The need to adopt omnichannel strategies is clearly shaping top retailer priorities
and technology investments. The results of a survey regarding top store-level hardware
spending priorities for 2016 (InnovativeRetailTechnologies) indicate that mobile points of
sale (POS) will continue to be a top priority for 2016, together with cloud-based store
solutions, due to their agility, scalability and disposability. In this new retail era,
the capacity to adapt to and embrace change will determine the success of retailers in the
near future.
Mobile POS are a great tool for omnichannel interactivity in the stores, since they
give staff inventory visibility in order to save the sale, provide staff with detailed
product information to allow them to give expert face-to-face advice that complements the
24/7 online search, and can provide personalized customer assistance with tools like rich
search based on the client's preferences.
At the same time, cloud-based store solutions do not require large investments in IT
infrastructure, which makes them the perfect ally for innovation, as they turn it into
something feasible from a financial and technical standpoint.
Retailers need to be armed with flexible, cost-effective store solutions
[http://www.openbravo.com/demo ] in order to respond effectively to season peaks, scaling
up and down as demand fluctuates. Mobile and cloud-based store solutions are also ideal
for pop-up stores, kiosks, line-boosting or showrooming. They provide a high degree of
agility when opening new stores and terminals, and simplify store hardware and software
costs, while providing the right information at the right time and place for staff to save
the sale and engage with customers. These customers will become loyal over time thanks,
among other mechanisms, to expert and trustworthy face-to-face advice enabled with this
technology.
These and other benefits of these types of solutions will be discussed in the webinar
next week in which Marco de Vries, Openbravo CEO will interview Joy Deep Tiwary to discuss
the Decathlon experience and the retail landscape in India for 2016.