Spedi Connect to revolutionise goods ordering in convenience sector

Published 23rd November 2009

SPEDI Software, the convenience software expert, has launched SPEDI Connect to transform the way convenience retailers order stock from suppliers. It makes efficient, secure electronic ordering possible, without the high cost which currently excludes most small retailers and suppliers.

SPEDI Connect will allow retailers to order stock more quickly and easily than ordering via websites, telephone or fax, while also providing a full history of orders.

The store software will run on any Windows PC with XP or higher, which has a broadband connection. Stores are able to view an up-to-date product list from each of their suppliers and are then assisted in creating an order. Help includes order history, running totals of order lines and order value, a number of filters and searches to find products and optional reports of all or selected products. If the store has an existing EPOS system, it may be possible to integrate this process with it.

Once an order has been created, the store software sends it by broadband to a central server. When the order has been processed by the supplier, an order response will be sent to the store. This response will advise the retailer how much of his order can be fulfilled, while highlighting any items that cannot currently be delivered.

Separate software is available for the supplier to receive and process orders. While this is aimed at small, specialist suppliers in order to make it easy and cost effective for them to accept electronic orders, it will also link to the computer systems already in use by larger suppliers.

The process involves only data exchange – the commercial relationship between the store and the supplier must always be negotiated directly. Security features within Spedi Connect ensure that stores have access only to agreed price lists and are able to send orders only to approved suppliers.

SPEDI Connect has been launched as a joint initiative between Spedi Retail Software and Anderson Zaks, who provide the secure hosting infrastructure.

David Mendus, Managing Director at Spedi Software, said, “Until now, small retailers and suppliers have not been able to take advantage of automated ordering, except perhaps to their main wholesaler or symbol group. SPEDI Connect provides the facilities used by large stores and suppliers, but at a price that small retailers and small suppliers can afford, to enable them to work together in the battle against the multiples."

He continued, “It is now very important that convenience stores are seen as something more than the place to buy milk when you run out and everywhere else is closed. One of the best ways to do this is to extend the product range to include products from speciality and local suppliers. Spedi Connect has been designed to make the process of ordering a wide range of stock easier, faster and more secure than web-based functions for the stores and their suppliers.”

The software is free to retailers, while a supplier will pay an introductory fee and a small network fee for each order placed using the system. Mendus said, “We are confident that the software will quickly provide immediate benefits to the store and supplier, while also showing the value of PCs to independent retailers in carrying out their day-to-day duties. The network fee that a supplier has to pay for each transaction is less than the price of a postage stamp and the service will ultimately enable independent retailers and suppliers to work together to provide a better service to their customers. The software gives the supplier access to a large number of potential customers. They can also build multiple price files, and the system ensures that each store receives only the correct file.”




PR Contact:
John Broy
Fieldworks
Tel: + 44 (0) 1435 873080
john@fieldworksmarketing.co.uk
www.fieldworksmarketing.co.uk


About Spedi Software
SPEDI Software has a range of products for the convenience store and newsagent markets. The company is now in its 25th year of developing software for this sector. The company sells its software through dealers and VARs, who offer complete store solutions to its customers, based upon its software. There are over 1,500 stores using its software, most of them using a product name given by the VAR. The software allows links to most major wholesalers, including Booker, NISA, Palmer and Harvey, and Smiths News.
www.spedi.com

About Anderson Zaks
Anderson Zaks is a leading independent payment solution provider based in the UK, supplying integrated transaction processing software to deliver reliable and cost-effective electronic payments to many thousands of merchants.
Anderson Zaks RedCard software and managed services process card transactions for enterprises in the UK and worldwide. In addition to credit and debit cards; mobile top up, gift card and now electronic ordering services are all supported.
Anderson Zaks, a Level 1 Service Provider, is certified PCI DSS compliant.
www.andersonzaks.com