By: Jim Roddy, President & CEO at the RSPA
I’m a sucker for the underdog, the overlooked, the little engine that could when everyone else thought it couldn’t. During March Madness, I usually root for the lower seed even though I full well understand the futility of it all. The Goliaths usually stomp the Davids.
I walked away from RetailNOW 2025, which attracted nearly 1,600 attendees to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas July 27-29, with a different perspective on my pro-underdog slant.
In the retail, restaurant, and grocery IT industry, I’m betting on independent VARs and ISVs to beat the 800-number POS giants because both my heart and my head are saying it’s the right call.
This is more than just rooting for the channel community with pom poms and pep talks. The more I study the current and anticipated future state of our industry, the more I believe the smart move is to bet on the channel.
RSPA Board Chair Jeff Riley, also the CEO of ISV Retail Management Hero, articulated this sentiment during his RetailNOW General Session welcome message. He described our channel as an independent mesh network of entrepreneurs – an agile collection of retail tech companies that can quickly collaborate and adapt to meet the needs of merchants through tailored value and personal service.
Picture a race between an ocean liner and a fleet of speedboats. If the course involves twists and turns of any kind, you’d be smart to bet everything on the smaller vessels. If there are big waves, some of the smaller boats might get swamped but, in the end, enough little guys will survive and navigate where they need to go better than the bulky ship.
The margin-obliterating, VC-backed, 800-number one-size-fits-all POS providers who don’t believe in the channel have deeper pockets and stronger brand recognition, particularly in the restaurant vertical. Those advantages make this challenge daunting.
But if our independent mesh network of entrepreneurs actually act like entrepreneurs, quickly filling market gaps with valuable solutions while providing extreme personal customer service, we’ve got more than a fighting chance.
If we are relentless against the 800-number guys, if we take collective actions as a community, leaning on each other and helping each other improve, victory will be ours.
“David put his hand in the bag and took out a stone and slung it. And it struck the Philistine on the head, and he fell to the ground. Amen.”
Top Trends from RetailNOW 2025
Mike Monocello of DevPro Journal, an online resource for ISVs, nailed the show’s biggest industry trends in his piece RSPA RetailNOW 2025: Unpacking the future of retail IT. I’m going to share excerpts below then add my own thoughts:
The practical application of AI: Perhaps most impactful for the core retail market is the use of AI to enhance external customer interactions and merchant decision-making. We’ve swung from “what is AI?” to “AI is going to eat everything” and now have to dissect it into usable functions for solution providers and merchants alike. The RSPA community will lead on this issue for sure. Later this year, we will form an AI Advisory Group, a subset of the RSPA Emerging Technologies Advisory Group, to gather our industry’s best minds to create resources to guide retail IT channel solution providers.
Data monetization is the next frontier of recurring revenue: Just as payment processing transformed the retail IT channel by introducing new recurring revenue streams beyond hardware sales, data is poised to be the next major money-maker. An executive from one of RSPA’s largest VAR member companies who is on the front lines of this said, “You thought payments was a great recurring revenue opportunity? Data monetization is going to be even bigger.” The question VARs and ISVs need to answer ASAP is how do they get from here to there.
The ever-critical domain of cybersecurity: You cannot be a trusted advisor if your own house is not in order. This means implementing robust internal cybersecurity practices to prevent breaches that could compromise client data or systems. I’ve been thinking a lot recently about what it takes to build an organization that outlives its current leadership. The companies I’ve studied (and from what I’ve experienced) all have in common exceptionally strong foundations. A gap in your foundation related to security will knock you down – sooner or later. To help, the RSPA has assembled some of the best minds in the retail IT channel to publish the “Securely Speaking” email newsletter, and we feature channel-focused security content in the RSPA Community IQ Resource Center.
What I Learned from RetailNOW Breakouts
I spent most of my time at RetailNOW in the Expo Hall and receptions networking with the nearly 1,600 attendees, but I made sure to sit in on breakout education sessions. A total of 18 45-minute sessions were held during four breakout blocks. Among the highlights and insights for the sessions I attended were:
“Cash Discounting & Surcharging: What VARs & ISVs Need to Know in 2025” featuring RSPA General Counsel Jill Miller, Ekta Iyer of Alliance Bancard Systems, and Kim Montana of Platinum Relations
- Because cash discounting/surcharging is nuanced and highly regulated, I’m going to share only one slam-dunk quote from Miller: “NCAs (non-cash adjustments) are a no no no no no. If you want to get fined, NCA is going to immediately get you in trouble.”
“RFID’s Edge: Unlocking New Retail & Hospitality Revenue Opportunities for VARs and ISVs” featuring Duane Roebuck of BlueStar, Jim Schaffer of BIXOLON, Mike Nicholson of VAR/ISV POSitive Technology/OpSuite, and moderator Brett Bennett of POSitive Technology/OpSuite
- RFID is becoming more prevalent at the item level because the cost to produce RFID tags continues to drop. Billions of tags will be produced in 2026, which could reduce the cost of production further.
- Many manufacturers and distributors are starting to add RFID tags at the item level, reducing the burden on merchants and their IT solution providers.
- Featured applications included identifying counterfeit liquor, authenticating brands sold in second-hand stores, speeding self-checkout, and equipping smart fitting rooms.
- Nicholson and Bennett, who serve as trusted IT advisors to several NFL teams, shared that RFID reduces checkout time for multiple items to just 28 seconds on average, reducing lines and increasing sales. RFID tags also make inventory easier to locate in back rooms, enabling associates to quickly make sales on merchandise not on shelves.
“The Reseller Rebellion: How VARs Can Beat the 800-Number Companies Every Time” featuring Thomas Barrineau of ISV OrderCounter and Dan Brattland of COCARD
- Do you own your business? Or are you locked into contracts, data dependency, and hidden fees.
- Offer to your merchants no-risk contracts. Let them out of the contract if it’s not a fit for them. Offering that gives you an advantage vs. the onerous terms (e.g. 36 months) offered by the 800-number guys.
- You have to deliver more than local support. Diversify or die.
- You tend to grow only to the self-concept you set. When growth levels off, you need to think of your next evolution.
“Building a Partner Program Beyond POS and Payments” featuring Anthony Presley of ISV TimeForge
- ISVs have changed how many resellers they want because software has become more complex. Many software providers are shifting to a referral model.
- You should be a reseller of your core offering and a referral partner for your non-core offering. Get revenue coming in now.
- Without distribution, no one is selling anything. You’re just talking.
- Knowing both your ICP (Ideal Customer Profile) and your CCP (Crappiest Customer Profile) will help you establish better partnerships. The alignment or lack of alignment will be clear.
RetailNOW 2025 By The Numbers
We don’t have official final numbers yet, but the initial data from RetailNOW 2025 is strong. The Expo Hall sold out; the 174 exhibitors was the most at the event since 2018. The Expo Hall featured 36 first-time exhibitors. RSPA has added nearly 200 new member companies over the past 14 months.
The near-1,600 registrations were the highest for the show post-COVID and were close to the most since 2018. The attendee mix included 500+ VAR executives and 400+ ISVs/software executives.
RetailNOW 2026 is scheduled for July 26-28 at Caesars Forum in Las Vegas. It will be the first RSPA event held in that facility which opened in October 2020. The show hotels for the event will be The Linq and Harrah’s which are connected to the convention center.
