HS-Soft AG, a Swiss company that has become the market leader in software and till systems for bakeries, patisseries, and confectioners in the DACH region, has chosen Munich-based FinTech Rubean AG as its SoftPOS partner. The collaboration aims to replace traditional card readers by integrating payment functionality directly into modern till systems, supporting local card systems such as girocard alongside Mastercard and Visa. The announcement, reported via NEWMEDIAWIRE, signals a significant shift in how small and medium-sized retailers, particularly in the food sector, handle payments.
The implications of this partnership extend beyond mere convenience. For bakery owners, the traditional setup involves two separate devices: the till and the card terminal, each with its own cable, contract, and maintenance requirements. By turning the terminal into an app on the till, HS-Soft and Rubean eliminate the need for a second device. Heiner Schriever, founder and CEO of HS-Soft, explained that this means "one less device, lower costs, and every new till can accept cards straight away, without the need to have a separate terminal delivered and set up first." This could be particularly impactful for businesses with multiple till stations, as HS-Soft currently serves over 700 businesses with more than 4,000 till stations across the DACH region. Streamlining hardware and contracts could reduce operational complexity and costs for these merchants.
From the customer perspective, the integrated solution allows shoppers to simply hold their card or mobile phone up to the till screen, which also displays their shopping. Schriever noted that this is quick even during morning rush hours when queues stretch to the door. The ability to accept payments directly on the till screen without additional hardware could speed up transactions and improve the customer experience, a crucial factor for high-traffic bakery counters.
For Rubean AG, the partnership represents a strategic expansion into the bakery sector, a niche but essential market with a large installed base. Stephan Kück, co-CEO of Rubean, stated that together with HS-Soft, the company is "creating a new checkout experience for bakeries and their customers." Rubean's SoftPOS platform is already in daily use in large-scale deployments after years of research and development, and this collaboration could accelerate its adoption among small and medium-sized enterprises that might otherwise be hesitant to adopt new payment technologies. More information about Rubean's platform is available at www.rubean.com.
The broader significance lies in the ongoing convergence of software and payments in retail. By embedding payment acceptance into till software, HS-Soft and Rubean are reducing the barriers for merchants to accept card and mobile payments, potentially accelerating the shift away from cash in a sector where speed and efficiency are paramount. The original release can be viewed on www.newmediawire.com.
