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Industry News - May 15th, 2009

 

RETAIL AND TECHNOLOGY NEWS

NEC Introduces High Bright LCD Display for Digital Signage

NEC Display Solutions introduces the 46-inch MultiSync X461HB high-bright professional display. The MultiSync X461HB provides 110% higher brightness than NEC's previous-generation displays.

The MultiSync X461HB includes ambient light sensor technology, which automatically adjusts the backlight depending on the ambient lighting brightness. Its thermal protection begins with an extra thermal layer on the display panel to diffuse heat and follows with a fan-based technology specifically designed to work in both landscape and portrait modes. Internal temperature sensors control self-protective circuits, while self-diagnostics communicate the status of thermal characteristics. The thermal protection can be monitored and controlled both locally and remotely.

The MultiSync X461HB includes the following features:

- Professional-grade LCD panel and components

- Built-in expansion slot, which allows for seamless integration of current and future NEC accessories and third-party components

- Sealed panel design, which provides protection against dust, grease and steam in less than optimal environments

- Carbon footprint meter, which informs and motivates responsible use of the display by calculating and tracking carbon savings

- Ethernet Control and Communication technology, which provides the highest level of remote display management and includes such features as automatic email notification for diagnostic purposes

- Diverse input connectors, which allow for maximum compatibility and flexibility during product implementation

- Improved auto-detection scheme, which quickly finds new connections and allows for user customization of input selection

- Optional speakers and stand


 

ATG Introduces LiveStore for Commerce On-Demand

ATG (Art Technology Group) introduces ATG LiveStore, an on demand application that accelerates the delivery of full-featured, rapidly deployed, e-commerce sites for mid-sized and enterprise level merchants. LiveStore combines ATG's best practices for personalization, searchandising, and guided navigation to drive higher conversion rates and order sizes. In addition, LiveStore helps speed time-to-market, reduces the upfront costs of implementing a new e-commerce site and minimizes ongoing Web site management costs.

Built on ATG's e-commerce suite, ATG LiveStore provides a blueprint for Web sites that offer personalized and compelling user experiences. When starting with LiveStore, merchants using ATG Commerce OnDemand can expect to launch a site in as little as four months, depending on their business and integration requirements. The application is designed for mid-size companies who require the power of ATG's advanced capabilities without the ability or desire to implement, manage and operate it themselves.

ATG LiveStore can be complemented with any of three bundles of ATG's line of E-Commerce Optimization Services:

-ATG Commerce OnDemand: Automated Merchant Edition.
This bundle includes ATG Recommendations, an automated, personalized merchandising service.

- ATG Commerce OnDemand: Live Help Edition.
This edition includes ATG Click to Call or Click to Chat, or both.

- ATG Commerce OnDemand: Cross-Channel Edition.
This package includes all of the above plus ATG Commerce Service Center, a Web-based contact center application for order administration, sales support, and customer care.


 

Liz Claiborne, Lucky Brand Jeans Optimize Online Marketing

Liz Claiborne and its Lucky Brand subsidiary use Coremetrics Analytics to deliver a new level of personalization and customer service online. Liz Claiborne and Lucky Brand will also use Coremetrics Intelligent Offer to automate cross sell and up sell efforts on their Web sites, and the Coremetrics LIVEmail e-mail marketing solution for e-mail campaigns. This combination of Coremetrics solutions will allow Liz Claiborne at the enterprise level to gain a deeper understanding of what customers are looking for when they come to any of the company's sites, using detailed data about customer behavior to build powerful, highly relevant marketing programs.

"Truly understanding what motivates our customers, what they expect every time they interact with us, and how they relate to our brands - whether they shop at lizclaiborne.com or at luckybrand.com - has never been more important than in today's hyper-competitive economy," says James Mount, Web Analytics Manager, Liz Claiborne. "We wanted an analytics vendor who understood that our business requires actionable data - hard numbers about customer behavior that we can then leverage to identify or anticipate market trends. Coremetrics Analytics will position us to take our online business to the next level."

Liz Claiborne's selection of Intelligent Offer and its decision to implement the solution both on its Liz Claiborne New York Web site and on the Lucky Brand site reflects the company's strategic decision to improve the customer's experience through highly relevant, targeted product recommendations. The adoption of automated product recommendations is an extension of the company's long-held philosophy of selling ensemble-driven sportswear as opposed to separates.

Further, the company plans to use LIVEmail at the enterprise level to leverage targeted email re-engagement as a means of driving new revenue streams. LIVEmail is a closed-loop e-mail marketing system that seamlessly links online profiles of customer activity with an e-mail vendor, giving companies the direct marketing tools necessary to engage with customers and align products and services with their on-site behaviors.


 

Chico’s Adds Inventory Management, Merchandise Planning

Chico's FAS adds JDA Software to help improve merchandise planning, demand forecasting, inventory management and customer service levels, as well as help increase sales across its three retail brands that include Chico's, White House | Black Market and Soma Intimates.

Chico's FAS selected multiple platforms from JDA's Merchandising suite to drive more profitable replenishment and optimize the merchandise management process, including JDA Enterprise Planning, JDA Assortment Planning, JDA Allocation, JDA Channel Clustering, JDA Size Scaling, JDA Performance Analysis and JDA Enterprise Knowledge Base.

The retailer also licensed JDA Demand, JDA Collaborate and JDA Enterprise Architecture to enhance its overall supply chain capabilities while helping to drive a lower total cost of ownership, as well as JDA Workforce Management to help improve customer service levels and better manage labor within its stores.

"We needed proven, integrated software solutions based on retail best practices that would help us effectively balance our inventory investments with sales goals and consumer demand, and enable us to leverage every opportunity to drive revenues and increase profits," says Jeff Jones, chief operating officer, Chico's FAS. "With the JDA solutions, we are confident that we now have the right solutions to enhance enterprise-wide performance and efficiency, as well as take our business to the next level."


 

United Supermarkets Deploys Scheduling Application

United Supermarkets uses an employee scheduling application from Kronos to enhance customer service and drive store productivity by matching staffing levels to store traffic patterns.

After receiving favorable results using time and attendance from Kronos, United Supermarkets implements the Kronos scheduling application across 50 stores to optimize labor scheduling by accurately forecasting business needs and calculating labor requirements.

United Supermarkets previously used a partially automated process to create employee schedules for a variety of departments. Other departments manually scheduled employees. With the Kronos scheduling solution, United Supermarkets can anticipate the demands that impact its workforce across each store, thus driving store productivity by minimizing over- and under-staffing.

United Supermarkets will use the Kronos application to schedule front-end, bookkeeper, fuel, and food service employees, and plans to eventually use Kronos to schedule all departments.

The forecasting capabilities of the solution will leverage each store's historical trends, traffic patterns, and labor standards to derive accurate sales and labor plans which, when combined with actual labor spend, will enable enterprise visibility and control of store productivity. The scheduling application will also help ensure compliance with labor laws, union rules, and corporate/store policies.

"Our growth and success are the result of our unwavering commitment to service," says Chris St. Clair, chief information officer and vice president, United Supermarkets. Our use of Kronos ties directly to this commitment because excellent customer service begins with a productive and well-managed workforce. After experiencing very favorable results and a fast payback on our time and attendance project, we knew Kronos could successfully help us optimize labor scheduling in our stores."




 

HMV Streamlines Promotions and Supplier Deals

HMV, a UK-based entertainment specialist, selects the Eqos Deal and Terms Management solution to streamline commercial negotiations with its music, DVD/visual product and games suppliers. With more than 80 years of music retailing history, HMV operates 265 stores across the UK and Ireland; 138 stores throughout Canada; and manages a growing and successful online store.

"We're very much looking forward to implementing the Eqos solution," said Steve Consalvi, head of finance systems and information, HMV. "Eqos will enable our product buyers to consistently manage deals and to work with suppliers using a single web-based solution. This system will enable us to proactively manage deals and to monitor progress, while the more consistent and auditable communication with suppliers will help address any issues before they develop into commercial disputes, thus avoiding the potential costly administrative burdens. We believe that the new system will therefore be of great benefit to our supplier partners, as well as to HMV."

Eqos Deal and Terms Management manages complex promotions/deals, beginning with the concept; through supplier collaboration and negotiations; execution of the program; settlement of funds; and, ultimately, assessing the deal and supplier performance. Product buyers can work collaboratively with suppliers to structure deals and to negotiate terms such as net price, retro-discounts, returns and marketing contributions. In turn, suppliers are able to self-manage their processes using the Eqos system within retailer security restraints. As the promotion/deal progresses, audit trails enable "no dispute" tracking of information, while advanced security capabilities protect sensitive deal and terms information.



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