(Image credit/Pixabay/ kareszzz) Oracle Retail has launched Oracle Retail Xstore Office Cloud Service. The service centralises all back-office elements of store operations, eliminating the need for data centre investment. Oracle suggests the service will provide faster implementation timeline and create a more responsive business model attuned to consumer preferences. Retailers can continue to take advantage of cloud solutions while maintaining critical point-of-service functions on-premises.

(Image credit/Pixabay/Jeff Warren, Vice President, Oracle Retail)Historically retailers have been slow to upgrade their POS solutions. Often waiting 5-7 years before considering an upgrade. This has thwarted their ability to keep pace and provide dynamic, engaging experience to their customers,” said Jeff Warren, Vice President, Oracle Retail.

Warren adds, “By moving Xstore back office to the cloud, customers can benefit from a continuous cadence of innovation. This will enable lower their total cost of ownership through centralised services and store operations.”

New Omnichannel Suite Updates

Xstore Point-of-Service, operates in more than 83 countries. It forms the cornerstone of the Oracle Retail Omnichannel Suite. The solution delivers a set of customer and associate experiences that is expected to meet the needs of today’s modern retailers.

According to Chris Sarne, senior director of omnichannel strategy at Oracle Retail, “During the 2018 Holiday season, successful retailers relied on accurate inventory as the foundation for fulfilling omnichannel journeys and meeting customer demand.

Sarne adds, “This new generation of cloud services provides a real-time view into critical enterprise data. This is the foundation for great brand experiences for consumers.”

The Oracle Retail Omnichannel Suite of solutions currently enables 64 different shopper journey combinations. As part of Oracle’s Omnichannel product portfolio, Oracle Retail Xstore Point of Service is pre-integrated with several cloud services. This includes modules covering customer engagement, order management, loss prevention and Oracle Commerce Cloud offerings, enabling end-to-end omnichannel retailing.

Additional updates to the Oracle Retail Omnichannel Portfolio of Solutions and Cloud Services include:

Mobility Enhancements

Retailers look to enable their associates to engage consumers sooner to drive interactions with the brand and deliver a higher level of service. Xstore Point-of-Service can be deployed on thin client and mobile offerings. This allows an associate to capture the sale at the point of intent. Additionally, the store associates and managers are equipped with reporting that support faster and more efficient decision making.

RFID Integration

Many retailers have invested in RFID-based supply chain processes to help ensure the accuracy of supply right through to store inventory counting. To enable maintenance of the accuracy of stock position in the store, Xstore Point-of-Service can extend the sales and returns processes to include RFID data.

Supporting Customer Experiences

Some retailers are reinventing their brick and mortar operations. Consequently, they are recognising the value of the physical store as an opportunity to provide customers with unique experiences. For instance, the increasing use of destination-based activities such as in-store coffee shops and wine bars. Retail POS addresses the requirements of these additional services without alternate software. Oracle indicates Retail Xstore has extended functionality to meet these evolving experiences, all within the same code base.

They suggest the enhanced workflow of Oracle Retail Order Management Cloud Service will provide customer service with more intuitive interface.  This includes coordinated and transparent outcomes to fulfilment consumer demand.

Customer Context

Customer Engagement Cloud Service has adopted a role-based, modern user experience for better usability to support marketing operations and execution. It also taps into the productivity of artificial intelligence (AI) with integration to digital assistants.

Exploiting Science for Speed and Scale

Oracle Retail XBRi Loss Prevention can go directly from identifying exceptions, for example, excessive gift cards, refunds, and exchanges. It can identify either the account or the cashiers that are at risk, or leverage machine learning to flag business anomalies. This means that loss prevention officers no longer have to chase the data behind the risk report in order to determine who or what to investigate.

Enterprise Times: What this means for retailers?

Oracle Retail continues its movement towards enabling digital transformation in the retail community with the launch of Oracle Retail Xstore Office Cloud Service. Retail POS is often considered the Cinderella of the omnichannel experience.  Retailers often focus on the other channels and leave stores reliant on kit unable to integrate with rest of the back office systems.

Anything that enables retail staff to deliver on brand promise in store with inventory visibility, customer intelligence, and seamless transactions, is a step in the right direction. Oracle just needs retail clients to confirm the ambitions of these new platform enhancements.

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