The industry that has become the POS industry is divided into 2 sub-groups. First are those that sell POS technology computers and printers. Then there are those that Sell Point of Sale Merchandise.

The Point of Purchase industry is merchandising from the manufacturer to the consumer, while the POS merchandise industry is merchandising from the retailer to the consumer. POS has become part of common usage today as Automated Teller Machine (ATM) and credit card debit devices offer Electronic Funds Transfer at POS or EFTPOS. Prior to the advent of computers stores and manufacturers used the term merchandising to cover the area that now referred to as POS and POP respectively. This term evolved from the early traders who were called merchants and the goods they sold were called merchandise. Early advertising agencies concentrated on doing advertisements for newspapers and magazines, then radio and finally television.

in the 1950's a new type of retail store came into being called self-service and the supermarket concept where customers picked the goods they wanted and took them to the counter to be weighed, counted and or packed. This was a complete change from where the customer had told the storekeeper what they wanted and the store person picked the item for the customer. This shift in how shopping was done was the birth of the POS merchandise and the POP merchandise; as now there needed to be a way to influence the purchaser at the "point of Sale".

With the development of branded merchandise the concept of Brands became the focus of advertising agencies. At this stage advertising agencies and manufacturers began to realise that to support their brand, associated merchandising was needed.

Even today - recent studies - suggest as high as 40% of all purchases in store are made at the Point of Sale. This impulse purchasing is the basis of most POS & POP display.

Thus the advent of "Brands" & Impulse purchasing has made the POS & POP industries today part of the fabric of modern retailing.

In 2012 and beyond we now see in store Video's that turn on when we pass an item on a shelve in a store to interactive computer screens that let us select a menu and then tell us what and where in the store is what we need to make the meal selected.

We welcome any information you wish to add.

April11, 2012

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