Issue #220 | Jan. 14, 2010 | by Andy Kowl
We're not in 2009 anymore, Toto.
It was a sigh of relief to be at Retail's Big Show 2010, the annual convention of the National Retail Federation (NRF) which ended yesterday in New York. There was no cloud hanging over the business being conducted.
I'm not saying it was all happy-go-lucky. People were still shaking their heads at the brutal economic gauntlet we have all come through. Some are having a tough time. Yet there was the pervasive sense that better times are starting now.
The NRF show has become almost exclusively a technology show, with nary a shelving unit or lighting fixture in sight—quite different from earlier years of this venerable show's 99 year history.
In a way, the NRF Big Show was a textbook example of capitalism at its purest: using technological advances to slavishly serve the customer in pursuit of profit. There were hundreds of booths of technology dedicated to getting customers exactly what they want, when they want it, in the fastest and easiest way possible.
There was technology to make customers better informed; to give them the most desired selection and control of the process; to save them time and increase convenience; to provide data directly to their electronic device of choice that will increase their satisfaction and will reduce their costs.
This was all about data and how to wring it from, and tie it into, every aspect of your retail business. This year most vendors took it to the next level, using conclusions drawn from the data to drive personalized marketing to customers' mobile devices.
"Hey, what about RFID?" you ask?
RFID is just another data entry and/or contactless payment system for the software here. There were RFID handhelds and stationary readers on display here by the likes of Psion Teklogix, Millennium Technologies and nifty new handhelds by Mobile Demand, an Iowa-based rugged computing outfit.
Tags? Not much need for those here, though UPM Raflatac was showing. After all, the retailers may intend to process RFID like they do barcodes, but they are not planning on paying for tags. They will leave that to the CPG manufacturers and supply chain, thank you very much.
Motorola shows some RFID muscle
Motorola cornered the RFID mojo at this show. Their big, bold booth was centrally located and non-stop busy. Heck, just the sheer number of personnel this Long Island, New York-based* company mustered was impressive.
Visitors were taken with their sleek FX7400, with good power and footprint for retail environments. What got my attention was the omni-directional antenna on their MC3090 handheld. It is friendlier looking than many industrial handhelds, but the bipole nature of the antenna means it can read multiple tag orientations, so no having to do that hand-jive motion the warehouse guys are used to when seeking the optimum tag-read position.
Actually it turns out the Motorola RFID division, more properly known as Enterprise Visibility, is growing within the corporation. Let's face it, when Motorola first bought Symbol, the former Matrics, RFID was a blip on their horizon. Now, as Chris Schafer, the head of their RFID office told me, "Other technologies are starting to be folded under the 'Symbol banner' within the company." Motorola is still investing big on RFID development.
The Canadian connection
There was an overwhelming array of software for retailers to choose from that, at a glance, made the dominating presence of Oracle and less-so SAP, seem quaint by comparison.
Two innovative software companies that got my attention are both from north of the border. I am no judge of superior software; but these companies are emblematic of a floor filled with innovative applications.
ChainDrive of Montreal sure seems like it can handle every aspect of a retailer's operation. From POS (point of sale) systems to merchandising, CRM (customer relationship manager) and warehouse. All of this can be combined to work with direct mobile marketing to customers using IMs, coupons and other tailored, CRM messaging.
A Toronto company called Retalon serves a powerful analytical service to ensure you get the maximum return on your inventory. "A second chance to sell at full price" was a theme their enthusiastic representatives described. They combine a sophisticated selection of data points to calculate how chains can keep their inventory one step ahead of customer tastes and move merchandise to the store which will command the highest price. I did get them to agree that their system could run even slicker with RFID feeding it the data.
That was the main take-away. The more customer and merchandise data can be turbo-charged through operational visibility, the more the customer benefits from increased satisfaction and the retailer benefits from increased profits. Win-win; always a great starting point.
*Motorola's has its RFID operational offices in Rockville, Md., strategically located just down the road from RFID Switchboard.
