MORE RETAILERS INVESTING IN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
By Adnews Staff
Large retailers are investing in information technology at a record pace, with capital spending alone jumping to an average of $7.8 million per retailer, according to a study done by Ernst & Young of Toronto. The survey also found that almost all large retailers are building data warehouses to measure consumer spending patterns, analyze supplier prices and track whether a specific promotion made money. Last year, retailers focused their spending internally, with personal computers being the top expenditure. This year, retailers are focusing the IT investment externally on point-of-sale devices. Data warehousing has made a major contribution to most retailers' bottom line with 33% of the executives saying it has increased sales, 37% reporting increased gross margins and 45% using it to develop new strategies. Data warehousing will assist retailers in tailoring their merchandise store demographics, including customer lifestyle, ethnicity, income level and climate. The survey polled 105 U.S. retailer executives from companies with total revenues of $1.6 billion.