White Stuff adopts new network solution to cut transaction times and boost customer service

Published 21st March 2008

March 14th, 2008, Stockport – White Stuff, the award winning urban and outdoor clothing UK fashion retailer, has adopted a new managed communications solution in its 55 stores, Distribution Centre, Showroom and head office in order to reduce transaction times for customers, ensure compliance with Payments Card Industry (PCI) data security standards and boost inter-store communication with head office for enhanced reporting.

The solution has been provided by Vodat International, the leading UK communications solution provider to the retail industry, and communication solutions provider, THUS.

Vodat will provide a fully managed solution that has built-in PCI compliance to ensure card holder details are protected. The network is also suitable for chip and pin processing and will reduce transaction speeds for customers from around 40 seconds to under five. Network technology is Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) provided by THUS.

In addition, the solution enables stores to manage tasks more efficiently by communicating with head office. Venn Luscombe-Mahoney, Head of IT for White Stuff said, “The system gives us a standardised solution and closed loop audit trail; staff can send us pictures of window displays by connecting a digital camera to the store PC, report faults and incidents, link to the head office intranet and give us conversion rates and footfall data direct from our thermal imaging cameras. We are very pleased with the service and support provided by Vodat, from an initial pilot project initiated 18 months ago linking three sites together we have now implemented a Vodat based infrastructure across all our UK sites.”

White Stuff now has a complete infrastructure in place for accurate real time store reporting and Venn Luscombe-Mahoney says that in the future, “We will enable stores to do their own reporting and let store managers look at their store’s performance based on best-sellers, KPI data, best-performing staff and so on. We are currently rolling out the Vodat network to all our stores. The next step will be to replace our old network so that we have a fully managed, flexible, cost effective and unified solution.”

White Stuff selected Vodat due to their extensive experience of providing communication solutions for the retail sector. The stores will be connected via Private Access Broadband, while the head office and DC will be connected via a fibre pipe and a backup SDSL line for enhanced resilience..

Mike Bielinski, chief executive of Vodat International, said, “White Stuff has only begun to explore the benefits of store communications enabled by broadband networks. We look forward to working with them to develop new solutions.”

Phil Male, Chief Operating Officer at THUS plc said, “We are excited by working with Vodat and their clients to provide network solutions that fully meet and exceed the needs of the retail sector. As technology becomes ever more important for businesses we will continue to work towards delivering the most advanced technologies available for companies making the transition to next-generation services.”


Ends

For further information:

Laura Grocott
Fieldworks Marketing
Tel: +44 (0)1435 873 080
e-mail: laura@fieldworksmarketing.co.uk


Notes to Editors

About White Stuff
Sean Thomas and George Treves started selling sweatshirts in the mountains of France in 1985 (the “white stuff” was the snow. There are now 55 White Stuff stores, over 130 wholesale accounts and an expanding home shopping business.

About Vodat International
Vodat International specialises in providing communication solutions to high street retailers. Vodat’s specialist knowledge and experience in retailing enables it to leverage value from each of its client’s networks through the development and application of retail specific products and services. Vodat’s client base includes an impressive range of high street names placing it as the leading player in its chosen sector. For information about Vodat International please visit http://www.vodat-int.com

About THUS
THUS plc provides communication solutions to business customers throughout the UK under the THUS and Demon brands. In an industry punctuated by inexperience THUS can draw upon a knowledge base established over more than a decade in the delivery of data, telecoms and Internet services.
Delivering both standard and bespoke solutions, THUS endeavours to address customers' existing business needs and works hand in hand with customers to develop new business opportunities. THUS' record in the creation of innovative new services is complemented by an award winning focus on quality and full certification of its internal processes and procedures under the ISO9001 standard. THUS plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange.
For further information visit http://www.thus.net and http://www.demon.net