Kiryana POS software in Lahore

Where a Lahore general store gets its stock

Much of Lahore's dry grocery still passes through the walled city. Akbari Mandi was set up as a grain market in the time of Emperor Akbar and is still trading; the Walled City of Lahore Authority describes it today as the wholesale market for grains, spices, herbs and chemicals. A short walk away, Papper Mandi deals in herbs, perfumes, murabba and the plastic bottles many shops pack them in, and Shah Alam Market supplies cosmetics, accessories and small household goods that fill the front shelves of a neighbourhood store.

From there the chain is simple and old. A store owner or his supplier buys rice, pulses, sugar and spices by the bori, a carton of soap or a tin of ghee, and the shop breaks it into the small amounts its customers ask for: a pao of red chilli, half a kilo of moong, one sachet of shampoo. Prices in the wholesale lanes move with the season, and a margin that looked fine in Ramazan can be gone by winter if nobody checks what the last bori actually cost.

Most of the trade outside the old city is on trust. A store in Mozang or Shadbagh knows its families by name, gives goods through the month and collects when salaries arrive. Load-shedding from the LESCO grid is part of the routine in many areas, so the counter has to keep working on a charged phone or laptop when the lights go.

A week in a Lahore kiryana, step by step

After the mandi trip. Enter the wholesaler's bill as a purchase. The bori of basmati, the masala packs and the soap cartons go into stock at the price you paid, and if you settled part of the bill, the rest stays on the supplier's account. Next week you can see whether chana daal went up again.

Pricing. Each product keeps a retail price and, if you sell to small hotels or other shops, a wholesale price too. The cashier picks the wholesale rate for that customer and the normal rate for everyone else, so nobody has to remember two price lists.

Through the day. Children come with a list and the family's name. Each item goes on that family's khata, and the balance updates on the bill. If the lights go, the bill is still made on the device and synced later.

Damage and expiry. A burst packet of daal or a jar past its date is written off as damage, so it leaves stock and shows as a cost instead of quietly disappearing.

Month end. Sort the khata by amount and age, and send each family its balance on WhatsApp, one message at a time.

Questions from Lahore store owners

I sell to small hotels at a lower rate. Can the counter handle that?

Yes. A product can carry a wholesale price beside its retail price, and the cashier chooses it for that customer. Units such as bori and kilo can also carry their own prices.

Can I see which items earn the most after the last price change?

Yes. Profit by product uses the cost from your latest purchase bills, so when the mandi rate for a spice rises you see the margin drop.

Do I need PRA or FBR integration?

Most neighbourhood stores do not. Optional FBR/PRA integration is there for a business that is required to report; the Punjab sales tax guide explains who that is.

I have two stores, one in the old city and one in a society. Can I see both?

Yes. Each branch has its own counter and stock, and the owner sees both from one account. The Lahore page covers the other trades in the city.