7-Eleven Finds Convenience With SAP

by Evan Welsh

Largest Retail Chain Store in United States Achieves Success With Demand Management Solutions from SAP

Demonstrating ongoing leadership in providing innovative solutions to retailers worldwide, SAP AG today announced that 7-Eleven, Inc. has extended its agreement for demand management solutions from SAP. The announcement was made at the National Retail Federation (NRF) 97th Annual Convention and Expo, being held in New York, NY, January 13-16.

As the largest chain store in the United States with close to 5,500 franchised and company-operated stores, 7-Eleven faces similar pricing and product availability challenges as other retailers. Demand management solutions from SAP better position 7-Eleven to make competitive decisions on pricing for its store products.

"Responding appropriately in today's fast-paced environment is critical," said Scott McCombs, senior director for merchandise intelligence, 7-Eleven. "We selected the business solution from SAP because it provides us with a way to make better decisions faster."

Demand Management Solutions from SAP: Achieving a Retailer's Needs

Demand management solutions from SAP enable retailers to achieve their financial objectives while delivering a credible, consistent and competitive shopping experience to their customers. With demand management solutions from SAP, customers can automate and use a unified demand approach that will create a best-run business.

"Retailers around the world are increasingly looking for demand management platforms to help them predict shopper behavior and improve financial performance across all the major retail workflows -- from inventory to assortment planning to full lifecycle pricing," said Scott Langdoc, VP of Research and Business Leader for IDC's Global Retail Insights. "We expect nearly 80 percent of retailer application deals in 2008 will include demand management functionality."

Based on the SAP NetWeaver(R) technology platform, the demand management solutions from SAP are designed to deliver end-to-end decision support for pricing, promotion and markdown business decisions. Retailers can strategically manage the full pricing lifecycle on an integrated and extensible technology platform.

"Retailers are faced with a complex environment where consumers are smarter and more demanding," said Verlin Youd, senior vice president, Global Trading Industries, SAP AG. "Our retail experience has allowed SAP to provide retailers with solutions that address their current and future needs. Retailers that have embraced demand management solutions from SAP have seen a return on their investment within 12 months."