The Exhibition Pub Sees Huge Cost Savings with the Robust Casio QT-6600 EPOS System

The Exhibition PubThe Exhibition is a traditional village pub located in the heart of Over, near Cambridge, and dates back to 1826. Historically named after the Great Exhibition in Crystal Palace in 1851, husband and wife duo John and Tracy Warkcup have owned the pub for over 7 years. With 10 employees, they serve over 1000 customers a month on a food basis.

The ChallengeThe Exhibition previously used a very basic, cash register to collect cash and register transactions.

John explains:“We were using a very basic till at the time which didn’t analyse out by product and it was a case of the bar staff having to memorise prices and add them up in their head. It was time consuming because they weren’t focusing on the actual customers because they were too busy concentrating on adding the prices in their head, which resulted in mistakes being made.”

“I actually sat down and did a cost benefit to see how much it was costing me through loss of stock and items being missed off the bills. We calculated that it was costing us in the region of the £500 a month through items being missed off the bills and being added up incorrectly. It came across as a big shock, so I took it upon myself to actually look at what we could do to address this problem. John was searching for a new solution that would efficiently process orders quickly, would be easy for staff to adapt to and included comprehensive back office software where stock could easily be controlled.

The RequirementsJohn and Tracy had a list of requirements that the new solution had to cover. It had to be:• Simple to use and easy for training.• Cost effective.• Have a large clear screen.• Speedy and robust. • The ability to analyse product

information quickly and efficiently

John explains:“We went to a Punch Taverns road show almost two years ago and spoke to MicroTill about the types of issues and problems we were having with our current solution. They gave me a couple of options of the different types of EPOS terminals that I could use and gave me recommendations as to which one would be the solution to solve our problems.”

“We previously tried to address the issue through training. We tried to keep the price of items to round figures, but we were still counting discrepancies and made it very difficult during stock takes to analyse what our best products were and what we’re selling the most margins on. We tended to find was that if a product was selling really well, the more times it got missed off the bill, so it was actually really difficult to follow anything through,” John commented.

The SolutionJohn was searching for a reliable solution and had to be proven to work in the market place.

John explains: “Microtill physically came down to the site and bought two terminals with them. We thought the service they provided was excellent and the QT-6600 was the one that fitted our

business the best. We have limited space behind the bar and the QT-6600 fits in perfectly.”

“We didn’t really consider any alternatives; however, there were a few that we researched over the internet. Clearly, you know the quality you are getting when you are purchasing a Casio. There were obviously cheaper options out there but we wanted a solution which we believed will have the least amount of problems with. So it was a case of which that we knew that if we went with a Casio, we knew the service we would get overall and in terms of after sales would be excellent.”

The solution recommended was a QT-6600 EPoS terminal with Casio Business Management Solution back office software.

Key Features of the QT-6600

15 inch colour LCD Touch panel and control Splash proof Excellent clear graphics Secure operator log-in via dallas keys Expert floor planning Integrated rear display Enhanced functionality for the end user Optional magnetic card reader Optional external thermal printer FTP functionality

John confirms that the QT-6600 has been proven to be efficient, reliable and speedy. Staff have adapted to the new system well and customers are being served much more quickly.

Epos@casio.co.uk 020 8450 9131 Casio.co.uk/epos

The Benefits

The Exhibition Pub has benefited enormously from using the QT-6600…

They have saved £500 a months in miscalculations.

Staff can serve customers quicker due to speedier operations.

Sales are sped up with the large LCD touch screen.

Expert floor management system makes it easier to manage table bookings,

Comprehensive and customising reports are produced

Optional back office software for complete stock management.

Simplified graphical split bill operation Stylish design with small foot print that

ideally fit into tight spaces

John explains:

“It saved us £500 a month because items aren’t missed off the bills now and it’s saved me a lot of time and hassle with analysis and actually calculating margins and individual products as supposed to going back and looking at what we have ordered against what I think we have sold. It’s a more accurate way because we know that we have physically sold it so it helps with calculating wastages. The kitchen staff find it quick too because it means it saves time with bar staff and waiting staff when they take orders and put it straight in the till and its automatically printed off in the kitchen so there is no walking in through and they can efficiently serve the customers.”

“There has been huge cost saving benefits because it’s meant that we haven’t been losing £500 per a month with items being missed off bills.

It saves me a lot of time from physically analysing what we have been selling. It makes ordering a lot easier by using the stock facility. It’s saved me a lot of time and hassle and to be fair, it hasn’t caused any either.

“Other pubs will be absolutely gob smacked as to what benefits this solution it gives you. It was sold to me because of the key reason that it would save me my £500 a month. All the other features such as the training and usability didn’t really occur to me at the time when I purchased the till. The added value that they give to the business and the time it physically saved me has been excellent,” John explains.

The Future

John is eager to improve customer service levels further during the peak summer months and would like to involve Casio and MicroTill in their future plans.

“The service we received from MicroTill since their first visit to the pub was excellent and the service we have had from them since has been second to none. I am in the process of purchasing the back office software for my laptop because it will then enable me to more easily look at my stocks and I can more easily analyse the information the tills provide.”

John explains:

“The wife and I are currently in the process of taking on a 2nd site. We are hoping to purchase another EPOS system soon. I know that the current till system on the site is operated using a push button and I prefer Casio’s touch screen and more in depth back office analysis that it provides.”

John concludes:

“The Casio QT-6600 is fantastic; user friendly and so easy to train staff. It is easier than using a PC. The Casio solution has improved efficiency, training has been easy. It’s taken out human error which has resulted in massive cost savings”

John WarcupThe Exhibition Pub Owner

Epos@casio.co.uk 020 8450 9131 Casio.co.uk/epos