MULTICHANNEL


MODERN RETAILING AND THE OMNICHANNEL CHALLENGE


Retailers must fight harder than ever for competitive advantage and customer loyalty. This requires a fundamental strategic shift in thinking supported by strong technology enablement. Talking to retailers like John Lewis and Argos, Alison Ebbage reports on what it takes to operate multiple retail sales channels seamlessly in an omnichannel world


O


mnichannel retailing brings about numerous IT and software challenges. Channel neutrality at the front end needs support from the underlying infrastructure to


make sure the customer is visible throughout the sales process. At the back end, systems need to ensure product is where it is supposed to be, at the right time and right price. Canny retailers know this; Andy Street, John Lewis managing director, was quoted in the Financial Times as saying that investments are all now behind the scenes and that IT is what it is all about. Another UK High Street retailer, Argos, is in the early stages of a five year


£300-million transformation plan to reinvent the business as a ‘digital retail leader’. Much of the infrastructure behind the plans is heavily reliant on IT and an ambitious systems agenda to connect the customer’s shopping experience across channels together, according to Mike Sackman, IT director at Argos. Indeed connection and visibility is king. Many retailers are now turning to a single


integrated platform that can connect to all facets of the business to allow for functional precision as well as front end and supply chain visibility. Julian Burnett, head of IT architecture at John Lewis, commented: “With huge


developments in the internet and the emergence of mobile technology, we need to offer a wide range of services that are not only user-friendly, but also flexible.


www.retailtechnology.co.uk Spring/Summer 2014 21


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