EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2 Introduction 2 Retail challenges: optimizing choice and tracking stock (Market Focus) 2 Retail strategies: optimizing choice and tracking stock (Strategy Focus) 2 RetailtTechnologies: optimizing choice and tracking stock (Technology Focus) 3 Retail technologies: RFID (Databook) 3 Methodology 3 Retail technology: Retail IT investment and strategy outlook: end user sentiments (databook) 4 Methodology 4
RETAIL CHALLENGES: OPTIMIZING CHOICE AND TRACKING STOCK (MARKET FOCUS) 8 Summary 8 Improving competitiveness, consistency of IT, collaboration and intelligence are key headline challenges 8 Optimizing choice by leveraging customer insight and knowledge of local idiosyncrasies 10 Improving warehouse processes – traditionally a focal point for problems 13 Enabling data integration and dissemination - a key factor in decision-making 14
RETAIL STRATEGIES: OPTIMIZING CHOICE AND TRACKING STOCK (STRATEGY FOCUS) 16 Summary 16 Socio-economics, location and store type drive inventory and merchandising strategies 16
RETAIL TECHNOLOGIES: OPTIMIZING CHOICE AND TRACKING STOCK (TECHNOLOGY FOCUS) 27 Summary 27 Tech vendors should push ‘value add’ technologies to make merchandising truly strategic 27 Retailers’ inventory management challenges demonstrate RFID technology’s potential 28 RFID: retailers’ confidence is high against a broad range of challenges 30 In-store item level tagging supercedes the supply chain as the RFID hotspot 32 RETAIL TECHNOLOGIES:RFID (DATABOOK) 35 Introduction 35 What is this report about? 35 Methodology 35 Definitions 35 RFID investment in the retail sector: global market 37 RFID investment in the retail sector: product type 41 RFID investment in the retail sector: country markets 45
RETAIL TECHNOLOGIE RETAIL IT INVESTMENT AND STRATEGY OUTLOOK: END USER SENTIMENTS (DATABOOK) 54 Introduction 54 Methodology 54 Demographics 55 Business themes, business and operational pressures, it strategy drivers 56 Exploiting IT to enhance business growth 59 Using or evaluating technologies to help prepare for future challenges and opportunities 60 RFID investment outlook sentiment 66 Inventory management and smart merchandising technologies 68
APPENDIX 70 References 70 Definitions 70 Further reading 71 Ask the analyst 71
