As we pass through November, retailers are in the beginning of what is the busiest time of the year. The shipping industry is predicting record numbers of packages being put in the mail and malls already have Christmas carols playing and a North Pole setting created for kids to get their yearly picture taken with Santa Claus.

It seems as though the holiday shopping starts earlier and earlier every year. Some merchants this year are opening on Thanksgiving and staying open for close to 48 hours of sales. However, this is far from a new trend and a recent Slate article tracked it all the back to the Victorian era.

"Like so many of our retailing habits, early shopping dates back to the late Victorians," the article reads. "Along with inventing cash registers, mail-order catalogues and escalator-filled flagship stores, the Victorians also discovered the value of starting the Yuletide shopping season before Thanksgiving."

This is also a time when merchants should be examining their point of sale systems to ensure they are ready for the rush. As more customers make their way through the door, retailers need to be sure they are able to provide a quality experience to all of them. You never know which consumer is opening the door for the first time and could become a customer for life.

By using a mobile commerce system or adding NFC technology to the POS system, merchants can speed up transaction times and make the busy holiday shopping season a little easier while embracing future retail technologies.