More customers
- Back-in-stock and new-arrival alerts to opted-in customers, the moment your POS shows the stock.
- A personal note to good customers you haven’t seen in 90 days.
- New products and events posted to your Google profile and social media.
Big-box tools for the shop on Main Street.
One inventory across your till and your website, customers who hear about new arrivals, and month-end tax that adds itself up. We connect your POS, your online store and your books, and put AI to work across them.
Your systems
We work with the software you already run on
Most independent shops run a POS, maybe an online store, a card processor, an email list and an accounting package. We make them work together.
Point of sale and online store
- Shopify
- Lightspeed
- Square
- Clover
- Moneris
- Helcim
Inventory, marketing and loyalty
- inFlow
- Mailchimp
- Klaviyo
- Smile.io
- Google Business Profile
Books and shipping
- QuickBooks
- Xero
- Wave
- Canada Post
If your software has an API or can export its data, we can usually connect it. Shopify and Square are open; some tools only allow it on certain plans (Lightspeed’s Plus plan, for example), so we’ll work with what your setup allows.
Product names are trademarks of their owners, used only to identify software we can work with. Prairie AI Works is independent and not affiliated with, endorsed or sponsored by these companies.
What we’d do
What we’d do for a local shop
Every business is different, so we start by looking at how yours runs. These are the kinds of things we’d suggest.
Your shop, organized
- An opening brief by text: yesterday’s sales, today’s deliveries and who’s on shift.
- Low stock triggers a draft purchase order for your approval.
- A staff assistant for policies, product details and "do we carry this?"
Everything connected
- One inventory between your online store and your till, or a watch that flags mismatches.
- Card processor payouts reconciled in your books, fees and refunds included.
- Ask your store questions in plain English across your POS, website and books.
Less admin and bookkeeping
- A month-end sales-tax pack: GST, PST and exempt sales, with the paperwork attached.
- Supplier invoices captured, with costs updated and margin alerts.
- Canada Post labels and tracking emails for online orders.
Know your numbers
- Sell-through and dead stock by vendor and category.
- What sells together, to plan bundles and displays.
- Which promotions paid off, in store and online.
Ask your business
Plain questions, answered from your own data
Once your systems are connected, you can ask about your business the way you’d ask a manager, and get an answer in seconds.
What are my slowest movers over $50, and how long have they sat?
27 items, $11,800 tied up. The oldest has sat for 14 months.From your POS and inventory
Who spent $500 or more last year but hasn’t been in since spring?
64 customers, with a note ready for your approval.From your POS and customer list
Did November’s ads lift sales, in store versus online?
Online sales were up 22% and in-store sales 6% on last November.From your POS, online store and ads
Examples only. Your answers come from your own systems, and only the people you choose can ask.
An example
A website that sells between visits
An example of a site we’d build for a local shop: new arrivals, online ordering for pickup and rewards, built in days and looked after.
We’ll build a site like this for your business free and send you the link, with no obligation. If you love it, we launch it when you join our $300/month AI plan (6-month minimum). See the offer
Open the example site
Getting started
How we’d start with a retail business
A free call
Tell us how your business runs and which software you use. No cost and no pressure.
Discovery and setup
We learn how your business runs and connect the tools you use, for one price based on the size of your business, agreed before any work starts.
Build and look after
We connect your systems, set up AI for your team and build what’s worth it, then host and look after all of it.
FAQ
Questions from retail businesses
Do you work with Shopify, Square or Lightspeed?
Yes. Shopify and Square have open APIs, and Lightspeed works through its Plus plan or a private app.
Can my online store and my till share one inventory?
Often natively, as with Shopify POS. Otherwise we sync them and watch for mismatches.
What if my POS has no API?
We use exports, your card processor’s data and your books, and we’ll tell you honestly if switching would pay off.
Let’s look at your business together
The first call is free. Tell us how you run things and which systems you use, and we’ll show you what’s worth doing first.