NCR Corporation (NYSE: NCR) announced that Unicoop Firenze, the largest Italian cooperative retailer, has completed its implementation of the NCR Sales Transaction Services (STS) module of its latest store automation software, NCR Retail Transaction Services.
The software implementation is part of the Italian retailer’s IT strategy to unify its store transaction software and provide customers with a seamless shopping experience across multiple channels. This capability means that Unicoop Firenze’s can now interface and unify three multi-vendor separate subsystems: self-checkouts, self-scanning and self-service scales.
In addition, NCR Sales Transaction Services will enable the retailer to easily bring new customer interaction channels, such as support for smartphone - enabled shopping lists - to market quickly, without disruptive and expensive technology changes. Additionally, this implementation has lowered the operating costs associated with system maintenance, supplier management and software enhancements, testing, distribution and fixes.
“The NCR software has greatly enhanced the effectiveness and timeliness of our customer engagement campaigns,” said Riccardo Rapi, CIO at Unicoop Firenze. “This deployment has also enabled us to interface and unify three separate self-service systems, which will lead to increased efficiencies and reduced operational costs.”
The NCR STS solution enables retailers to manage consistent product, price and promotions data across in-store, online and mobile customer touch points simply and cost effectively. It uses Service Oriented Architecture (SOA), agile development techniques, object-oriented components and standard web-based interfaces, which enable rapid integration with a retailer’s legacy enterprise system. It also eliminates the need for costly and time-consuming custom software development and integration for each customer touch point.
“By delivering personalized information, based on a consumer’s stated preferences and presence in a channel, forward-thinking retailers like Unicoop Firenze are changing how they engage in conversations with, and create experiences alongside, shoppers,” said Rick Chavie, vice president, retail marketing, NCR Corporation. “This unification of digital and physical channels will help Unicoop Firenze deliver the converged retailing experience that consumers demand and establish a powerful competitive edge in the Italian market.”
NCR Sales Transaction Services (STS), is a component of NCR’s Retail Transaction Services (RTS) store automation solution. Both are part of the NCR c-tailing™ solutions, a set of software and services that enable retailers to offer consumers greater personalization and consistency across channels, such as the Internet, mobile devices, social media and in the store. These converged retailing solutions enable retailers to differentiate themselves, lower operating costs and attract today’s empowered and elusive consumer.
With a total of 116 stores distributed in the centre of Italy, Unicoop Firenze employs approximately 8,500 people and operates 12 convenience stores, 40 mini markets, 58 supermarkets and 6 hypermarkets.
Unicoop Firenze received the prestigious Retail Technology Award Europe (RETA) for the “Best in-store solution” from the research institute EHI for the implementation of NCR STS in its stores.
