Zoho Zakya: Zoho, renowned for its suite of business software solutions, has ventured into the retail technology space with the launch of Zakya, a new business division aimed at revolutionising point-of-sale (POS) solutions for retail stores.

The Zakya brand promises a comprehensive POS solution tailored to streamline day-to-day operations for retail establishments, offering centralised monitoring capabilities. Zoho highlights Zakya's robust features, including enhanced inventory management, omnichannel sales support, and enriched customer experiences. The platform boasts a swift implementation process, with Zoho asserting that businesses managing thousands of inventory items can integrate Zakya within an hour, as stated in a recent Zoho press release.

Jayagopal Theranikal, Chief Evangelist of Zakya, shared insights on the division's launch, stressing its commitment to empowering small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) with tools to sustain and scale their operations. Theranikal underscored the significance of addressing the needs of Indian retailers, citing data from Invest India projecting substantial growth in the Indian retail market. He highlighted the prevalence of manual operations among a majority of the retail stores in the country, despite the burgeoning demand for POS solutions.

Theranikal further noted that many retail businesses relying on POS systems are hampered by outdated software, impeding scalability and hindering technological advancements. Zakya aims to bridge this gap by offering intuitive solutions coupled with comprehensive support, catering to retailers' diverse needs.

Zakya's offerings extend beyond basic POS functionalities, encompassing billing, accounting, e-commerce integration, mobile billing, and back-office management. Notably, the platform supports ten Indian languages, enhancing accessibility for a wider user base across diverse linguistic backgrounds.

In a bid to enhance user convenience, Zakya comes pre-integrated with leading payment partners such as Pine Labs, Razorpay, and PhonePe. Moreover, integration with shipment solutions like AfterShip and EasyPost facilitates seamless order fulfillment, bolstering the end-to-end retail experience.

Zoho has set Zakya's pricing at Rs 649 per month. Since its beta launch six months ago, Zakya has garnered significant traction, onboarding over 170 active stores and 320 active POS registers, Zoho reports.

Zoho cofounder and CEO Sridhar Vembu said last year that the company saw a 37 per cent year-on-year growth in its revenue from India in calendar year 2022. Without giving the revenue number for India, Vembu said the country emerged as the fastest-growing market for the SaaS giant.

Meanwhile, Zoho’s overall sales crossed the $1 billion mark in the financial year ended March 31, 2023. The bootstrapped unicorn reported an operating revenue of Rs 8,703.6 crore in FY23, a jump of 30 per cent from Rs 6,710.7 crore in FY22. Its net profit rose 3 per cent to Rs 2,836 crore from Rs 2,749 crore in FY22.