DALLAS, January 16, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- BT today
announced that leading shirtmaker and luxury clothing retailer
Thomas Pink has deployed the Acuitas Digital Internet of Things
(IoT) platform, which helps retailers to digitize the physical
store, at its Wall Street New York City store.
Thomas Pink installed the pilot Acuitas Digital IoT digital
store solution as part of its digital strategy. It will enable the
retailer to track in real time the movement of merchandise and
people around the store, use big data analytics to predict shopper
behavior and provide a foundation for real-time interactive
in-store experiences. This will help the retailer personalize
customer service, optimize store layout, improve employee
workflows, reduce cost and grow sales.
Launched in January 2016, the
Acuitas Digital Alliance brings together like-minded technology
innovators determined to bring the full benefits of the new digital
era across the entire retail supply chain. Its members are BT,
Intel, RetailNext, NexGen Packaging, SATO Global Solutions and
Valmarc Corporation.
Acuitas Digital's solution uses IoT multi-sensors to
automatically scan the whole store in real-time to improve
efficiency and unlock new interactive in-store experiences.
The IoT powered Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) sensors
provide real-time inventory visibility and movement tracking of
merchandise throughout the store, increasing efficiency and
delivering near 100 per cent stock accuracy.
This new IoT approach to digitizing the store overcomes the
limitations of legacy handheld RFID systems that rely on manual
weekly or daily store scanning. Manual scanning can be error
prone, time consuming and of limited value to retailers looking to
deliver in-store interactive customer experiences or for real-time
analytics.
The IoT powered video sensors within the Acuitas Digital
solution will allow Thomas Pink to understand the behavior of
customers in the store. They will provide insight and
intelligence on what customers are buying, who goes where in the
store, merchandising effectiveness and how the stores are
performing.
Alex Field, marketing director,
Thomas Pink, said: "The Acuitas Digital solution will give us the
insight to ensure that we have the right products, in the right
place at the right time, all of the time. This is fundamental to
delighting our customers and delivering great new digital
experiences to the store.
"We will now be able to use big data analytics to improve store
efficiency and performance to help our people to spend more time
with customers rather than getting tied up in admin tasks.
We're incredibly excited about how it will transform the store for
our people and customers. It will bring our digital store
strategy to life and will show how it can become a real driver of
growth."
The Acuitas Digital solution is offered world-wide by BT.
It brings together best-of-breed components powered by the Intel®
Responsive Retail Sensor, in-store analytics by RetailNext,
software by SATO Global Solutions and RFID tags by NexGen.
This is underpinned by global BT's Cloud of Clouds and networking
capability and international support.
Bas Burger, BT's president for
the Americas, said: "There are many solutions on the market
designed to help retailers predict customer behavior and improve
experiences for shoppers. However, these solutions do not easily
integrate with each other, and that lack of integration translates
into data silos and limited usefulness.
"BT is working with Thomas Pink to maximize the business
benefits of our Acuitas Digital solution, bringing together the
power of IoT sensors, software and analytics to give a single
comprehensive view of store operations and customer behavior.
This will help to grow sales, boost productivity and deliver a
greater experience for customers."
The Acuitas Digital solution will help Thomas Pink and its
customers in a number for ways.
For example, if a customer picks up a men's shirt, carries it
elsewhere in the store and then abandons it for another product,
the next person who's looking for that shirt may not be able to
find it. A sales assistant will then get tied up searching
for the item, while the new customer waits. With the Acuitas
Digital Alliance solution, the Thomas Pink sales assistant will
know exactly where to find the item, saving time, removing
frustration and giving the customer a better shopping
experience.
Moreover, if a garment sold happens to be the last one of its
style and size in the store, the real-time nature of the Acuitas
Digital solution will allow for a replenishment order to be made
instantly and automatically by sending an alert notifying a sales
assistant, rather than waiting until the end of the day for a stock
check.
When combined with digital signage, the solution could also
prompt a customer buying a shirt to consider a matching tie or
cufflinks, improving service and helping grow sales. Fitting
rooms will be transformed. New Smart Fitting rooms will
improve customer experience and increase sales conversion.
Mike Beedles, chair of the
Acuitas Digital Alliance, said: "Today's customers have higher
expectations of the retail experience than ever before.
Digital solutions are key to helping retailers meet this challenge
and seize the opportunities new shopping behaviors offer.
We're delighted to be working with Thomas Pink as it develops its
digital store strategy and look forward to our mutual success."
For more information, visit the Acuitas Digital Alliance at NRF
on booth 3181 or go to www.acuitasdigital.com.
About Thomas Pink
Thomas Pink was founded in
London in 1984 by the Mullen
brothers, whose founding inspiration was the history of Mr. Pink,
the 18th century tailor credited as the originator of
'hunting pink' - referring to the scarlet jackets of hunt staff.
The Mullen brothers appreciated the fundamental quirk of British
humour that something so obviously red could be referred to as
Pink. This quirk so appealed to them that they saw it as a tension
right at the heart of the brand they were founding - namely a men's
brand called PINK - an obviously feminine colour. Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton acquired the brand
in 1999.
From business and casual shirting to evening and Made To Order
shirting, PINK shirts are made using traditional, time-honoured
methods with exclusive fabrics from world-renowned mills. Detail is
everything – the collars are hand turned and are composed of up to
14 individual pieces. Pink shirts are available in Classic, Slim
and Super Slim Fit and in addition, the brand also offers
tailoring, separates, knitwear and accessories.
Celebrated for innovative design, Thomas Pink made its name with
the renowned original Classic Fit shirt. The style is a modern take
on the classic Jermyn Street cut and is generously designed for
style and comfort. It features a long tail that stays tucked, as
well as signature PINK gussets. Since then, Thomas Pink has
launched a number of pioneering shirting solutions – including the
Athletic Fit and the Independent collar.
2015 saw the Jermyn Street shirtmaker extended its popular
'Personally Pink' Made To Order service. An extensive choice of
more than 160 fabrics span long staple Egyptian cottons, Sea Island
cottons, linens. and fine cotton poplins in two-fold 100s, 120s,
170s, 200s and 300s. The service also encompasses options for
evening and special occasions. The shirts are made in the
United Kingdom and delivered back
to clients within three weeks. Final details include a choice of
buttons as well as monogramming and engraved collar bones. The
'Personally Pink' Made To Order Service is available at Thomas
Pink's London flagship store on
Jermyn Street as well as in Heathrow T2, Sloane
Street, Blomfield Street, Canary Wharf and Selfridges.
A very patriotic brand, Thomas Pink has proudly dressed The
British & Irish Lions rugby
team, designed an exclusive Team GB Collection for Rio, and ferried
many an international guest around central London in its iconic union jack clad pink
Morgan.
Today, Thomas Pink is a modern British shirtmaker with over 100
stores worldwide and flagships in London's Jermyn Street, Madison Avenue,
New York and Rue Francois Premier,
Paris.
About the Acuitas Digital Alliance
Launched in
January 2016, the Acuitas Digital
Alliance brings together like-minded technology innovators BT,
Intel, RetailNext, NexGen Packaging, SATO Global Solutions and
Valmarc Corporation, to bring the full benefits of the new digital
era across the entire supply chain, all the way to the physical
locations where customers do business. The Acuitas Digital
Alliance creates integrated, secure, cloud-based and future-proof
solutions for businesses that want to take advantage of big data
and the Internet of Things (IoT). With the right mix of
infrastructure, mobile technology, applications and hardware, the
Acuitas Digital Alliance can help brands better engage with
customers and optimize operations from production to purchase.
For more information, visit www.acuitasdigital.com
About BT
BT's purpose is to use the power of
communications to make a better world. It is one of the world's
leading providers of communications services and solutions, serving
customers in 180 countries. Its principal activities include the
provision of networked IT services globally; local, national and
international telecommunications services to its customers for use
at home, at work and on the move; broadband, TV and internet
products and services; and converged fixed-mobile products and
services. BT consists of six customer-facing lines of
business: Consumer, EE, Business and Public Sector, Global
Services, Wholesale and Ventures, and Openreach.
For the year ended 31 March 2016,
BT Group's reported revenue was £19,042m with reported profit
before taxation of £3,029m.
British Telecommunications plc (BT) is a wholly-owned subsidiary
of BT Group plc and encompasses virtually all businesses and assets
of the BT Group. BT Group plc is listed on stock exchanges in
London and New York.
For more information, visit www.btplc.com
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SOURCE BT