“Too many issues in the custom modules”

Pros

Our setup benefits a lot from the customization options especially on the inventory screens, printed inventory, jewelry tags and the checkout screen. Granite Info Sys has been very helpful over the years and usually comes through for us when we follow up on problems. Many of the custom parts built into our system have made a real difference in how successful our store is because of the features Granite created for us.

Cons

There is a recurring problem with the central gift cards. Every time we scan a card, a "?" gets added after the last number. We've had the system for nearly four years and still deal with it every single day because it has never been fixed. Granite reported the problem to Retail pro just days after our new system was installed but the bug is still there. Installing software updates is also difficult and forces us to pay our software provider whenever a new update comes out. On top of that the reports, reordering tools, inventory alerts and gift card processing speed all fall short. Loyalty program customization is limited too so we ended up paying for a lot of custom work through our service provider. Then if anything goes wrong it costs more money to diagnose because the functionality wasn't originally built into Retail pro. There are still plenty of unresolved bugs throughout the software.

“Handles large stock volumes well”

Pros

Retail pro is a very powerful inventory management solution with a lot of functions and features built in. I appreciate its scalability and durability since it can handle a large number of stores and POS terminals in one large Oracle database.

Cons

Database recovery takes a long time especially on the main server. Upgrading from an older release to a newer one can also be time-consuming when there are many stores and POS terminals involved.

“weak reporting capability”

Pros

I've worked with Retail Pro v8 for 13 years and I can say version 9.4 has made some important changes. The new features let me extract information directly without having to always run reports. Screens and documents can be customized and the system is simple to use. Moving from version 8 to version 9 went well, there were no issues or lost data during the conversion. The check in/check out functionality has improved in 9.4 and data maintenance is much simpler in this release since corrections can be made even while users are actively working in the system.

Cons

It is extremely, extremely slow. The Purchase Order side of the system has a lot of bugs and the company has not been responsive about fixing them. Reporting is also lacking and there is no built-in customization for reports unless you buy third party software. Even then the average user still would not be able to just sit down and customize a report much less build a new one. Some basic information is simply missing from the standard reports that come with the software.

“Comprehensive retail suite”

Pros

Retail Pro covers nearly everything a business needs to operate successfully. They also have a very knowledgeable partner network. Working alongside them makes this software an excellent choice for supporting a retail business.

Cons

Support is not very informative or helpful. Also I'm disappointed by how limited the user information is when I log into the portal. There should be more detailed user information available.

“painfully slow”

Pros

ECM polling in RPro 9.4 replaces the old 32-bit polling from RPro 8.6. On paper it should provide almost real-time updates to the main system. The problem is that it fails for different reasons and there are no logs or error messages to help figure out what went wrong. Because of that there's no reliable way to know whether it's actually working or not. One thing I can say is that the Retail pro dealer has been supportive and has tried to help resolve the many issues with RPro.

Cons

An unbelievably slow system. We've already upgraded all the hardware with SSDs, plenty of RAM and fast processors but views, filters and even switching from Sales to Customer Management still pause at every step. Even connecting directly to the server barely improves performance. To make things worse, several very basic functions are missing. There's no filter to view inventory by sold items and you also can't view items on order in inventory because that filter is missing too. With around 95,000 active SKUs it's extremely difficult to manage inventory in a system that performs this poorly. My RPro dealer says the Oracle database is part of the problem. Reporting in 9.4 (which is one of the main reasons we have the system) is basically not there. We have to export all of the 9.4 data back into our old 8.6 system just to run even simple reports. So actually we're maintaining two systems. The 9.4 database is heavy, requires more administration and ends up being expensive and time-consuming. If an emergency reinstall is ever needed it could take quite a while. RPro 9.4 also only supports one EFT interface which leaves the end user locked into a noncompetitive relationship with POS EFT and that system has its own problems as well. We've been with Retail Pro since 1998 and on version 8 since 2004. V8 may not have been the most advanced option on the market but at least it was stable and usable.

“regressed with the v9 update”

Pros

After about 15 years with Retail Pro I know the system inside and out. Their tech support team has always been knowledgeable and pleasant to work with. V8 was fantastic and honestly I wish I could return to it. I built two businesses using Retail pro's reports and recommended the software to every retailer I came across. Back then I could adjust reports however I wanted and pull the exact information I needed to make solid business decisions. The update with V9 has been a major downgrade.

Cons

V9 runs slower and is more difficult to navigate. Reporting is by far the biggest weakness. There isn't even a basic sales tax report and it also lacks customer reporting for companies. The reports feel almost completely locked down unless I'm willing to pay an unreasonable amount to have each one custom built. At least in V8 I could create what I needed in just minutes. It's hard to understand how with newer technology, the product has actually regressed. V9 reporting has been very costly for me and if that doesn't change I'll need to look for a better alternative.