Are you running your fabric store on a generic point of sale (POS) system?
If so, you’ve probably noticed it can’t do everything you wish it could. When you ring up fabric sales by fractional yardage, for example, you often end up doing extra math by hand and settling for supply records that aren’t quite right.
A general POS system offers basic tools like customer checkout and inventory management, but it lacks the industry-specific nuance your store needs to thrive.
Like Sew is a cloud-based POS system designed specifically for fabric stores. With features built to fit your day-to-day workflow, you can minimize workarounds and blockers, keeping every part of your business in sync.
In this blog, we’ll explore seven key tasks that Like Sew helps you manage, so you can run your store more smoothly and keep customers coming back again and again.
Your POS should cover everything from fractional yardage to block-of-the-month (BOM) programs. Like Sew is designed to simplify these everyday tasks as much as possible.
Quilters buy fabric in all sorts of measurements, depending on their projects, so they need precise cuts. A digital system that can ring up these custom lengths makes serving these customers faster and easier.
If a customer comes in needing 2 ⅜ yards of floral fabric for a quilt top, Like Sew calculates the exact price instantly — no pen, paper, or guesswork required. It supports fractional yardage down to an eighth of a yard, creating a smooth, convenient checkout. That means no more manual math or keeping separate stock records.
Knowing how much fabric you have in store is important for avoiding stockouts. Like Sew tracks inventory in fractional yardage rather than rounding, so your on-hand counts are precise.
For example, a customer might purchase 3 ½ yards of flannel for a baby blanket. When you ring up the sale, Like Sew subtracts the exact amount from your on-hand total. If you started the day with 10 yards, you now have 6 ½ yards remaining. Over time, these accurate measurements prevent significant discrepancies and keep your inventory reliable.
Having quick access to dependable fabric quantities makes it easier to plan future orders, so your store stays consistently stocked and ready for every project.
Related Read: The Dashboard View: Store Performance at a Glance for Fabric Store Owners
Most retail stores get their stock from online vendors, and Like Sew connects you to a wide range of digital catalogs to simplify ordering. This means you’re always seeing up-to-date pricing, images, and descriptions, making it easy to compare providers and find the ideal fabrics and sewing products for your shop.
Maybe a customer has asked you multiple times if you carry a specific silk fabric line for an upcoming project. With Like Sew, you can quickly look up the product in the database and place an order directly through the system so she doesn’t need to shop somewhere else.
Direct access to these suppliers helps you keep your shelves stocked and adjust orders to match customer demand.
Fabric stores often offer kits and bundles for specific projects.
Kits can include:
These bundles make starting a project more convenient, and their prices are often marked down compared to buying the items individually. Like Sew has dedicated features for creating bundles, allowing you to set custom prices for easy checkout.
With a general retail POS, you might end up with incorrect inventory counts and pricing issues. But with an industry-specific system, kits and bundles can be put together and sold seamlessly.
Related Read: Kit Assembly: How To Manage Bundles and Kits in Your Fabric Store
If your store sells or repairs sewing machines, you’re also managing individual serial numbers for every unit that comes through the door. Like Sew records those unique identifiers, so you can track each machine without spreadsheets.
When you receive a machine you need to repair, you can enter its serial number and service details into the system right away. This makes it easy to see exactly what work needs to be completed and to review any past repairs on that machine.
Let’s say a visibly frustrated customer brings in a sewing machine to be repaired for the third time. You can use its serial number to access its history and see what past issues occurred, helping you speed up the repair process. This creates a faster, smoother experience for the customer and keeps them happy.
Like Sew’s dedicated work-order module lets you track the progress of each job and store all related notes in one place. If you offer a loaner machine while repairs are underway, you can record that as well, so every unit is accounted for from check-in to pickup.
Classes and workshops are a staple for many fabric stores. Whether you’re hosting a beginner quilting series or a Saturday bag-making workshop, in-person events bring new visitors into your shop and showcase the fabrics and tools you sell.
Like Sew includes website capabilities that let you build a custom site connected directly to your POS. This integration allows customers to browse upcoming classes, register online, and pay their fees in advance.
Once enrolled, students can receive automated reminders by text or email, helping ensure full attendance and fewer last-minute no-shows.
Related Read: From Sign-Up to Finished Quilt: How To Host Sewing Workshops in 8 Steps
When a customer signs up for a BOM program, they pay a monthly fee and receive a new quilt block each month, completing a full quilt over time. These programs build loyalty by keeping customers consistently engaged with your store. Many members choose to pick up their blocks in person, giving them another reason to step inside and browse.
While these programs are great for creating stable revenue, they also require careful coordination, which is where a fabric POS system can help. Like Sew keeps an organized list of members and tracks whether each block has been mailed or picked up, so you always know every customer’s status at a glance.
Business owners who use Like Sew have seen it solve their problems firsthand. Brenda Wood, the owner of The Sewing Cafe in Joliet, Illinois, frequently uses the fractional yardage and class management features at her store. She also added a service her customers had been requesting using the system.
Brenda mentions, “A lot of customers were asking me about gift cards. At first I said no, but then I thought about it and said, ‘let me do some research.’” She then looked through the instructional articles built into Like Sew. “It took me literally five minutes, and I was able to set up the gift cards.”
With just a few clicks, Brenda got more out of her POS and better served her customers.
Features like these were designed by a team that wants to see small business owners like Brenda succeed. Like Sew’s general manager, Spencer Wright, is passionate about helping fabric store owners overcome their distinct challenges.
He comments, “From tracking bolts and yardage to managing classes, kits, and seasonal patterns, we designed Like Sew around the way quilt shops actually operate day-to-day. My goal is to give store owners a software that feels truly made for them, so they can spend more time focusing on customers and community.”
Like Sew’s fabric-specific workflows minimize workarounds and manual processes. With features that cater to your unique tasks, you can lighten the load of managing your store, create a better experience for shoppers, and feel more confident in your data.
In addition to fractional yardage tracking, class management, and repair modules, Like Sew offers general retail features like payment processing, e-commerce, and marketing, so you have all the necessary tools to run your business.
At Like Sew, we want to help you get the features you need at a price you can afford. Check out our Build and Price tool to see which plan is right for your fabric store!