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Deliver experiences and products that create more valuable relationships with consumers while improving sustainability and profitability
New study: Revolutionize retail with AI
Saleswoman assisting female customer in supermarket
The value of connection

As the choices of products and channels to purchase continue to expand, brands, retailers and customers’ experiences need to be connected to be valuable. If there is no connection from the virtual store to the contact center, or from the digital twin to the shop floor, opportunities to create deeper, more valuable, differentiated relationships are left unclaimed. The power of AI is helping make these connections faster, more personal and more intelligent for your specific organization but you need to deliver the promise made to the consumer.

When it comes to fulfilling those experiences and purchases, two critical factors are reshaping retail and consumer goods operations. First, the shift toward sustainable operations is accelerating the reinvention needed to achieve the quadruple bottom line: protecting people, planet, profit and purpose. Second, AI and open hybrid cloud technology are remaking processes that lower costs and increase resilience, improve the quality of omnichannel experiences and launch new business models to increase market share.

Benefits 115%

increase in revenue in over two years for a leading UK retailer.1

80%

increase in operational efficiency through modernized enterprise platforms for a leading sportswear company in Asia.2

75%

increase in conversion rate through new offering channels with hybrid commerce operating model.3

Capabilities Customer experience and hybrid commerce

Create omnichannel customer experiences across existing and new channels using AI-fueled technologies to drive top and bottom-line growth and data-driven customer insight to deliver permissioned, personalized and contextual interactions that engage consumers.

Explore connected experience creation
Customer service modernization

Employ AI to create revenue opportunities through advanced analytics and data-driven next-action offers while speeding time to resolution on any channel. AI-fueled customer care transforms contact center operations to realize cost reductions while increasing customer satisfaction and retention.

Explore customer service solutions
Sustainable supply chain transformation

Enhance visibility and reduce cyber risk in the end-to-end supply chain ecosystem, leveraging technologies such as AI, threat intelligence, risk quantification and scenario planning. Use this to embed supply chain sustainability factors into workflows and decision making to connect profit and purpose.

Explore supply chain solutions
ESG measurement and reporting

Turn ambition into action by revealing the state of your organization and knowing the impact of the decisions and the changes you make by gathering comprehensive data. Use the enhanced visibility to address regulations in transparency and responsibility and to understand the best way to integrate sustainability into long-term growth strategy.

Explore profit and purpose solutions
ERP modernization

Deliver differentiated customer experiences and more productive operations by leveraging open, hybrid architectures, AI and large enterprise solutions to better grow revenue through improved cross-sell and upsell opportunities, lower operating cost through automated operations.

Read how Migros is transforming with IBM and SAP
Co-create with IBM Garage ™
Ideate, build, measure, iterate and scale solutions seamlessly with our end-to-end framework of design thinking, agile and DevOps practices. Achieve speed-to-value and adopt breakthrough technologies in your pricing and retail strategy through the partnership created with your team and a diverse set of IBM experts in business, design and technology. Learn more Talk to an IBM Garage expert
Technology and AI will undoubtedly play a pivotal role in the coming years, as we’re already witnessing its potential. This partnership with IBM will allow BESTSELLER India brands to grow with a tech-forward and data-driven approach. Vineet Gautam Chief Executive Officer BESTSELLER India
Case studies
Boots grows digital orders 42% with hybrid commerce

The UK’s leading pharmacy-led health and beauty retailer measures significant growth and continues almost two centuries of innovation with help from IBM Consulting.

Party City grows conversion 75% with supply chain transformation

The celebrations leader is simplifying its ordering and purchasing processes to provide seamless services to online and in-store customers to match new forms of celebration.

FGF reimagines its enterprise platforms

The “tech company that bakes” prepares for growth with integrated, ultra-efficient human resources processes to create a future ready workforce.

Strategic partnerships SAP

Speed up your SAP transformation projects with proven methodologies that not only increase agility but also improve results. IBM helps global retailers and brands ensure their SAP strategy, architecture, migrations and implementation deliver differentiated multi-modal customer experiences by scaling AI-powered insights, orchestrating hybrid commerce and creating resilient supply chains.

Explore our SAP capabilities
Salesforce

Gain a better understanding of your consumers by creating a comprehensive picture of their touchpoints and interests. Use the insights you acquire to create a more personal experience across channels, including empowering associates to increase their engagement with the customers they serve.

Explore our Salesforce capabilities
Microsoft

Deep dive into the changing needs of consumers and be agile enough to meet those needs by leveraging the full potential of Microsoft Azure through AI-assisted application development, migration, modernization and management.

Explore our Microsoft capabilities
Adobe

Streamline your digital transformation through the power of generative AI. Recognized as a leader in Adobe services by both IDC and Everest and recipient of four 2022 Partner of the Year awards from Adobe, we co-create, design and deliver more personal, memorable and secure customer experiences for brands and businesses in the retail industry.

Explore our Adobe capabilities

Insights

A guide to maximizing returns with trustworthy, scalable AI Unlock AI's Potential
Build a differentiated brand where sustainability and profits converge
Increase consumer and employee satisfaction with generative AI
5 ways retailers and brands can drive value in the enterprise metaverse
Related solutions Business process outsourcing for consumer products and retail Intelligent customer service operations

Digitize customer interaction operations to improve efficiency while increasing NPS and loyalty.  Generative AI-enabled self-service and agent experiences help improve satisfaction and reduce the cost to service. They also provide opportunities for additional cross-sell and upsell.

Explore our customer service capabilities
Managed marketing services  

Make your brand stand out in the crowded consumer marketplace and maintain its profitable growth despite the many potential obstacles that may arise. We bring managed data solutions with AI to optimize campaign execution with intelligence and automation that help understand consumer behavior, increase response rates and enhance return on marketing investment.

Explore our marketing capabilities
Finance, procurement and accounting BPO 

Consumer goods, merchandising and retail businesses have unique needs when it comes to finance and procurement.  Ensure that your source-to-pay, closing reports and even connection to trade promotion performance are optimized for your organization’s unique needs. 

Explore our finance transformation capabilities
Talent and HR outsourcing  

Modernize your talent functions by converging skills, technology and data to transform experiences throughout the hiring and onboarding processes, as well as in the entire employee lifecycle.  With historically higher attrition rates in the consumer industries, our managed services can help consumer goods companies and specialty retailers to achieve significant savings in the seasonal and full-term hiring procedure as part of the holistic talent acquisition process.

Explore our talent and HR capabilities
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Footnotes

1 IBM Boots UK case study, © Copyright IBM Corporation 2022.

2  IBM Anta Group case study, © Copyright IBM Corporation 2020

3 Transforming the retail experience with frictionless supply chain