Snyders Drug Stores Goes Live with Retail.Net® Solution
Establishes Industry Leadership with Deployment of Thin Client Store System
SALT LAKE CITY, January 8, 2002... Tomax Corporation is pleased to announce that Snyders Drug Stores has completed its first live implementation of the Oracle-based Retail.net® enterprise solution for retail operations management. Snyders operates in multiple markets under various banners, including 83 Snyders Drug Stores and 77 Drug Emporium locations. Snyders has grown to become one of the leading regional drug chains in the country.
The Retail.net solution initially went live in Snyders Drug Store No. 69, a brand new location in Anoka, Minnesota. Over 300 customers were on hand at the grand opening, and the Retail.net solution met the challenge with six lanes of point-of-sale operating at peak capacity for the first two hours of the store opening.
Gordon Barker, Snyders CEO, commented, "We are extremely excited about this step forward. Tomax has delivered this project on time and under budget, something unusual in the world of complex deployments, especially for an enterprise solution like Retail.net. We have centrally supported POS and store applications in realtime, without instore servers and applications. Our in-store infrastructure is now a fraction of what it used to be. Now we can rapidly deploy hosted applications in-store and support our stores and associates with simpler, more productive tools
The implementation exemplifies the deployment of a truly thin client architecture managing all aspects of the in-store environment from a hosted facility. Snyders maintains the entire Retail.net enterprise solution from their corporate information systems facility in Minnetonka. Applications are deployed into the store via browsers to support receiving, ordering, support for shelf label/ticketing, physical inventory control, cash management, and every aspect of in-store retail operations management. In addition, Snyders has deployed Retail.net JavaPOS, a component within the Retail.net Customer Management product that supports all point-of-sale functions on a thin client register.
"The POS application is especially unique -- we have taken advantage of the flexibility of Retail.net to create a highly customized, brand specific point-of-sale device that supports our customer value propositions and is easier to use by our associates", said Howard Watkins, Vice President of POS Store Systems.
One of the features of the Retail.net JavaPOS solution is resiliency and failover protection: the ability to operate in an off-line capacity in the event of network failure. In these instances, locally stored data is available to support transactions on a continuous basis, without operator intervention. When the network returns, transactions are automatically brought back to the central processing center.
The Retail.net architecture`s resiliency was put to the test on the Monday following the Grand Opening. A sudden and unforeseen power outage struck the general area of Minnetonka, affecting operations at Snyders corporate processing center. Immediately, the Retail.net JavaPOS application went into resilient mode and cashiers continued to manage transactions, unaware that the network was down. Later in the day, when power was restored and the corporate processing center re-established, the system collected transactions from the store systems and resumed in a hosted manner.
The Retail.net solution takes advantage of the many advances incorporated in the revolutionary Oracle database, including shared server capabilities. Oracle technology enables breakthrough scalability, including the ability to host hundreds of point-of-sale terminals from a single server.
Tomax leveraged Oracle technology to create retail-in-realtime™- the cost and complexity can now be migrated from numerous store locations and aggregated at a retailer`s corporate offices. The resulting hardware and infrastructure footprint at each store is a fraction of that demanded by a traditional retail environment. With retail-in-realtime, the retail organization gets enterprise-wide visibility of all of its processes, as they happen, wherever they happen.
Snyders Drug Stores and Tomax are partners in demonstrating the extraordinary value proposition represented by retail-in-realtime. Instead of the multiple store servers, operating systems, databases and applications required by other in-store systems, Snyders was free to deploy simple workstations deployed with straightforward browser interfaces in addition to thin client based point-of-sale terminals. The result is a lean, cost effective and easily maintained portfolio of IT assets.
About Tomax
Tomax Corporation is a leading provider of web-based solutions for retail operations and multichannel management. The Tomax Retail.net® solution enables retailers to create a retail-in-realtime™infrastructure across the enterprise, supporting associates in stores and customers at the point of sale, kiosk, and online. Four primary components are available: Customer Management, Transaction Management, Portal/Workflow and Workforce Management. Retail.net components can be hosted by Tomax or the retailer and can be rapidly deployed and modified to support comprehensive requirements. Over 100 branded retail chains, in a variety of retail markets and representing thousands of stores, rely on Tomax solutions, including Franklin Covey, Ultimate Electronics, Gateway, Kroger, Snyders Drug Stores, TJ Maxx/Marshalls, WH Smith, and 24 Fitness.
About Snyders Drug Stores
Snyders Drug Stores was founded in 1929 and is headquartered in Minnetonka, Minnesota. Snyders owns and operates 160 corporate stores and supports over 100 independent retailers in Iowa, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin through its distribution center in Eagan, MN.
Forward Looking Statements
This release may contain forward-looking statements based on our current expectations, estimates and projections about our industry, management`s beliefs, and certain assumptions made by us. Words such as ``anticipates,`` ``expects,`` ``intends,`` ``plans,`` ``believes,`` ``seeks,`` ``estimates,`` ``may,`` ``will`` and variations of these words or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. In addition, any statements that refer to expectations, projections or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions, are forward-looking statements. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Therefore, our actual results could differ materially and adversely from those expressed in any forward-looking statements as a result of various factors.
The ability of retailers to fully and successfully deploy the Retail.net solution and the retail-in-realtime approach is uncertain and dependent on various factors outside of the control of Tomax, including, but not limited to the size and sophistication of the retailer`s operations, technical personnel, and specific implementation environment. We undertake no obligation to revise or update publicly any forward-looking statements for any reason.
INFORMATION: Barry Blumberg, (801) 415-6473 bblumberg@tomax.com
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