ordering, returning, and transferring features.

While Vend lacks a native ecommerce platform (like you get with Shopify, Square, and Lightspeed), it does have free integrations with most ecommerce platforms, including WooCommerce, Shopify, and BigCommerce. This means you can sync your brick-and-mortar and ecommerce sales channels on one platform, making it easy to stay on top of all the parts of your retail business.

Vend’s ecommerce management features include

• Online orders: These will appear on your POS dashboard, so you can monitor and fulfill online orders straight from your POS platform without needing to switch between two systems.
• Customer syncing: When customers create a profile in your ecommerce store, it will automatically be added to your customer database on your POS system.
• Multichannel syncing: Add your Amazon, social, or eBay storefront to your POS dashboard so that all your sales channels are synced and in one convenient location.

Vend has a streamlined and incredibly helpful reporting module with eight reporting categories, including your retail dashboard with daily sales and numbers, inventory, payments, registers, gift cards, store credit, and tax reports. You can also view your reports from anywhere via Vend’s browser-based dashboard. Though Vend does not have a mobile reporting app, the dashboard is mobile-friendly.

One of my favorite reporting features is the ability to set daily, weekly, and/or monthly sales goals for each employee and track their progress. You can even allow employees to monitor their progress against their goals. This is unique to Vend and makes it easy to hold your staff accountable and help them stay on track.

Another key feature is Vend’s demand forecasting reports, which enable you to anticipate how much stock you’ll need and what is selling the most. Additionally, all of Vend’s reports are adjustable, so you can click through different variables and filters to problem-solve and find the data you need. Not only that, but Vend lets retailers set up custom reports. Many POS systems in this price range only offer templated analytics, so this is a notable feature, one that I have only ever seen in Lightspeed’s premium plans.

Vend’s Retail Dashboard displays your most pertinent day-to-day information. (Source: Vend)

Vend offers a wide range of integration options, from accounting applications to employee management tools. It also has an in-house developer community to assist users in building highly customized functions, such as an online store or third-party payment processor, through Vend’s open application programming interface (API).

Some of Vend’s most popular integrations include

• QuickBooks Online
• Xero
• BigCommerce
• WooCommerce
• Shopify
• Homebase
• Mailchimp
• Timely
• Loop Insights
• NetSuite

Vend is ideal for retailers that operate primarily as brick-and-mortar stores with single or multiple locations. With Vend’s rich checkout and backend management features, it is perfect for all in-store operations and can seamlessly integrate across locations. Vend is also great if you want to use a specific payment processor or if you need to verify driver’s licenses.

If you operate primarily online, Vend would not be a good solution for you. Additionally, if you are appointment-based, a restaurant, or if you only process a small amount of inventory, Vend will likely not be the best solution for you.

Vend was the name of the original Vend product that customers use today. In 2020, Vend was acquired by Lightspeed and became Vend by Lightspeed. This is how it appears on the Vend website, and nothing about the features has changed other than that there is better integration with other Lightspeed products. Also, there are no longer processing limits and you can save on your monthly fee by opting for Lightspeed Payments.

Eventually, Vend/ Vend by Lightspeed will be called Lightspeed Series X, as you will see it referred to on the website. Lightspeed Series X will offer the same features that Vend offers now, just under a new name.

While Vend does have a higher price point than many other POS software, you can save money on your monthly subscription fee by paying annually and/or opting for Lightspeed Payments. See the comparison below: