Welcome to a special combination print edition of DevPro Journal and Managed Services Journal! Aligned with RetailNOW 2026, we’re focused on the massive tech wave reshaping retail and hospitality. If you’ve been watching the POS space closely, you know that the traditional checkout counter is changing. Merchants in grocery, restaurant, and specialty retail don’t just want a box that handles cash and credit anymore. They need a unified command center that links their entire operational footprint. For B2B software developers, value-added resellers, and managed services providers (MSPs), this shift means you can’t just sell standalone tools. You have to deliver flexible, integrated ecosystems.
The rise of flexible payment hardware
One of the biggest stories this year is the rapid acceleration of SoftPOS technology. Some merchants are moving away from heavy, expensive, dedicated hardware in favor of accepting contactless payments on commercial off-the-shelf devices. Whether it’s a sales associate helping a customer on the boutique floor or a server taking an order tableside, tap-to-pay functionality on standard tablets and smartphones is becoming the baseline expectation.
This shift changes how you build and deploy software. As standard display hardware shipments drop, the value is migrating into smart software integration and display screens. For channel partners, it’s an opportunity to lower upfront hardware friction for your clients while driving higher value through your platform. You’re no longer just installing a terminal, you’re building an agile checkout experience that goes anywhere the customer is.
Artificial intelligence on the store floor
We’re also seeing artificial intelligence move from a tech buzzword to a daily operational reality. In 2026, smart software does more than log transactions. It analyzes them in real time to help store managers make profitable decisions on the fly. Built-in predictive analytics help grocery and retail operations forecast demand, manage complex inventory matrices, and reduce waste.
In the restaurant and hospitality sectors, this intelligence connects front of house interactions directly to the kitchen display systems. Orders flow smoothly, wait times drop, and staffing efficiency improves. Furthermore, AI managed services are now actively protecting margins by tracking lane behavior, spotting repeated manual overrides, and alerting managers to anomalies before the end of the day. If your software doesn’t offer these predictive capabilities, you risk falling behind competitors who do.
Securing the modern merchant environment
With multiple mobile endpoints and integrated networks comes the critical responsibility of security. This year, dealing with updated compliance rules like PCI DSS 4.0 and data privacy mandates is a top priority for every software leader. Your merchant clients are facing sophisticated cyber threats, making layered defenses and end-to-end encryption non-negotiable.
As a channel leader, you need to bake security into the core of your software architecture and service agreements. Implementing strong tokenization and backend authentication protects your clients, protects their shoppers, and solidifies your position as a trusted advisor.
This issue is packed with deep dives into these payment innovations, hospitality tools, and security strategies. Use these insights to future-proof your solutions, delight your clients, and capture your share of this evolving market.
