Case study · Retail tech · Hungary

Nabu — a POS platform built from zero

A platform-independent PWA cash register system, built to be just as simple to roll out for a single small shop as for a whole retail chain.

Client

Nabu Platform Kft.

Industry

Retail technology · POS systems

What we built

Cash register & store management platform

Service

Product development · System architecture · UX

The challenge

The first wall was hardware: barcode scanners, scales, card readers and receipt printers from a dozen different manufacturers — DATECS, SAM4S, CASHCUBE, CAS, ACLAS, Star and others — each with its own communication quirks. The system had to talk to all of them without a platform-specific install.

It also had to run identically on whatever device a shop already owned — an Android tablet, a Linux till, a Windows PC — without separate native apps to build and maintain for each. That pointed to a PWA: installable straight from the browser, no app store, no per-platform release.

The people behind the till usually aren't IT staff, so the interface had to be usable with close to zero training — while a lot of inventory, pricing and transaction logic ran underneath it. And once a shop opened a second or third location, the backend had to keep every till's stock and sales in sync in real time, without falling over under transaction volume.

The solution:

Nabu started as one developer's frustration with the cash register software available for his parents' small shop — Vilmos Takács brought the idea to Alias Innovations, and together we built it into a full commercial product, now run as its own company, Nabu Platform Kft.

Hardware-agnostic integration layer

Support for the barcode scanners, scales, cash drawers and receipt printers already sitting on a shop's counter — from USB-HID scanners to named drawer and scale brands like DATECS, SAM4S, CASHCUBE and CAS — with a path to add custom hardware on request.

One PWA, genuinely platform-independent

A single progressive web app codebase runs on Android tablets, Linux and Windows till hardware alike, installable straight from the browser with no app-store step, and able to keep working locally through an internet outage.

Till-floor-first UX

Cashier and admin roles are cleanly separated, and every everyday task is reduced to as few taps as possible — the goal was a till a new hire can run on day one, no manual required.

A database built to stay in sync

A backend and database architecture sized for many shops trading concurrently, plus a management layer that lets a chain open a new store, move stock between locations, and watch till activity across the whole network from one place.

Professional expertise was essential.

System architecture: the backend and database design behind multi-store inventory sync and high transaction throughput.
PWA frontend development: the single, installable web app that runs the till itself.
Hardware integration: the driver layer that talks to scanners, scales and printers from multiple vendors.
UX/UI design: an interface built around a till worker's actual workflow, not a generic admin panel.
Ongoing product development: Nabu keeps shipping as a live product, not a one-off delivery.

Where it stands today

Nabu now runs as a live commercial product at nabu.hu, serving both standalone shops and multi-location retail chains.

compatible cash-drawer and device brands

platforms (Android, Linux, Windows) from one codebase

25+

retail locations

One PWA, every device

The same app runs on Android tablets and Linux or Windows till PCs — no separate native app per platform to build or maintain.

Works with hardware shops already own

Any USB-HID barcode scanner works out of the box, alongside named cash drawer, scale and receipt-printer brands — see the full list on nabu.hu/eszkozok.

New stores join without friction

A retail chain can register a new location and move stock between stores from the same management view — built for bolthálózatok, not just single shops.

Low-risk entry, room to grow

A free trial tier plus tiered paid plans (see current pricing) mean a shop can start small and scale up as it grows.

What's your technical challenge?

Let's start where we did with Nabu: a conversation about the system's requirements, the future users, and the end goals.

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