Yesterday we joined White Stuff to celebrate the opening of their new 1,800 sq ft store at Liverpool ONE. Situated on Peter’s Arcade, the impressive store is among Liverpool’s boutique designer fashion hub, featuring an elevated design format and a generous selection of the White Stuff womenswear and menswear range.

White Stuff have experienced a remarkable year of growth, with sales surging across all channels. With over 130 UK stores and concessions and an ever-expanding and loyal customer base, their continued bricks-and-mortar success is an uplifting retail story.

Here are some snaps of the new store:

Photo Credit: White Stuff

“It’s great to be able to come up, see the team in action and celebrate a retail success story. The shop itself is a really innovative space and it’s clear that the White Stuff brand already has a very loyal customer base in Liverpool – I’m excited to see the success this store brings.” Danielle Bamra, Client Account Manager at Retail Assist.

White Stuff has been a customer of Retail Assist’s since 2011, where we were initially onboarded for out-of-hours helpdesk support to support shop operations during evenings and weekends. From there our relationship has flourished and we now support stores and concessions seven-days a week and provide White Stuff with our data-exchange tool Ra-X.

Want to know more about how we support retail brands? Check out our managed services here. 

The post White Stuff Opens Flagship Store at Liverpool ONE! appeared first on Retail Assist.

While we are working to finalise speakers and ensure this year’s Client Summit is an unforgettable and insightful event, we couldn't wait any longer to share a sneak peek of the agenda for the day.

Save the date, mark your calendars, and get ready for 28^th September 2023 at the Broadway Cinema Nottingham. We can’t wait to welcome you to this year’s event.

This Year’s Theme

Doing More with Less: Navigating the Balance of Growth and Efficiency

In today's era of uncertainty, IT teams are faced with the imperative to drive business growth while simultaneously operating with reduced resources. This year’s Client Summit aims to shed light on the delicate balance between cutting costs, automating processes, and fostering growth without compromising employee and customer experiences.

Highlights on This Year’s Agenda

Industry Expert-Led Panel Discussion

Engage in a thought-provoking panel discussion led by industry experts, exploring the latest trends, challenges, and opportunities in IT. Gain unique insights into what the future holds for our industry.

Discussion Rooms

Participate in roundtable discussions where industry professionals and technology enthusiasts will delve into the technologies that are reshaping our field. Share your ideas and learn from others in this interactive session.

Alternatively, you can attend a retail focused discussion room where retail experts and key stakeholders will analyse the rapidly evolving retail landscape and its implications for businesses. Don't miss this chance to network and exchange ideas.

Q&A Sessions

Throughout the day, we have dedicated Q&A sessions following each discussion. Feel free to bring your burning questions and have them answered by our esteemed panelists and speakers.

We will also have the opportunity for you to answer live polls, quizzes and surveys throughout sessions, including everyone in the agenda!

Keynote Interview

Get inspired by our keynote interview. Discover the journey, experiences, and invaluable insights that have contributed to the success to one of our experts.

Speaker Slot

Our event will culminate with an engaging speaker slot. Whilst we are still confirming details rest assured it will be a captivating presentation that you won't want to miss!

“Ask Me Anything” Clinics

Throughout the networking and refreshment breaks throughout the day, we’ll be hosting "Ask Me Anything" clinics, where you can directly engage with our tech experts to seek guidance on any challenges you may be experiencing.

Stay tuned for more details! For more information, please contact us. 

The post Client Summit 2023: What’s On appeared first on Retail Assist.

It's time to mark your calendars because Retail Assist's highly anticipated Client Summit is back! On the 28th of September 2023, we are thrilled to invite you to join us for a day of innovation, collaboration, and industry insights at the fantastic Broadway Cinema in Nottingham.

The Client Summit is a platform where industry leaders, guest speakers, and technology experts come together to discuss and explore focused topics that shape the future of our sectors. This year, we’re busy curating an exceptional line-up of speakers and industry experts who will provide strategic insights and thought-provoking discussions, ensuring you leave with a deeper understanding of how technology can maximise value in your business.

So why should you attend the Retail Assist Client Summit 2023?

Gain Strategic Insights: Engage in debates, discussions, and networking sessions with technology leaders who are at the forefront of shaping the future. Discover the latest trends, best practices, and industry strategies that will give you a competitive edge in the market.

Meet Our IT Experts: Connect with our dedicated team of IT experts who are passionate about delivering frictionless customer engagement and supporting strong relationships with our valued customers. They will be on hand to address your queries, provide guidance, and share their knowledge to help you overcome any technological challenges you’re facing.

Collaborate and Contribute: This is your opportunity to actively participate in the ongoing development of our products and services. Share your valuable insights, ideas, and experiences to shape the future direction of our offerings. Your contribution will directly impact the solutions we deliver and the level of support we provide to your business.

Check out last year’s agenda here.

At Retail Assist, we believe that collaboration and knowledge sharing are crucial for success in today's fast-paced and ever-evolving technology landscape. The Client Summit is designed to foster an environment of learning, innovation, and growth. By attending, you’ll gain valuable industry insights, make meaningful connections, and have the chance to influence the future of our solutions.

Save the date and mark your calendars for the 28th of September 2023 at Broadway Cinema in Nottingham. Stay tuned for further updates, including the full agenda and registration details.

Want to sign-up or get involved? Drop us an email us at info@retail-assist.com

We look forward to welcoming you to the Retail Assist Client Summit 2023!

The post Retail Assist Client Summit 2023 | Join Us! appeared first on Retail Assist.

Retail Assist Manages Latest Store Opening for Global Cosmetics Leader Morphe

We've extended support from existing first-line Help Desk services, to carry out a full store opening for global cosmetics leader, Morphe.

Morphe, part of FORMA Brands family, marks its seventh standalone UK store and very first in Wales, St David’s shopping centre.

Our store systems team stepped in to provide full ownership of the technology elements in store to enable them to open on time and within budget. The team ensured that all technical equipment was built, configured, and pre-tested ahead of time, then transported and installed into the store over a few days.

David Ford, Store Systems Supervisor, said: "This was a great and challenging project to get involved with, and took lots of careful planning and testing. All the PoS hardware was pre-configured, delivered to site and installed by Store Systems. It's a pleasure working with Amit on the new stores, and we have fine-tuned our installations based on our previous experience providing this support to Morphe. It's a vibrant store, and it's great to execute such a successful store opening."

Amit Chaba IT Operations Manager at Forma Brands continued: "This was a challenging project, but the store opening was very successful without any IT issues. We were so pleased to see the final result. Retail Assist took full ownership for the Cardiff store opening, staying on top of everything. They were so flexible to work with and I look forward to working with Retail Assist again on any store opening plans from next year when we resume."

Retail Assist has delivered first-line Help Desk support to Morphe’s stores across both the United Kingdom and North America since 2019 and have previously rolled out new stores in Australia.

The post St David’s Gets A Makeover! appeared first on Retail Assist.

Over lockdown, the nation has seen the rise and rise of the pub quiz and, here at Retail Assist, it’s been no different (well, perhaps minus the pub bit!) Every Friday, we’ve shared our quiz of the week with our colleagues, seeing different themes and with questions submitted by different teams, too. (Visit the end of this blog to not only take part in the quiz but for your chance to win a shopping voucher, too!)

However, this week we wanted to write a quiz that reflected our Help Desk team. With 8 languages spoken fluently across the desk, we’re extremely proud of the international and multilingual IT support we provide to store teams around the globe.

International IT Support

We provide 1^st-line Help Desk support to 68 countries worldwide, including international make-up giant, Morphe. With stores across the UK and North America, our Help Desk is open 24/7, meaning that help is on hand no matter where a store is in the world.

Tahir Kara, Senior IT Project Manager at Morphe, said: “We chose Retail Assist based on the great feedback from their existing customers and the family type ethos that they embrace resonates completely with Morphe! After meeting the team and hearing of their long-standing relationships with customers, we were very happy to find a partner who will support us through our expansion plans and work closely with us to improve the in-store experience we provide to our customers.”

Does your current IT support meet your language needs? Get in touch with us here to find out more about how we could help your stores around the globe.

Multilingual IT Support

If you have stores across the globe, it’s crucial that you can phone one number for help, where the people offering support speak your language. Our Help Desk team speak Italian, Spanish, German, French, Swedish, Dutch, Polish and English, with other members of our team fluent in Catalan and Portuguese, too.

Simon Brealy, Head of Global IT Services at Ted Baker, said: “The key components and what won the RFP for Retail Assist was the financial benefit of moving to a more European-centric partner. Some of the best provisions and offerings from Retail Assist were very much around the cost-effectiveness, providing us with a 24x7 support function and something that was critical for Ted Baker was the bilingual support that we got from the team.

“Since partnering with Retail Assist we've very much been able to develop what the service desk within Ted's IT deliver, so rather than focusing on the first and second line tickets that will come in across our European estate, they are now 100% dealt with by Retail Assist. Because of the standard Retail Assist have delivered to us my service delivery teams internally have been able to focus much more on proactively supporting the business and focusing more on project deliveries, which has in turn has a much more positive impact across other teams both within technology and the wider business.

“We've seen much bigger uptake in engagement with IT, simply because there is more capacity within the department to handle that.”

Watch our interview with Simon here.

Izzy, wizzy, let’s get quizzy

So, fancy your chances at our “Quiz de Langues”?! Take the quiz here for your chance to win a shopping voucher!

The post Speaking Your Language! Can You Complete Our Multilingual Quiz? appeared first on Retail Assist.

Although many businesses claim to put their customers at the heart of everything they do, for us, putting the customer (and our customer’s customer) at the centre of our operations has always been our modus operandi. That’s certainly something that will never change.

So much has happened in the last two weeks that it’s been absolutely mind-boggling. For many of our customers and our partners, it’s simply not “business as usual”; the reality is that retail and hospitality sectors are facing many pressures in light of our “new normal”. So, if our customers are not “business as usual” then, by definition, neither are we. Except, for us, our business – providing the best customer support, especially at times of crisis – is unwavering. This is a time when our customers need to count on our support, more than ever. So, whilst the world has changed, our core objective hasn’t: we’re here to support our customers, no matter what the current situation throws at them.

Working From Home

So, what have our teams been doing? Like many businesses up and down the country – and, indeed, around the world – we’ve seen huge shifts of teams taking their work from the office to their homes. We’ve built many laptops, installed software and continue supporting VPNs, so that our customers can continue their work, no matter where they’re based. We’ve enabled our users to work remotely, ensuring their operations are as consistent as possible.

One of the qualities we pride ourselves on is our ability to evolve; in our 20 years of trading, we’ve always been proactive in our approach, been able to react swiftly and to provide support no matter what the changing needs of our customers are. Now is no different; whatever issues COVID-19 throws at us or the sanctions being placed on our society to minimise the threat, our teams are here to consider the best IT support that underpins their operations. So, although your business isn’t “usual”, our key objective remains the same.

Dan Smith, our CEO, said: “Our initial focus has been on assisting our partners of the last 20 years, and Retail Assist has naturally prioritised our customers over requests we have received from outside our existing client base. We are here, like our clients, for the long term and we are supporting them in moving towards the “new normal”. There is no need to make a drama out of a crisis: this is the time for a measured and supportive response.”

Customer Support

We’re so proud of our internal teams and the way they have worked together to provide incredible support to our customers, especially at a time where they need it most.

It turns out that many of our customers feel the same. We’ve been delighted to hear the positive feedback from our customers about our teams’ work over the last couple of weeks. Here’s just some of the lovely things they had to say.

Is your IT provider giving you the IT support you need at a time like this? Take one thing off your list and get in touch to hear how our teams can give you the support you and your business needs.

The post Supporting The “New Normal”: Count On Our Unwavering Support appeared first on Retail Assist.

We’re kicking off this new decade with a celebration of our own decade-long partnership: in the latest in our client testimonial video series, we spoke to Laura Boyd, Trading Director at Mint Velvet.

Since we started supporting Mint Velvet in 2009, their business has grown from one shop to well over one hundred high street locations, a growing international presence, with Drapers reporting that turnover at Mint Velvet’s holding company, Sabre Retail Fashion, has risen to £101m.

Laura said: “Retail Assist has been our partner since the birth of Mint Velvet. We partnered with Retail Assist right on day one to get the business up and running so, from that very first store that we opened in Chichester, to now, where we have over 150 locations on the UK high street and a very big digital ecommerce business which actually accounts for 50% of the brand's sales, we've had Retail Assist with us all the way.”

Click here to watch the video on YouTube.

How do we support Mint Velvet?

We provide complete IT support services for Mint Velvet, including our first-line Help Desk support, technical services, 2^nd-line store systems support (including store openings), IT project management, business and network comms support, data centre (including support of machines, back-ups and operational support) and our supply chain software solution, Merret, and data exchange solution, Ra-X.

Mint Velvet have been using our omnichannel supply chain, Merret, since 2009. “The reason the solution's so valuable is that it really is an end-to-end solution for us,” Laura explained. “It provides everything the team needs in head office, so they have the back-office system for raising purchase orders, which is the very beginning of the process, and has the WSSI, which allows the teams to manage the stock, sales and intake through the business.

“We also have an international presence now: we trade internationally in bricks-and-mortar stores and digitally. Again, Retail Assist has been the partner that has allowed us to do that and has supported that journey.” This has been through our software solutions and Help Desk support to their stores.

How has our partnership evolved?

Reflecting on the partnership, Laura said: “The high street and the way in which people have shopped has changed and, as it changes, we've needed to evolve the way in which we operate. Along the journey, there's been many times we’ve requested enhancements or changes to the product and every time this has been required, together, as a team, we've been able to deliver what we wanted.

“Retail Assist has been very open and supportive to changing that product to support our needs.”

We’re here to support your expansion plans for this decade – and beyond! Click here to get in touch or email info@retail-assist.co.uk.

The post “We’ve Had Retail Assist With Us All The Way”: How Retail Assist has underpinned the growth of Mint Velvet appeared first on Retail Assist.

2019 has certainly not been without its events: a general election, Brexit (almost!), the first sub two-hour marathon, another royal baby and England nearly winning another rugby world cup have all captured just some of the headlines this year.

So, as we all reach the end of this year – and this decade – it gives us a chance to reflect on the year we’ve also had and a few of our own headlines.

Thank you for all of your support over the last year. From us all here at Retail Assist, we’d like to wish you all a wonderful, successful and prosperous 2020. Happy new year!

January

We kicked off the year by attending the National Retail Federation’s (NRF) Big Show. Held in New York City, Alex Broxson, Head of Marketing, and Anna Murphy, Communications Lead, represented Retail Assist at the show, vlogging live from the show floor. Read their blogs from Day 1 and Day 2, and also to watch their videos from Day 1 and Day 2.

February

In February, we were very excited to welcome Smythson to our growing list of customers. Read more about how we support Smythson here.

March

March held some very exciting news for us as we won ‘Best Service Desk CX (Customer Experience’ and were finalists for ‘Best Managed Service Provider 2019’ at the IT Service & Support Awards, hosted by SDI. Click here to read our overview of the evening and for a few more photos, including our Greatest Showman-inspired finalist video!

April

This month saw the launch of our video mini-series, talking to smaller retailers and seeing how they approach providing the best customer experience, including 200 Degrees, Bird & Blend Tea Co. and Doughnotts.

May

In May, we visited RBTE to network, walk the show floor and to record our highlights from the show. But that wasn’t all… we also won the ‘Sales and Marketing 2019’ award at the Nottingham Post Business Awards!

June

On 16^th June 2019, we turned 20! With celebrations both in our offices and also at our client drinks event in London, we welcomed in our next decade. Read our round-up here.

July

At Retail Assist, we pride ourselves with the positive relationships that we build with our customers and we were thrilled to announce the contract extension with our customer, Hobbycraft.

August

Over the summer, we enjoyed having YouTube blogger, Lydia Violeta, as a welcome addition to our marketing team. As a placement student, she produced videos for us, including ‘A Day in the Life’ as an insight into what it’s like to work in our Nottingham head office and Help Desk.

September

In September, we attended the E-Commerce Expo, held at London’s Olympia. We also enjoyed a guest blog from Nelson Blackley, Retail Research Associate at the Nottingham Business School, Nottingham Trent University, and published our latest Gen Z research.

October

Even more awards success! This time it was the turn of Tina Hand, Head of Systems Support, who won the Empowering Potential award at the East Midlands Leadership Awards 2019, along with Andréa Williams, Marketing Officer, winning NTU’s Placement Student of the Year 2019. Well done, Tina and Andréa!

November

Another new client! We were delighted to welcome cosmetics giant, Morphe, to our client list. To read more about the support that we’re providing for Morphe, click here.

December

We were incredibly humbled to visit Emmanuel House, a wonderful service that provides care to homeless and vulnerable adults in Nottingham. Sponsoring all the lunches for that day, our CEO, Dan Smith, visited the centre along with Alex and Anna, to hear more about the various facilities that are on offer. We’re also proud to announce that we’ll be funding the 1^st January at the centre, with more details to follow soon…

Want to enter the next decade with award-winning IT support to your retail or hospitality business? Click here to get in touch or email info@retail-assist.co.uk to find out more.

The post What a Year! Here’s Our Round-Up of 2019’s Best Bits appeared first on Retail Assist.

It might only seem like a few weeks has passed since our summer birthday drinks event, but it was time to party again!

Held at the new Simmons bar on Oxford Street, we were right in the heart of London’s infamous shopping district. With our customers and partners all gathered, we saw out the year with some festive cheer.

A huge thank you to everyone who attended – we had a brilliant time and it was lovely to see so many familiar faces, and to meet some new ones, too.

Did you attend? Scroll down to see our photos of the night.

The post We’ll drink to that! Celebrating Another Successful Year at Our Client Drinks Event appeared first on Retail Assist.

Having opened as a shirt specialist in 1987, Ted Baker has grown from its original store in Glasgow to the impressive international lifestyle brand it is today.

With stores not only across the United Kingdom but also across the globe, Ted Baker’s impressive store estate – including airports and department stores – continues to provide excellent customer service, no matter what the trading hours.

Ted Baker chose Retail Assist’s IT Help Desk to provide first-line IT services for Ted Baker stores across the UK and Europe, as a single point of contact for all IT-related issues, 7 days a week.

We spoke to Simon Brealy, Global Service Delivery Manager, about why Ted Baker chose Retail Assist and what makes the service we deliver so valuable to their business.

Click here to watch the video on YouTube

After an RFP process, Ted Baker decided that “Retail Assist was by far and away the best partner for Ted's retail brand”. Explaining what won Retail Assist the RFP, Simon added it was “the financial benefits of moving to a more European-centric partner”.

He said: “Some of the best provision and offerings from Retail Assist were very much around the cost effectiveness, providing us with a 24/7 support function. Something that was critical for Ted Baker was the bilingual support we got from the team.”

Simon explained that the benefit of outsourcing extra IT support has been clear. “Our service desk were looking after many hundreds of office based employees alongside looking after our retail partners. Since partnering with Retail Assist, we've been able to develop what (the service delivery within) Ted's IT delivers; rather than focusing on 1st and 2nd line tickets coming in across our European estate, they're now 100% dealt with by Retail Assist.”

“Because of the standard Retail Assist has delivered to us, my service delivery teams have been able to focus much more on proactively supporting the business and focusing more on the project deliveries, which has in turn had a much more positive impact on the wider business.”

If you’d like to hear more about how we can support your growing business requirements – and save you time and money in the process – then click here or email info@retail-assist.co.uk. Want to see more of our customer testimonial series? Click here to visit our YouTube page.

The post “Retail Assist was by far and away the best partner for Ted’s retail brand” Our Customer Testimonial Series Continues With Ted Baker appeared first on Retail Assist.