Retailers hone data-handling skills

CHICAGO - The key to keeping stores stocked with the items customers want is good information, and retailers are doing all they can to keep system data clean, accurate and accessible to their suppliers.

To facilitate better data handling, retailers are tackling projects to improve business intelligence, allow data synchronization with partners and apply RFID technology. Early adopters shared their stories last week at the Retail Systems show in Chicago.

Among them was AutoZone CIO Ken Brame, who talked about the analytics platform that helps the $6 billion auto parts retailer decide which items to stock in each of its 3,700 stores.

Millions of parts are available, but the average AutoZone store can only accommodate 22,000 items. So AutoZone regularly crunches 25TB of data - including sales history and vehicle registration information organized by ZIP code - to determine which parts local customers are likely to need based on the cars they drive, according to Brame.

To give the stores access to current inventory data, Brame bolstered the network that links AutoZone's stores to its corporate offices and to the company's vendors. He swapped out satellite links for broadband connectivity so retail staff can quickly view inventory at nearby stores, distribution centers and partners' salvage yards if a customer needs a part that isn't available on-site. "Satellite technology is very good for things like credit card transactions, but with the kinds of data we're moving back and forth and checking, we needed faster turnaround," Brame said.

AutoZone isn't alone in upping bandwidth to its stores. According to research released at the conference, 22% of retailers have started or will start in 2006 a project to outfit stores with high-speed connections.

Network infrastructure projects, in general, are a top priority for retailers, according to the Retail Technology Study conducted by Gartner and RIS News of 300 retailers. One-third of retailers surveyed have a voice/data convergence project in the works or due to begin this year, and 27% are implementing or about to implement wireless LANs.