2019 Review of Cumulus Retail

From the July 2019 Review of Point-of-Sale Systems

Cumulus Retail from Celerant is a point of sale application that is best suited for small to mid-sized retail businesses that manage both brick and mortar and online stores. An In-Store edition and an Online edition are available, or users can opt to purchase both editions together. Cumulus also integrates with a variety of third-party applications including QuickBooks Online.

Cumulus Retail’s ‘Always On’ feature provides retailers with the security they need; processing sales even when Internet connectivity is lost, with any data entered later synched with the application once a connection has been restored.

Cumulus Retail point of sale screen in uncluttered, with users able to customize the screen as needed. Users can process sales using a variety of methods including using a mobile register or tablet, by entering a product code or by scanning the product. 

Frequently sold products can be added to the Quick Select menu in order to expedite the sales process with users able to search for products using descriptions, keywords, or style, and new products can be easily entered on the fly.  Sales can be processed by customer or as a cash sale, with users able to look up customer information in Cumulus Retail as well. Multiple users are supported in the product, with sales and inventory tracked from each location separately, or together for a more complete overview.

Cumulus Retail accepts a variety of tender types such as cash, checks, debit and credit cards, along with specialty payments such as Apple Pay and PayPal. Users can also create an unlimited number of custom tenders to be used with the application. Multiple transactions can be easily processed from the point of sale screen including product holds, special orders, returns, voids, layaways, and price changes. Users can choose to process transactions as a cash sale, or enter customer details if desired.

Cumulus Retail offers excellent customer management capability, with both customer loyalty and club memberships options available. Personalized email marketing capability is also available in the application as well. Customer information can be imported or exported to the CRM, and users can easily print club membership ID cards when needed. The included CRM also tracks both brick and mortar and online sales as needed.

Cumulus Retail offers excellent inventory management with users able to manage inventory for both brick and mortar and online locations in real time, including the ability to easily transfer inventory between locations. Users can import products directly into the application from a vendor catalog, and product templates are available to use in order to expedite the inventory entry process.  A mobile inventory app is available that can be used to complete a physical inventory or to check products in automatically, and preset minimum and maximum inventory levels can be set for any product, with a purchase order issued automatically when inventory drops to a certain level. 

Cumulus Retail offers excellent reporting, with a solid selection of standard reports available. A custom report designer is also included in the application that provides users with the ability to create custom reports from scratch or edit existing reports as needed. Customer reports available include Customer Purchase Detail, Customer Purchase History, and Customer Sales by Brand. Sales reports include Merchandise Sold, Return Sales, On-Hand versus Sales, and Department Sales. Inventory reports include Inventory Detail, Inventory History, and Inventory Sales. Permanent Markdown and Sell-Through reporting are also available in Cumulus Retail.

Cumulus Retail works with all standard point of sale hardware peripherals including both touch screen and standard monitors, barcode scanners, and receipt printers. The product also integrates with shipping vendors such as UPS, FedEx and USPS.  Cumulus Retail also offers a variety of marketplace integrations including Amazon, Walmart, eBay, and other third-party applications including PayPal, Google Analytics, and all social media.

All editions of Cumulus Retail include phone, email, and chat support during regular business hours, with weekend support hours available as well. Cumulus offers users a secure portal, where they can access additional help and support resources that include product brochures and training videos.

Well suited for small to mid-sized retail businesses that sell both in-store and online, Cumulus Retail is available in three editions: the In Store edition, which is designed for a single store and up to five users, and runs $125 per month; the Online edition, which is designed for online retailers, and runs $250 per month, or Both, which is a perfect solution for brick and mortar retail businesses that also have an online store, with Both running $350 per month. All plans are customizable, with users able to choose the modules and add-on applications they desire.

2019 Rating – 5 Stars