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LS Retail | 26 February 2024

Why retailers are moving from Dynamics NAV to Business Central

Why retailers are moving from Dynamics NAV to Business Central

The virtues of a modern enterprise resource management (ERP) system are widely recognized across the retail industry. A recent Microsoft report found that regardless of their size or the sector in which they operate, most retailers, 93% in fact, acknowledge the advantages that come with cloud-based ERP solutions like Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, particularly in terms of their flexibility and integration capabilities. However, many businesses today aren’t yet reaping those benefits as they still rely on legacy on-premise ERP solutions, including the predecessor of Business Central, Dynamics NAV.

There’s a good reason why Dynamics NAV has been one of the most popular ERP solutions across the retail industry over the years. Combining finance, customer relationship management (CRM), supply chain management, data analytics, and electronic commerce capabilities within a centralized environment, retailers appreciated the fact that Dynamics NAV could be adapted and customized to suit their business needs. As the ERP solution is phased out, retailers increasingly seek a modern alternative to avoid any of the issues associated with running older software, such as

  • Lack of mainstream support
  • Higher risk of downtime
  • Security threats
  • Industry compliance challenges
  • Inability to scale and add new functionality.

If you’re reading this and your company still relies on Dynamics NAV for retail management, then chances are you’re looking to make some changes to your IT soon. To decide which path to take, here are some of the benefits you can expect to achieve from upgrading your ERP from Dynamics NAV to Business Central:

1. Become more agile

There’s a good reason why Forbes Advisor named Microsoft Business Central the best overall ERP system of 2024. It described the solution as being “both affordable and scalable, so it can support growing businesses that scale rapidly.”

A host of in-built functionality covering sales, service, operations and finance makes it easy for retailers to manage all facets of their business and add new capabilities as they evolve. And because Business Central is cloud based, they avoid the overhead costs of having to maintain a physical IT infrastructure as they scale up.

2. Boost productivity

One of the top benefits of having all functionality and data managed centrally in the cloud is the ability to see the bigger picture and make decisions based on the information you have in front of you. With Business Central, retailers can support their employees to work even more productively by automating repetitive tasks and making connections between data. They can also adapt the solution to suit their specific needs and workflows.

“You can use it to register shipped goods and store details in one place automatically, assign employees to certain work orders and move items between locations easily,” Forbes Advisor noted.

Another advantage is the familiar Microsoft interface, which makes the transition to a new solution less challenging. Users will pick up how to use it much faster than relearning an entirely different system.

3. Tap into the power of AI

Business Central has built in real-time dashboards to connect employees and decision makers to all the information they need without switching between applications and folders. And if they need to see different information, businesses can generate custom financial reports and analytics. Business Central also enables companies to take advantage of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) capabilities thanks to features like Power BI and Copilot for Dynamics 365. This AI assistant automates certain tasks, helping increase productivity. Its natural language processing technology allows it to understand and respond to everyday language queries, enabling users to get more tasks done without needing to input complex commands or do any programming.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella described AI tools like Copilot as “the next major step in the evolution of how we interact with computing.”

4. Enhance security

Business Central users benefit from a whole host of industry-leading security features to keep their own data and their customers’ data safe – all with the reassurance that Microsoft complies with major standards and certifications including SOC 1, SOC 2 and ISO 27001.

Retailers don’t need to worry about handling their own round-the-clock security either, as it’s managed for them. Role-based access makes sure that the right people securely access the information and functionality they need within Business Central. And there’s no risk of data loss, thanks to automatic backup and recovery.

LS Central Security Certifications Explained by CTO Dadi Karason


Are you ready to make the switch to a modern ERP solution like Business Central? At LS Retail we are experts in Business Central, and we can help you understand how it can enhance your retail and hospitality business. Contact our team for more information.

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