34 CASESTUDY
HUGO BOSS POS BOOSTS
Customers want tax free shopping and it is important that Hugo Boss can offer it, especially as 2012 will be a bumper year for tourist sales, so we are glad to be ready
nternational tourists visiting any of Hugo Boss’ 38 stores across the UK can take advantage of an additional 16% discount on their purchase as a result of tax free shopping provided by international tourist tax refunding service provider, Premier Tax Free.
I Previously handling tax free shopping was a labour
intensive and time consuming exercise handled separately from the payment process. Lucy Chandhial, head of business Development at Hugo Boss, said: “Before we moved to Premier Tax Free our sales staff had to identify international shoppers who may be eligible for VAT refunds while they were in the store and provide them with the necessary paperwork. This took valuable time on the shopfl oor and a lot of effort from the customer. Now, with Premier Automatic, the process is effi cient and straightforward.” The Premier Tax Free Premier Automatic payment
system offers card identifi cation software installed on the existing point-of-sale (PoS) payment terminal, which automatically recognises the origin of a credit or debit card, and subsequently, whether the customer is eligible for a VAT refund. The system then automatically prints a VAT refund form for the customer to complete in the store before presenting it and the receipt to customs as they exit the UK. VAT can then be refunded either directly to a bank account or redeemed at a cash refund locations throughout the world. Chandhial continued: “As the Premier Automatic solution is so proactive we are fi nding more shoppers eligible for tax refunds, especially outside of major shopping areas such as London. This is
RETAIL TECHNOLOGY MAY/JUNE 2012
TAX FREE SHOPPING Fashion brand Hugo Boss is using automatic payments technology to make sure it is prepared to make the most of the expected upsurge in visitors to the UK during 2012
already showing great results. Hugo Boss has already increased the number of VAT refunds by more than 150% since installing the solution.” Hugo Boss then earns an additional percentage rebate for all those who claim their tax back. She added: “Overall, we are already about £100,000 better off for the fi rst year as a result of Premier Tax Free. Half of that is reinvested back into the company and the remainder is used to help fund our international marketing campaigns, designed to highlight the brand to tourists across the globe.
Hugo Boss has also included multi-currency
payments in the system with dynamic currency conversion. This provides ‘real time’ currency conversion for foreign customers, showing the price of the purchase in both currencies and the real-time exchange rate. It also provides a competitive monthly rebate on the credit card transactions for Hugo Boss, reducing its merchant bank charges and further enhancing its PoS service as the customer no longer needs to convert currencies manually. In addition, Premier Tax Free provides Hugo Boss with targeted marketing support. This includes reduced advertising rates and extensive marketing packages in pre-travel, infl ight and tourist focused media, as well as through concierge networks and events. Chandhial commented: “As an international brand, with Premier Tax Free, not only are we able to offer additional services and increase customer satisfaction, but we can ensure we are visible throughout their journey; in airports, planes, trains and hotels.”
She added: “Premier Tax Free go beyond
providing tax free shopping and Dynamic Currency Conversion, becoming vital to how we engage with visiting customers. We really value the proactivity of the system and it has made a real difference to our customers. In addition, we have an excellent relationship with the support team. The roll out was very quick and they are very responsive, ready to react and provide assistance when it is needed.” Chandial concluded: “Premier Tax Free have made our priorities their priority by focusing on our customers and the service we can provide to them. Customers want tax free shopping and it is important that Hugo Boss can offer it, especially as 2012 will be a bumper year for tourist sales, so we are glad to be ready.”
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