Market Trends of Canada POS Terminal Industry
This section covers the major market trends shaping the Canada POS Terminal Market according to our research experts:
Retail Expected to Witness Significant Market Share
- The retail industry is one of Canada's major users of POS terminals. The sector is expected to hold a significant share globally. The retail segment is slowly progressing with the reopening of physical stores in the country. Tech and non-tech savvy consumers simultaneously demand a seamless experience at their preferred retailer destinations.
- The rising requirement for multiple POS systems among big retailers, supermarkets, and departmental stores in Canada with a powerful and centralized system has driven the retail sector's steady growth in the POS terminal market. For instance, in March 2022, Northern Reflections Limited chose LS Central as the new software system for its 134 stores across Canada. As per the partnership, LS Central will support all retail processes in the Northern Reflections portfolio of stores, including the back office, focusing on stock replenishment and distribution, point of sales, and reporting for a unified customer experience.
- The significant discounts and other services provided by the increasing number of retail stores across Canada attract customers; however, customer retention becomes the primary challenge to sustaining in the market. This competition increases the need to revisualize their business models, avoid competition concerning price and find the balance between investing in the latest technologies and revenue.
- The inventory, sales reporting, financial management, customer analytics, and other key functions of retail outlets that POS terminals provide assist retailers in overcoming the problems related to customer retention. Hence, the industry's requirement for customer retention and competition growth promotes the development of POS terminals with more features for a unified solution offering in Canada.
- Companies collaborate to bring unified solutions with advanced features, defining the POS terminal ecosystem in Canada. For instance, in June 2022, Samsung Electronics Canada partnered with suitable commerce solution provider Moneris Solutions Corporation to integrate smooth payment methods into its self-service Samsung Kiosk, expanding the offerings for merchants across Canada. Such developments indicate that companies focus on improving the customer experience in the retail sector through their POS terminal offerings in Canada.
Understand The Key Trends Shaping This Market
Download PDF
Mobile/Portable Point-of-Sale Terminals Expected to Witness Significant Market Share
- Mobile POS systems are gaining traction in the Canadian market as they allow sales and service industries to conduct the transaction at the customer's location, adding flexibility to the whole process and improving the customer experience. Companies offering such integrated solutions are gaining popularity and expanding their service offerings.
- In February 2022, Kinetic Commerce announced a significant growth investment to expand its sales and business development efforts, bringing its total funding to over CAD 12 million. The POS offerings feature Mobile Point-of-Sale (mPOS), enabling various mobile devices to accept payments, Virtual Associate Tools that empower retail associates to engage customers and drive incremental sales online, and several other features.
- Currently, most mPOS terminals are transitioning into Android-based OS, allowing more flexibility when dealing with clients. This is compared to the largely Linux-oriented machines that existed before the influx of mobile phone users. Compared to Android OS, Linux has been largely barebones, with minimal functionalities and not offering more utility than a basic cash register. The industry's upheaval has been possible primarily due to investment in Cloud-based POS systems.
- Cloud-based mPOS systems store user data on a remote server. The POS system is also not run locally, so no installation is required. Depending on the POS vendor and the contract terms, compared to traditional on-premises POS installation, the software is more likely to be continually updated by the developer with more useful features and better performance in terms of computer resources at the remote server and periods of lesser bugs and errors. This motivates more Canadian businesses to opt for regularly updated mPOS systems, contributing to the market growth.
- According to the International Trade Administration (ITA), 55% of Canadians made online retail purchases with their mobile devices as of January 2022. This indicates the potential of ease of operation offered by the mPOS to support better growth in the retail sector. Software developments are also supporting the rise in mPOS solutions as applications and augmentations are boosting the implementation of NFC technology on mobile devices and allowing users to utilize their android devices as portable POS. SoftPOS is one such concept that has recently gained traction in Canada.
