2016 Review of Cougar Mountain Denali Point-of-Sale

• Available in three editions
• Excellent integration with system modules and add-ons
• Easy to navigate
• Excellent support and training available  

Potential Weaknesses

• No mobile system access
• Not well-suited for large retailers

Cougar Mountain Software is an easily navigated point of sale product that offers small to mid-sized retailer businesses excellent front/back office capability along with e-Commerce integration.

From the 2016 Reviews of Point-of-Sale Systems.

BASIC SYSTEM FUNCTION: 5 Stars

Denali’s color-coded user interface is easily navigated, with a drop down menu at the top of the screen offering access to all installed modules, or users can click on module icon for easy system access. The Sales module is where point of sale functionality resides. Like all modules, the Sales module features a workflow area where various functions are highlighted. The screen layout and interface is completely customizable, offering users the ability to create an interface that displays the features they need. When setting up the system, users can easily customize the touch screen product interface, choosing the number of buttons they wish to display, as well as button size and order.

Cougar Mountain offers an excellent selection of modules, with users able to purchase the modules they need, and add additional modules at any time. Along with the Point of Sale module, the product offers AP, AR, Bank Reconciliation, GL, Inventory, Job Cost (new), Order Entry, Payroll, Purchase Order, Fixed Assets, and Donor Tracking.

Additional add-on modules are also available, including Aatrix State & Federal Forms, Bartender Label Generator, 3D Card e-Commerce Integration, Gift Cards, Merchant Transaction Service, Multi-Location Inventory, Specialty Shops, and Single Point Server. Three editions of the software are available; Basecamp, Ascent, and Summit, with each edition including a variety of modules. The latest version of Denali POS also integrates with Avalara, which completely automates the sales tax calculation function for all sales, and can also verify addresses for mail order customers.  

System security can be set by module or by function, down to menu level, where individual menu functions can be restricted if necessary. Managers can also create user groups, with employees assigned to a particular group as needed. Cashiers can be assigned additional restrictions, such as the ability to complete certain tasks such as refunds, voids, price overrides, and credit limits.

Denali offers users good dashboard functionality, with the sales and financial dashboards displaying vital data such as Sales Comparisons, Top Sales by Vendor, and Top Sales, with the information included on the dashboards completely customizable. Those processing sales transactions can easily look up information such as product pricing, available product levels, or access customer detail. The product easily handles multiple transactions such as layaways, voids, refunds, and returns, with the product offering single screen sales processing, eliminating the need to navigate through additional screens to complete a sale. Users can opt to enter sales data on a regular monitor or utilize the touch screen technology included in the product.

Denali’s Inventory module offers six pricing levels including List, Margin, Markup, Level List, Level Margin, and Level Markup. The optional Multi-Location Inventory module tracks inventory levels from all store locations.   The 3D Card e-Commerce module provides users with integration of brick and mortar locations with a webstore. The Specialty Shops module provides a ready-to-use product that is designed for a specific industry, and the Order Entry module provides easy integration with Inventory and other related modules for ordering products on a timely basis.

SPECIALIZED FEATURES/SERVICES: 4.75 Stars

Denali offers users the option to process sales on a touch screen monitor, or use a regular monitor for scanning products as needed. For retail businesses with a webstore, the optional e-Commerce module provides easy integration with the Denali inventory module, so product levels will always reflect accurate numbers, no matter where the sale originated from. Users can accept a variety of tender types when processing sales, including standard types such as cash, credit and debit cards, checks, gift cards and EBT transactions.  

Users can choose to process sales on a cash basis, or access customers for better customer tracking. Users can easily edit information on the fly, and can add or edit customer information during the sales process, with all customer data accessible from the AR module. Beer, tobacco and liquor retailers can utilize the optional Specialty Shop module that can prompt cashiers for age verification, set up multi-pack pricing, and allow these specialty shops to use buy down and coupon codes. The optional Gift Card module allows retailers to offer gift cards to customers if desired.

TRACKING/REPORTING: 5 Stars

Denali offers over 100 system reports, with all reports easily customized as needed. System reports are powered by Crystal Reports, so customization capability is excellent. Users will have to ensure that all system batches have been processed prior to running any reports in order to have the most up to date information. The product offers excellent sales reports such as Sales by Department, Sales by Register, and Profit Margin. Inventory management reports such as the understock/overstock report and the monthly inventory movement report are also available.

An inventory history report will provide inventory details by product, or by entire warehouse. The sales by item helps users track best-selling products, and those running special promotions can tracks sales history using the promotional sales report.   In addition, all system reports can be exported to Excel and Crystal Reports, as needed.

Users can easily track in-depth customer data in the AR module, including buying history, credit options, demographics, as well as credit/payment options. User defined fields are also available in the AR module to track additional data as desired. The product also offers excellent audit trail functionality that cannot be turned off – tracking all system transactions in detail.

INTEGRATION/IMPORT/EXPORT: 4.5 Stars

All Denali modules are designed for true system integration, so users can purchase the modules they need today and add additional modules as needed.   The product also offers solid integration with a long list of add-on modules and third-party applications. New integration with Avalara Tax strengthens the product considerably, and users can also import data from other applications into Denali. The product also integrates with all standard point of sale hardware including touch screen monitors, cash drawers, pin pads, check readers, registers, pole displays, and credit card readers. While the product does not offer time clock functionality, time clock reports can be imported directly into Denali’s payroll module

HELP/SUPPORT: 5 Stars

Denali contains excellent help functionality throughout the product, with users able to access the Cougar Mountain website directly from the help function. The website offers an excellent selection of short, informational videos, and those interested in the product can request a demo if desired. Cougar Mountain offers a variety of support levels ranging from Basic Support to Priority Phone Support, along with other options, with all support handled from Boise, ID. The Customer Service Center offers access to product updates, e-learning options, and additional product information.  

SUMMARY & PRICING

Denali POS offers scalability and complete integration with other Denali modules, and can be used in both single and multi-store environments. Pricing is by edition, with Basecamp pricing starting at $1,999 for a single user, with additional modules extra.    

2016 Overall Rating: 4.75 Stars