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Significant Payback can be Achieved Quickly in Retail Store Environment
ATLANTA, Dec. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- The Voluntary Interindustry Commerce
Standards Committee (VICS) and the American Apparel & Footwear Association
(AAFA) announced this week the release of a report titled, "Moving Forward
with Item-Level Radio Frequency Identification in Apparel/Footwear."
Prepared by Kurt Salmon Associates (KSA) with assistance from industry
members, the report highlights: 1) Where Radio Frequency Identification (RFID)
item-level tagging provides the greatest value along the value chain, 2) Who
stands to benefit most from RFID, and 3) Which merchandise categories are
best-suited to deriving tangible benefits.
The report is the result of a four-month study of business practices and
process impacts of RFID on manufacturing, distribution/logistics, inventory
management, store operations, finance, loss prevention, and merchandising, to
help member companies determine the right starting point for RFID evaluation.
The study asserts that for companies to derive benefits from item-level
tagging they should look first to the retail store environment, where
significant payback can be achieved quickly and provide funding for upstream
RFID-enabled processes. "The results of the white paper indicate clear
benefits for RFID item-level tagging for the apparel and footwear value chain,
especially at the store level. Companies running pilots are beginning to
realize the potential benefits of this technology," said Mary Howell, Vice
President, Industry Relations, American Apparel & Footwear Association.
Another key finding is that no single upstream process can absorb the tag
and infrastructure investment of RFID, but when combined with retail-level
benefits, incremental costs can be offset by improvements in operational
efficiencies, shipment and billing integrity, and brand margin performance.
According to Joe Andraski, President and CEO of VICS, "Item-level RFID has the
potential to bring new levels of inventory visibility and profit improvement,
which could not be achieved through conventional means, across the apparel
industry. We encourage retailers and suppliers who embark on item-level RFID
to responsibly address consumer privacy concerns by adhering to EPCglobals
Guidelines for Consumer Privacy." (http://www.epcglobalinc.org)
The full report is available through VICS (http://www.vics.org), AAFA
(http://www.apparelandfootwear.org), and KSA (http://www.kurtsalmon.com).
About KSA
Kurt Salmon Associates (KSA) is the premier global solutions provider
focused exclusively on the retail, consumer products, and health care
industries. Celebrating 70 years of excellence, KSA helps clients achieve
significant gains through strategic growth initiatives, superior product
performance, and comprehensive enabling technologies. From concept to consumer,
KSAs portfolio of services helps clients in the Americas, Europe, and
Asia-Pacific achieve lasting, meaningful improvements that create true
distinction in the marketplace.
About AAFA
The American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA) is the national trade
association representing apparel, footwear, and other sewn products companies,
and their suppliers, which compete in the global market. AAFAs mission is to
promote and enhance its members competitiveness, productivity, and
profitability in the global market by minimizing regulatory, legal, commercial,
political, and trade restraints.
About VICS
The mission of the Voluntary Interindustry Commerce Standards (VICS)
Association is to take a global leadership role in the ongoing improvement of
the flow of product and information about the product throughout the entire
supply chain in the retail industry. The Associations overall global
objective is to improve product availability to the consumer by providing
leadership and encouragement in the identification, development and
implementation of volunteer standards, protocols, guidelines, and other
mechanisms.
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