New Systems for Borders UK

Background

Borders UK & Ireland is a leading bookseller with over 50 stores and until September 2007 was part of the worldwide Borders Inc. group. All Borders’ systems were originally provided by the parent company, but, following the buyout by the UK management team, the American systems were only made available to Borders UK for a 12 month period. Retail Answers took responsibility for assisting with the Store Systems element of the required total systems replacement programme. This meant identifying and implementing a managed service to provide new tills, EPoS software, eCommerce integration, implementation services and on-going support & maintenance services within this very tight timeframe.

Specific Activities

Ran workshops with store managers and head office personnel to determine requirements and how systems would operate in the new environment.
Issued a RFP to suppliers and performed detailed analysis of the costs & functionality.
Worked with the Borders team to conduct UAT and to define the detailed business processes, specifically in the area of customer orders, electronic gift cards, stock management and multichannel integration.
Worked with the Borders team to define the go live processes and the interim workarounds whilst the central systems were being deployed.
Managed the pilot go live process, the data loads and the post-implementation reviews to iron out teething difficulties.
Worked with the Borders team during the rollout to advise on schedules, management controls, training and support plans.

Key benefits

The rollout was executed to schedule allowing Borders to migrate from the US systems on time and therefore avoid financial penalties.
The tight integration with the eCommerce site allows customers to place orders either in store as part of a normal transaction, or online for collection in store or for home delivery.
Electronic gift cards that can be bought and redeemed both in store and online.
Speedy till operation allowed the deployment of fewer tills than previously with associated cost saving.
Slick automated web-based survey system obtains valuable customer feedback.
Integrated trade accounts with automatic discounts and VAT invoices provides a fast and efficient service for these customers.
Digital dashboard provides real time performance monitoring across the estate for speedy, effective decision making.

“Retail Answers was creative in the design of robust business processes and worked closely with my team to develop their skills and ensure a successful rollout. Our short listing for the Retail Week’s Technology Initiative of the Year is just further testament to the extraordinary success of this project”
Simon Thomas, Chief Information Officer