Making Inventory Management and Enhanced Customer Engagement Easy with METRO
METRO operates twelve wholesale stores in Austria with an estimated 2,100 full-time employees in a total sales area of around 140,000 square meters. And while having a large selection of items is important, METRO lists approximately 48,000 items, from food to various other selections. For more than 45 years, more than 500,000 customers have trusted the range and services of the company, which is a world market leader in the self-service wholesale sector.
The Importance of Reliable and Trustworthy Data
Given the extreme scale of operations within METRO Austria, having reliable data is key to maximizing operational efficiency. The simplest data acquisition error can result in a number of further time-consuming processes, taking valuable time away from those who could be better utilized.
On a daily basis, thousands of products are brought into METRO locations around Austria, at which point these items and pallets are scanned and integrated into a central inventory management system. But with so many different suppliers and products, an equal number of barcode variations are presented. Upon checkout or customer invoicing, products are again, scanned for pricing and updated within the inventory management system, very similar to how you experience a standard checkout process at your local shopping center.
The Vision
METRO had set plans in motion to develop its own barcode scanning solution. Due to the complexity of the technical elements within the process, METRO chose to involve an external integrator to assist with the process, paving the way for a new mobile data capture system that could be used throughout the METRO operational process.
Although METRO had brought on an external integrator to assist in the build of their barcode scanning solution, the actual SDK that would support the scanning functionality was still missing. It was at this point that Anyline was brought on as a partner in the project, and while working in tandem with the retail giant, a retail scanning solution was quickly born and put into action across the country.
The Anyline Solution
With Anyline mobile scanning successfully integrated into its inventory management system and mobile applications, METRO can not only scan incoming and outgoing products quickly and efficiently, but they can also trust in the data that is being collected, thanks to Anyline’s industry-leading data scanning solution.
The agility and mobility of the integrated solution also allowed METRO to integrate Anyline Barcode Scanning into their customer-facing mobile application, The METRO app. Among many great features inside the application is a barcode scanning function, making the product search process easier than ever for consumers. By simply scanning the barcode from any mobile phone and the item will be called up directly in the METRO range. Additionally, with offline scanning functionality, the METRO app can find articles even if the user is not online.
As the Anyline barcode library continues to develop and grow, METRO will further utilize the solution in a growing capacity, improving operational efficiencies, streamlining tedious processes, and with the METRO app, enhance their customer experience and engagement.
“Working with METRO has been great for us at Anyline. Their team has supported the growth and further development of our barcode scanning solution and we are proud to see the solution used in the capacity that it is. From internal inventory management to customer-facing applications, METRO is the perfect example of what can be done with the Anyline solution.”
