As customer expectations and operational challenges change, retailers need to transform their business goals accordingly. Cloud-based technologies, like software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications, offer flexibility, scalability, and efficiency to facilitate this transformation. Yet, utilizing cloud services introduces network and security concerns, including performance issues, increased attack surface areas, and damaging data breaches. These days, it is no wonder IoT is sometimes referred to as Internet of Threats as there is a higher reliance on mobile and IoT devices, leading to higher bandwidth usage and increased data.
To address these challenges, retailers need a reliable and cost-efficient IT infrastructure to support their initiatives, protect their network assets, and deliver a seamless user experience. In this article, we explore how the retail industry can navigate changes in operations, security, and networking.
The Evolving Needs Of The Retail Industry
The retail industry is constantly shifting to meet the needs of stakeholders, including customers, associates, and IT teams. Retailers need to encompass all process-driven functions of business, from supply chain and inventory and store management to people management.
To offer customers a variety of options to find, connect, shop, and pay, retailers use technologies such as QR codes, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, e-commerce, mobile apps, social media, and mobile payments, among others.
Moreover, retail associates require various tools and information to provide excellent customer service. Retailers then use IoT and mobile technologies to provide them with these resources, enabling them to assist, connect, process, update, and communicate effectively with customers and headquarters.
Smart spaces are also enabled to support and expand retail operations. Technologies such as cloud, AI, IoT, and encryption are important to connect and manage their store network, implement new initiatives, secure data, and reduce expenses and downtime.
With those priorities in mind, modern retail IT operators are tasked to adapt and innovate to the changing needs of the industry. They can effectively respond to these by unifying and simplifying access points, automating and securing IT operations, and choosing their network.
- Unify And Simplify Access: Modern retail IT operators need to provide a single, secure, and easy-to-use access point for all the users, locations, and IoT devices connected to the retail network. This can help enhance customer loyalty and engagement, empower associates to focus on customers, and create smart spaces for better operations.
- Automate And Secure IT Operator Experiences: The use of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) are encouraged to automate and secure operations. This can ensure secure and reliable transactions, real-time pricing and inventory management, and data security and compliance with minimal costs.
- Choose The Network: Modern retail IT operators need to use network-as-a-service (NaaS) to choose and customize their network according to their business needs and preferences. This can offer customers and associates a variety of connectivity and device options, and provide retailers a variety of network options.
These actions can help businesses create a more seamless, personalized, and efficient user experience.
Retail Transformation From Edge To Cloud
Retail businesses are adopting solutions to simplify operations and stay ahead of the competition. HPE Aruba Networking offers a comprehensive suite of services that empower retailers to deliver exceptional customer experiences and streamline tasks by transforming their retail operations from edge to cloud.
Retail transformation with HPE Aruba Networking begins with:
- Empowering Operations: With HPE Aruba Networking Unified SASE and SD-Branch capabilities, retailers can provide secure and reliable connectivity to their customers, no matter where they are. This is especially important in today’s world, where customers expect to shop online and in-store seamlessly.
- Ensuring Connectivity And IT Capabilities: HPE Aruba Networking provides reliable connectivity, predictable and secure network infrastructure, and centralized management for all stores. This helps retailers ensure that their IT capabilities are always up-to-date.
- Intelligent Data Center And Powerful Insights: Retailers can gain information about their customers’ behavior and preferences. This can help them make better decisions on product marketing strategies and optimizing the supply chain.
- Dynamic Segmentation: This allows retailers to segment their network traffic based on identity and associated access permissions. This provides greater flexibility via Network-as-a-Service (NaaS) and reduces the burden of manual configuration.
- Extended Services: Retailers can also take advantage of Aruba Networks’ extended services, such as location services, to better understand their customers’ needs and preferences.
By leveraging HPE Aruba Networking’s key capabilities, retailers can boost their operations and meet the demands of the digital consumer.
Final Thoughts
Retail businesses now are required to adapt a holistic approach to address changing needs of customers, associates, and headquarters. HPE Aruba Networking provides a comprehensive suite of solutions that streamline operations and position retailers at the forefront of industry trends. These solutions are designed to help retailers pursue innovation and adaptability.
Our team of experts at WEI can provide insights into your retail business and support your operations by looking at HPE Aruba Networking’s array of solutions that fit your retail expansion and operation requirements. This service plays a pivotal role in empowering businesses to improve efficiency and deliver outstanding customer experiences, extending from the edge to the cloud.
Next Steps: Digitally transforming your company can become less challenging with HPE Aruba Networking’s flexible approach to networking. Learn more about how NaaS can take your network performance to the next level by downloading our white paper titled, “Why Aruba NaaS is the Next Big Thing and Why You Need It.”
