Retail

With customers such as B&Q, Brighthouse, Next and Boots, Xpert is ideally placed to provide you with a solution to suit your requirements and meet your objectives whether you are looking to increase efficiency, increase return on investment (ROI) or improve customer service.

Key Retail Sector Challenges

• Customer loyalty is paramount to survival in your environment, with consumers having an ever-increasing choice of products and merchandise. With new European Laws the marketplace has become even more competitive and the UK has seen an influx of new high street names such as Zara and Mango. It is no longer simply about selling a quality product or service; you are now expected to provide these products or services quicker than your competitors and at a lower price.
• Changes to financial and payment systems are also having an effect on your business and profitability, as the introduction of new systems and the subsequent training of staff often involves considerable investment. Chip and Pin is one of the buzzwords at the moment aimed at cutting down on fraudulent transactions. However with retailers having until January 2005 to implement Chip and Pin systems across all outlets, there is considerable pressure to implement solutions effectively.
• Criminal activity within the retail environment has been estimated by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) Retail Crime Initiative to have cost the sector upwards of £175 million last year. The BRC has also estimated that retailers are spending nearly £400 million each year combating crime, a figure nearly twice the entire annual budget of the Crown Prosecution Service. To combat criminal activity the creation of a national databank will encourage retailers to share information and expertise in the area of retail crime prevention.
• The Open4All Initiative will have a significant impact on the sector from October 2004. Taking the Disability Discrimination Act to a whole new level, with retailers having to provide equal access for disabled persons to their goods and services.
• Effective Warehouse and Supply Chain Management systems are business critical applications within the retail environment. Increasing demands placed upon the warehouse and supply chain functions to provide a highly responsive and fluid service, has meant that systems and software need to be continually upgraded to cope with stock demands and fluctuations. All retail businesses, however large or small, need to be in a position to be able to predict consumer requirements to meet stock demands. Being able to respond in this way to consumers gives you, as a retailer, the edge, reduces wastage and the need to operate in the continual ‘sale’ state that many retailers find it difficult to avoid.

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