Acuma's in depth understanding of the retail sector together with our IVM methodology ensures that we provide "best of breed" solutions to our retail customers. We understand the key business issues for retail organisations and have implemented a number of solutions addressing areas such as merchandising, CRM, operations, supply chain and business performance. Our expertise in the retail sector includes:
Electronic Point of Sale (EPOS) Analysis :
Understanding product sales is the basic requirement for any retail organisation, adding a flexible business intelligence (BI) environment into the mix allows for more timely delivery of key metrics to all levels within the organisation. It is easy then to deliver flash reports on total sales by product group, geography, value, margin as well as product sales mix and promotion performance at a more detailed level.
Fraud Detection :
One of the other key benefits of collecting EPOS data is the ability to analyse this information for anomalies relating to possible fraud, such as trends in credit card use, refunds, out of hours transactions, voids etc. combined. The analysis of competitive activity is also a key factor in this business area creating pressure for a rapid reaction to meet a perceived threat or a known competitive strategy.
Customer Understanding / Segmentation :
The management of customer relationships through segmentation and intelligent analysis is now a prime driver in the fiercely competitive retail sector. The consumer is now more aware than ever of the choices, price points, and service characteristics of retailers and their online competition. This is a key area of investment for most, if not all, retailers. It is also the base for understanding trading patterns, shopping basket composition and fraud/security issues.
Product Profitability & Supplier Management :
Again the availability of sales data is important to the analysis of how profitable certain products and product lines are, but to get a complete picture there is also a requirement to understand what is happening within the supply (stocks) side of the business. Having the ability to negotiate with suppliers based on a detailed knowledge of product sales, promotional activity and stock levels has significant benefits.
Business & KPI Management :
Organisations are increasingly implementing corporate level management control systems, such as key performance reporting. However, companies are often frustrated by the inability of information management systems to appropriately address the inherent complexities of these types of solutions. The Acuma Business Performance Management System (BPMS) solution allows organisations to monitor, manage and report on their Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) through a structured environment allowing metrics and objectives to be cascaded down the organisation and data (numeric and textual) to be collected and reported both across and aggregated up through the organisation.
Corporate Restructuring :
Retailers continuously develop and evolve their retail formats and overall operational structures. As a result they need to be able to manage and adapt to the changing information needs within the business. The success or failure of a business through such constant change lies in the ability to carefully analyse trends and manage its KPIs. The contribution of an effective information management infrastructure supporting both the front and back office environments should not be overlooked.
