How Indiska implemented the Sitoo – by themselves
Indiska was founded in 1901 by Mathilda Hamilton, with the idea of bringing Indian fashion and decor to Sweden. Today, Karin Lindahl is the owner and CEO of the company. One of the first things she did, taking over the company, was changing the POS. Indiska decided on Sitoo POS – and doing the implementation all by themselves.
Ease of omni-channel transformation.
Improved store associates' working environment.
The ability to provide a better customer experience.
Click and collect accounting for 33% of sales after two months.
When Karin Lindahl took over Indiska as owner and CEO, she initiated a massive change, reducing costs and streamlining operations.
Indiska chose early on, in the 1950ies, to focus on sustainability and it's since been the basis for all their decision making. The company strives to produce as little as possible and at the same time meet the customers' with the right products.
The process from design to finished product is done with sustainability in mind. The designers start off by making a prototype impact on each item, to be able to follow the product on its lifecycle. Indiska has strict controls, uses Q&A for the factories they work with and requests that factories follow certain CSR guidelines. Despite aimfully focusing on sustainability, Indiska is humble about the work, and says it’s important to remember it’s a continuous process that they’re still trying to figure out.
The old POS system was one of Indiska’s biggest pain points and hindered the company from being mobile and providing true omnichannel. Before choosing Sitoo, Indiska evaluated several suppliers to find the perfect match. They were looking for a POS system enabling real-time data across all touch points, that could handle campaigns in a more flexible way and were built to support fashion retail. Indiska was also looking at what other brands were doing and Sitoo ticked all the boxes.
Because of budget and resource constraints, Indiska decided to do all the implementation of the system in the stores by themself. It was an enormous task given the number of stores and their geographical spread, but the determination in the company and among the associates was strong.
CIO Niclas Hjortenmark says the decision to change the POS system was made before he started. He feels it was very brave to start the digital transformation of Indiska by first changing the POS system, and admits being a bit worried at first. But with hindsight, it was the right way to do it.
He explains: “We needed a modern, flexible system to support our omni flow, great technical support and a system where new features could be added easily. With Sitoo, we can synchronize all the stores and online and make sure you have the same information everywhere.”
“Our old system was very time consuming, it was expensive to build new features and it was quite costly to support our old hardware. With Sitoo, all continuous updates are included and we use standard hardware which results in the total running cost being lower.”
“Sitoo also provides integrations with new modern payment methods such as Swish, Klarna, Apple Pay and more, and we really like the feature of being able to offer digital receipts.”
With a limited budget Indiska had to be creative. One of the challenges was to find a cost efficient way to train the staff. By using “super users” that could teach the rest of the associates, the issue was solved. The super users flew to Stockholm and got first hand sessions on how Sitoo worked. They then formed regional groups and trained the rest of the store associates.
“To actually implement the system in the stores, we knew we didn’t have the resources to travel to each location. So instead, with the support of Sitoo, we installed two pilot stores and documented everything in as much detail as possible. We took extra care in making films, taking pictures and writing meticulous manuals, so that everyone would understand,” explains Product Owner Shovita Bishwa.
Indiska then used the material they’d created to, remotely, train the store associates in how to implement the new set up in the stores. To make sure everyone was comfortable to ask questions they kept the groups small.
WIth the help of the films, manuals and a central service desk available on phone, the Sitoo was installed Monday to Thursday during the evenings with around 10 stores per week. The old equipment was disassembled and sent to recycling, and the new, Sitoo mPOS, was set up. To add to the challenge, Indiska also changed their payment terminals to Nets.
The most challenging part, says Shovita Bishwa, was to guide people without seeing what they were doing. But with trial and error the process got better and better.
Before rolling-out Sitoo in the stores, Indiska made sure to upgrade their internet. In a few cases, where they still had problems with the internet connection, they managed to set up the POS by creating hotspots with the use of mobile phones.
The fact that the store associates managed to do everything themselves, empowered everyone and created a great team spirit. They were all really excited about the new system. The stores that hadn’t yet installed the new POS were keen on getting it and waited impatiently.
It took Indiska about four months to roll-out Sitoo in all 70 stores in Sweden, Finland and Norway.
Shovita Bishwa adds: “Communication, structure, and engagement. Early on we communicated the coming transformation with our store associates and made sure everyone was onboard. We had it all structured in detail, which was necessary and helpful. The feeling in the beginning of ‘let's do this together’ and then afterwards, ‘we did this together’, was very motivating and engaging. It empowered the whole company. Also, the fact that Sitoo works seamlessly with other systems such as Voyado, inRiver and Microsoft Dynamics is invaluable.
“Our figures are better this year than the year before, and we’ve been beating the results every day. The selling process is faster, as well. With POS processes being faster and store associates having access to all stocks, it’s easier for them to provide customers with what they want. The store associates can also access our eCommerce on the iPad, which is great. By helping us with challenges outside the scope and having a flexible and positive attitude, Sitoo is a great partner and problem solver. We love the result and are looking forward to continuing our journey together”
With a seamless integration between eCommerce and the POS, Indiska has also enabled Click & Collect.
When a Click & Collect order is made online, it instantly shows directly in the POS. Depending on stock availability in the store, the products are either taken directly from the store’s stock or delivered to store from the central stock.
To minimize mistakes, the Click and Collect orders are packed in shopping bags. The customer can easily see the product and, of course, try it on in the fitting room.
The Click & Collect is boosting upsell for Indiska and minimizes return and exchange rates. After just 4 weeks Click & Collect accounted for 17% and after 2 months it accounted for 33% of the total sales.
The store associates love the simplicity of the Sitoo and having real-time access to all stocks. They also find it easy and fast to do inventory with the help of an iPhone or an iPad and the built-in stocktaking functionality. The intuitive interface also makes it easier to bring in extra personnel.
Look at what other similar retail brands are doing
Involve Store Associates on an early stage of the digital transformation
Let budget restraints trigger creativity
Thoroughly analyze the process changes and stress test systems early in the process
Approach challenges as a team
Give Store Associates greater responsibility