Checkpoint Systems, a global leader in shrink management,
merchandise visibility and apparel labeling solutions, today
announced that it is partnering with METRO Group, one of the
largest and most important international retailing companies, to
deliver an RFID-based EAS solution.
This solution will comply with today’s announced GS1 EPCglobal
RFID-based Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS)’s Strategic
Overview Guide and Technical Implementation Guide. Checkpoint
worked closely with GS1 EPCglobal to develop these guidelines and
views them as a major milestone in the evolution of EAS.
“We are pleased that METRO Group has taken industry-leading
steps with this latest innovation,” commented Rob van der Merwe,
Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Checkpoint
Systems. “As a contributor to the GS1 EPCglobal Guides, Checkpoint
was committed from the outset to deliver a comprehensive,
industry-leading, RFID-based EAS solution. Radio frequency is at
the core of Checkpoint’s business, as demonstrated by our long
history of developing RF solutions for retail applications.
RFID-based EAS is a natural and very exciting evolution for our
Company. We are proud to work with METRO Group on this breakthrough
initiative.”
Significant benefits ahead for retailers
Retailers are poised to gain significant benefits from
RFID-based EAS solutions, the driving force behind GS1 EPCglobal’s
initiative to develop new guidelines. RFID-based EAS addresses an
important challenge for retailers: inaccurate perpetual inventory
caused by shrink. RFID enables retailers to not only know that a
theft event has occurred but also what specific merchandise was
stolen. This insight gives retailers a far more accurate picture of
inventory levels, allowing them to promptly restock shelves.
Improved stock positions and on-shelf availability lead to
increased sales.
“METRO Group is working with Checkpoint to deliver
standards-compliant, RFID-based EAS to both mitigate loss and
optimize our merchandise management,” said Dr. Gerd Wolfram, Head
of CIO-Office, METRO AG. “This effort is in line with our stated
RFID strategy to use tags for multiple purposes along the supply
chain. We are pleased to continue our partnership with Checkpoint
and we are convinced that the GS1 enhanced standards-based
solutions are bringing benefits for retailers and suppliers.”
“GS1 EPCglobal’s RFID-based EAS guides that we released today
present a new model for the way in which retailers will monitor and
manage shrink,” said Chris Adcock, President of EPCglobal Inc.
“EPC/RFID delivers high-resolution visibility, enabling retailers
to reduce stock-outs, enhance the shopper’s buying experience, and
increase sales in an unprecedented way.” Checkpoint is a leader in
the industry, contributing significantly to the guidelines and
working to develop a standards-based, RFID-based EAS solution.
Evolve Platform provides clear migration path to RFID
EAS
Checkpoint has been developing RF-based EAS systems for decades.
This experience led to the development of the company’s Evolve EAS
platform, engineered from its conception to support RFID and first
piloted in METRO Group’s Future Store in 2005.
Evolve is the platform of choice for retailers who want the most
advanced EAS system today, with the ability to support their
RFID-based EAS plans for the future. Retailers deploying Evolve
know that their investment is protected with a clear upgrade path
to RFID:
- With Evolve and Checkpoint's
wide range of RF EAS tags, retailers can protect all their
merchandise from theft and reduce shrink at their stores.
- Using Evolve’s Dual Tags,
incorporating both RFID and EAS technology on a single tag,
retailers can systematically introduce merchandise visibility into
their operations by tagging selected categories of merchandise
while maintaining full EAS protection. Evolve Dual Tags can be
delivered to vendors worldwide using CheckNet®, Checkpoint's
"RFID-ready" data management and logistics platform.
- When RFID-based EAS becomes
commercially available, retailers can further leverage their
investment in Evolve by upgrading to an RFID-based EAS solution,
using RFID tags, and obtain significant additional value with
minimal additional cost.
RFID-based EAS is a logical evolution of Checkpoint’s highly
extensible platform, leveraging RFID’s real-time capabilities as a
loss prevention solution to deliver benefits and insights never
before possible. Checkpoint expects early adopters to be high-end
apparel and footwear retailers as well as cash-and-carry retailers
who sell merchandise by the case.
Uniquely positioned to deliver RFID-based EAS
With the success of its Evolve system, the heritage of its RFID
division, OATSystems, and its complete solutions portfolio
including Apparel Labeling Solutions, Check-Net world-wide source
tagging, RFID labels, and Merchandise Visibility solution,
Checkpoint stands alone in its ability to address the complex
challenges and opportunities of using RFID-based EAS.
“There is no question that RFID-based EAS represents an exciting
long-term vision of convergence in retail,” said Drew Nathanson,
Director of Research Operations at VDC Research Group. “Although
there are many technical hurdles associated with this opportunity,
companies possessing experience and solutions in RF-item level
technologies are well positioned to address these challenges and
bring effective solutions to market.”
Working in concert with the world’s leading retailers
Working closely with GS1 EPCglobal, Checkpoint and others, METRO
Group actively contributed to developing the RFID-based EAS
guidelines to help retailers address their shrink management and
merchandise visibility needs. Demonstrating its commitment to
RFID-based EAS, METRO Group is now trialing Checkpoint’s Evolve
RFID-based EAS solution. The retailer expects to realize tangible
benefits in loss prevention and merchandise visibility as a
result.
"Retailers are actively expanding their RF EAS source tagging as
a way to reduce shrink and simultaneously lay the foundation for
RFID. We have begun working with several retailers to build and
develop their EAS to RFID convergence strategies," concluded Per
Levin, Worldwide President, Shrink Management Solutions and
Merchandise Visibility, Checkpoint Systems. "RFID as EAS represents
a significant stepping stone to bringing RFID into the supply chain
and store operations. As a result, we expect retailers to benefit
dramatically from improved visibility, higher customer
satisfactions levels, and increased sales."
The guides are available at no cost at
http://www.epcglobalinc.org/standards/implementation_guidelines/
About METRO Group
METRO Group is one of the largest and most important
international retailing companies. In 2008 the Group reached sales
of € 68 billion. The company has a headcount of some 300,000
employees and operates around 2,100 stores in 32 countries. The
performance of METRO Group is based on the strength of its sales
divisions which operate independently in their respective market
segment: Metro/Makro Cash & Carry – the international leader in
self-service wholesale, Real hypermarkets, Media Markt and Saturn –
European market leader in consumer electronics retailing, and
Galeria Kaufhof department stores.
About Checkpoint Systems, Inc.
Checkpoint Systems is a global leader in shrink management,
merchandise visibility and apparel labeling solutions. Checkpoint
enables retailers and their suppliers to reduce shrink, improve
shelf availability and leverage real-time data to achieve
operational excellence. Checkpoint solutions are built upon 40
years of RF technology expertise, diverse shrink management
offerings, a broad portfolio of apparel labeling solutions,
market-leading RFID applications, innovative high-theft solutions
and its Web-based Check-Net data management platform. As a result,
Checkpoint customers enjoy increased sales and profits by improving
supply-chain efficiencies, by facilitating on-demand label printing
and by providing a secure open-merchandising environment enhancing
the consumer’s shopping experience. Listed on the NYSE (NYSE:CKP),
Checkpoint operates in every major geographic market and employs
3,900 people worldwide. For more information, visit
www.checkpointsystems.com.
About GS1 EPCglobal Standards
GS1 EPCglobal standards are a set of integrated industry-driven
standards which have been developed to meet user’s requirements
enabling the identification of objects, data capture and sharing of
information among partners throughout the supply chain. These
standards are developed within the framework of EPCglobal Inc.
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