real,- Expands its Multi-channel Offerings with arvato Systems

Connected commerce - customers can buy anywhere

• real,- confirms arvato Systems as its strategic partner for eCommerce

Mönchengladbach/Gütersloh, Germany – The hypermarket chain real,- and systems integrator arvato Systems have signed a contract extension for the expansion of the chain’s multi-channel offerings. Among other things, the collaboration paves the way for the integration of new channels and the expansion of the platform for the online shop.

By signing a contract extension that is valid until 2017, the retail company real,- and the IT systems integrator arvato Systems have confirmed that they will be continuing their successful partnership. Furthermore, arvato Systems is the strategic partner for the sales division of the METRO GROUP and will draw on its broad technological expertise to continue to provide real,- with support when it comes to implementing their multi-channel strategy. arvato Systems based the technical design and implementation of the entire real,- online shop on hybris and will provide for secure hosting and professional operation with highly available data centers in Germany. What’s more, the leading provider of multi-channel and store integrations will also offer services in the field of business consulting and online marketing services, and will assist real,- with the consolidation of the online shop customer service department with the customer service of the brick-and-mortar outlets.

Laurent Pauze, Director of New Business at real,-, gives his opinion on the partnership: “The cooperation between real,- and arvato Systems has developed very successfully over a number of years. We have found a reliable partner who provides us with the best support when it comes to implementing innovative new features for our customers. We are looking forward to continuing our collaboration and getting started on the new projects that are now in the pipeline.”

real,- has been the driving force for implementing innovative technologies in the grocery retailing industry for more than 10 years. In 2010 real,- was blazing a trail with the opening of the first drive-in hypermarket in Germany and rounded off its multi-channel offerings with its brick-and-mortar business and the online shop operated by arvato Systems. The next steps involved arvato Systems integrating other channels into the real,- multi-channel service offerings and dovetailing the brick-and-mortar business even more closely with the online shop. The order management system developed by arvato Systems provides support in this department.

The long-term partnership between arvato Systems and real,- is now progressing to the next phase. Following the successful reboot of the real,- online shop, a comprehensive relaunch in August 2012 saw the digital platforms of the brick-and-mortar business merged with the online shop. The customer can now find all of the digitally available service offers from real,- bundled on a single website.

The results of the previous collaboration did not go unnoticed by the experts. That is why, in early 2013, the EHI Retail Institute presented real,- with the ‘reta Award’ in the ‘Best in-store Solution’ category for its innovative multi-channel service, which was made possible through the implementation of the cross-channel commerce management solution from arvato Systems .

In 2014, the real,- online shop is focusing its efforts on making the customer shopping experience even more user-friendly. In addition, the chain is concentrating on networking the brick-and-mortar trade and the online business. One successful example of this integration is the increased number of vouchers for the brick-and-mortar hypermarkets now being used in online marketing campaigns. The high conversion rates of campaigns such as these confirm that the customers’ requests to be able to easily switch between the various different sales channels are being addressed.

About real,- SB-Warenhaus GmbH
Real,- SB-Warenhaus GmbH is a member of the METRO GROUP. real,- believes in offering a wide variety of brand-name products, excellent freshness, and an attractive price/performance ratio. Operating under the real,- Group moniker, the company manages around 310 hypermarkets in Germany as well as 12 locations in Turkey. In addition to this, there are two drive-in grocery stores in Germany as well as the real,- online shop. The 2013 short fiscal year (1 January to 30 September 2013) saw the company, which employs approximately 40,000 staff, achieve net sales revenues of around €7.3 billion. For more information, visit us at: www.real.info and www.metrogroup.de

About arvato Systems
arvato Systems is a systems integrator with a solid reputation. We not only implement standard software, but also offer tailor-made, industry-specific and individually developed solutions. More than 2,500 dedicated employees at 25 sites throughout the world are always there for their customers. As part of the arvato network, a leading global BPO provider belonging to Bertelsmann, we have the unique capability to create entire value chains and combine IT with other arvato services to deliver an integrated service offer from one source. The strength of arvato Systems lies in the intelligent combination of systems integration and planning, operation and support. Our customers appreciate the way we bring in-depth industry know-how, cross-platform expertise, a true partnership approach, and genuine entrepreneurial spirit to the table. Our solutions pave the way for your success.
www.arvato-systems.com

Press Contact:

real,-
Markus Jablonski
E-mail: markus.jablonski@real.de

arvato Systems
Marcus Metzner
E-mail: press@arvato-systems.de

This release was published on openPR.