Multidev Technologies’ ChainDrive retail management software is a mid-market system with it’s origin for retailers in Apparel and has since branched out into Footwear, Jewelry, Sporting Goods and General Department Stores. In particular, they provide Open to Buy functionality in their suite, which is a main component for Apparel retailers and others who want to leverage merchandising planning for just in time inventory decisions. Although operations are based out of Montreal Quebec, ChainDrive has made inroads into the U.S. market which is their primary sales target.
Company: Multidev Technologies Product: ChainDrive (for retail chains) Year Founded: 1997 (ChainDrive product line developed after this time). Ownership: Private Target Market: Retailers with 10 – 300 locations, with sweet spot in the 60-70 store range. Verticals: POS and back end financials for Apparel, Footwear, Sporting Goods, Jewelry and General Retail/Department Stores. Total Customers: 120+ companies. Many are multi-site, multi-channel. Approximately half are Apparel retailers. Technology: Borland Interbase SQL database. Strengths/Notable Features: Has complete sruite of functionality including financial modules, but can interface to mainstream financials such as MS Dynamics GP or Oracle. Full analytics and performance reporting with KPI’s, graphical dashboard display. Modules/features include Mobile Marketing, CRM, Workforce Management, Operations, Accounting, Merchandising, Multi-dimensional Open to Buy (Planning), Style/Color/Size Matrix, Product Management, Store Budgeting, Warehouse, Wholesale Management and Point of Sale. Sales Channel: Direct Other: Also offers StoreDrive for single retail locations. Hardware is available for an all-in-one solution for small retailers.
We caught up with Mark Carter from ChainDrive at the NRF 2010 show and here is the video from that interview.
Epicor has acquired many software products over the years and the retail solutions are no exception. The current Epicor Retail product is comprised of a combination of acquisitions, most notably NSB (acquired 2008) and CRS (acquired 2005). Epicor Retail product is based on the Microsoft .NET platform and they tout the Microsoft technology focus.
Epicor Retail is a multi-channel software solution that is very strong in the Apparel/Specialty retail market and has a large number of installations. While Epicor can scale from small single store operations all the way up to large tier 1 retail chains, they fit better in the higher end of the market and compete with companies such as JDA, Celerant, Oracle, and others. They are using the Software as a Service model to be able to reach smaller retailers. Epicor implements direct and does not use 3rd party implementation partners.
Here are some facts about the Epicor Retail product:
Epicor Retail’s Retail Management Solution is designed for multi-channel, multi-store retailers in the mid to large size market. Epicor Retail is a division of Epicor Software Corporation which provides ERP solutions to a variety of verticals. Epicor’s Retail Management solution has it’s roots in the retail solutions formerly known as NSB (acquired 2008), and CRS (acquired 2005), acquisitions by Epicor Software Corporation. The Suite is comprised of Store, Merchandising, and Sales Audit products, which may be combined for a total solution. Epicor also supports back end financials, CRM and other product offerings by the parent company. Company: Epicor Retail (Division of Epicor Software Corporation) Product(s): Store 6.3, Merchandising 5.0 and SA 5.0. Other functionality is available. Year Founded: 1984 Ownership: Public, NASDAQ – EPIC Target Market: Retailers with 5 – 3500 locations. Verticals: Apparel, Specialty and Department Stores. Total Customers: 400+ retailers, with multiple locations. Technology: MS SQL Server 2005 and SQL Express databases on Windows Server 2003 or 2008. Hardware Requirements: Non-proprietary. See vendor for list of compatible hardware for POS. Strengths/Notable Features: Store Solution: Usage metrics, POS, Inventory Management, Time and Attendance, Promo Events Manager, Returns Management, Enterprise Store Services, and Data Exchange. Merchandising: Enterprise Data Management, Product Management, Price Management, PO Management, Inventory, Stock Ledger, Invoice Matching, Allocation, Replenishment and Merchandise Analytics. Sales Audit suite also available. Other capabilities include Distribution, Fulfilment (Enterprise Selling module), Customer Relationship Management, Customer Service, Business Intelligence, and Dashboard with KPI’s. Web store functionality is coming in a future release. 3rd Party: Depends on the scope. Sales Channel: Direct
We caught up with Todd Carlson (Director – Strategic Accounts) at the NRF 2010 show in NY in the attached video. We need to clarify that the SaaS solution is not a separate software product, but is just a different delivery method for Epicor Retail to serve smaller organizations.
We visited the Radiant Counterpoint booth at the NRF show and spoke with Andee Williamson who is the Senior Product Marketing Manager at Radiant. The following provides a high-level overview of the software product and where Counterpoint fits in the retail market.
Radiant’s Counterpoint retail management solution targets the small to mid-market retailer in a variety of verticals. It is a well rounded solution that covers more than Point of Sale, and supports multi-channel activities. Apparel customers make up a large percentage of their install base. Two versions are offered; one is Version 7 (legacy Synchronics Counterpoint) which operates on a Pervasive SQL database and offers strong Merchandising capabilities for Apparel retailers. Each version has features unique to that release that may not be in both versions of the product. Be sure to review the features/benefits of each release with Radiant to get the best fit to your needs.
Company: Radiant Systems – Retail Division Product: Counterpoint SQL, Version 8.x (Formerly Synchronics Counterpoint, acquired in 2006) Year Founded: Radiant – 1985. Synchronics/Counterpoint: 1983 Ownership: Public, NASDAQ – RADS Target Market: Retailers with 10 – 50 locations is sweet spot. Approximately 85% of customers are 10 users or less. Verticals: POS and back end financials for Apparel, General Retail, Sporting Goods, Garden, Gifts, Wholesale. Total Customers: Approx. 6,578; 2,000+ are multi-site. Technology: Windows 2007, XP or higher. Linux supported. Database: MS SQL Server Hardware Requirements: Not proprietary; touch screen available. Strengths/Notable Features: Merchandising Analysis, Dashboard and Analytics. Fully PCI Compliant. Supports multi-channel store/web/catalog. Modules include Inventory, PO to Vendors, Customer Tracking, Point of Sale, Special Orders, Style/Color/Size Matrix, Order Management, Fulfillment, Timecard, Customer Loyalty, Gift Certificate tracking, integrated eCommerce (hosted by Radiant). 3rd Party: Partner with 3rd party for Open to Buy capability. Sales Channel: Value Added Reseller
In the following video clip, Andee talks about how Counterpoint is focused on 10-50 store retail chains and some of the new dashboard reporting capabilities of the software. It is also important to note that Counterpoint is sold through a network of Value Added Resellers (VARs) so you will need to select a reseller that is a fit for your organization. For more information on selecting a Value Added Reseller, please visit www.softresources.com/implementation-vendor-VAR-selection.
The start of the new year brings the annual NRF tradeshow in New York. With over 14,000 attendees and 500 vendors this is a pretty big event for the retail industry. The attendance at this show is actually quite good considering the decline in tradeshow attendance across the board. Many of the formerly great tradeshows have really cut back or have simply disappeared. Tradeshows have had a really difficult time since the decline in business travel after 9/11 and the rise of the internet. Of course the vendors exhibiting at the show will always complain that there are never enough leads coming their way no matter how big the show!
We decided to do something different at NRF this year to kick off the Software Evaluation Blog. In addition to getting an update from the retail software vendors to refresh our information for retail software selection clients, we decided to try out some video blogging of some of the major retail software vendors. Although they are definitely very sales oriented, we thought it would add some color to the vendor information that we collected, so that if you are looking for a retail solution, you can get a better feel for the product. Obviously we could not include every software vendor at the show, but you will see some of the major vendors represented. Please note that we do not endorse any of the vendors highlighted on this blog, and the information presented was gathered and interpreted by SoftResources so please do not rely on this information for decision making purposes for your software selection project – contact the software vendor directly.
Welcome to SoftResources’ software evaluation blog! This site will be a great resource for you to get information about business software (ERP, CRM, HR/PR, Financials, Projects, etc.) and how to go through the software selection process. Since founding SoftResources in 1995, we have conducted over 600 software evaluation and selection projects with companies both large and small. This blog will allow you to gain software vendor insight as we share our experience and vendor knowledge to help you through the software evaluation process. The purpose of this blog will be two-fold:
1. Software Evaluation/Selection Tips – We will provide software selection tips to help you improve your software selection process.
2. Software Vendor Information - We will provide information about software vendors and products including where they fit, what types of companies they focus on, some of the key advantages a software vendor or product offers, and how you can evaluate them to see if they would be a fit for your organization.
This site will include written posts, video blogs, and interviews with software vendors so you can get to know them and allow you to start the process of evaluating if they would be a good fit for your organization.
If you have questions, or would like more information regarding certain software vendors, email us at info@softwareevaluationblog.com. If you would like more information regarding software selection and how SoftResources can help you with a software selection project at your organization, check out SoftResources web site at www.softresources.com. The SoftResources website has a wealth of free information regarding the software selection process and how to take your software selection project step by step through the process. It also has some great tips on selecting a Value Added Reseller/Implementation Partner and software contract negotiation
Over the past 15 years and 600 software evaluation and selection projects we have found that a thorough evaluation of your software options is essential to making sure that you implement a software product that is a good fit, will help you grow, and is the right level of sophistication for your company. Too many organizations spend too much money and buy software that is overly complex for their needs! While many companies try to take shortcuts through the software selection process, putting together a good requirements document and properly evaluating your software options will mitigate the risk of a failed implementation.
We are looking forward to helping you evaluate software and lead a successful software selection and implementation project for your organization!
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