A presentation that explains the benefits of item-level RFID implementation at retailing giants Marks & Spencer and New Balance will be delivered by Avery Dennison during the Supply Chain Summit, June 25 - 27, 2007, Claremont Resort, Berkeley, Calif.

Philip Calderbank, Director of Global Marketing RFID & Security for Avery Dennison's Information and Brand Management Division, will talk on Item Level RFID Tagging: Marks & Spencer and New Balance Case Studies on Wednesday, June 27 at 11:15 a.m., in the general session room.  Calderbank's presentation will cover how two respected retailers are addressing the challenges of tagging individual items. Highlights of the talk will center on product and brand

security, supplier relations and how RFID can bring about enhanced interactions by sales associates with store customers.

The presentation comes just weeks after Avery Dennison completed its acquisition of Paxar Corporation, expanding Avery Dennison's presence in the retail and brand identification market.

Item-level RFID

Item-level RFID, which offers both front store and back store benefits to retailers and brand owners, employs RFID tags and labels, and RFID infrastructure and software. Benefits can include increasing sales by minimizing stockouts, real time monitoring of what SKUs are available from back room inventories, better management for seasonal items, enhanced security and the ability to provide cross-selling information to associates.

Avery Dennison's RFID tags and labels incorporate a new set of antenna designs based on printed ink technology. Combined with advanced production techniques, the designs permit Avery Dennison to supply apparel and footwear retailers with RFID
edge on readable tags at the most economical price.

RFID infrastructure available through Avery Dennison consists of Vue Technology's TrueVUE^TM RFID platform, which provides breakthrough RFID infrastructure components and a powerful software suite that delivers scalable, reliable and ROI-driven RFID solutions.

With its patent-pending RF Networking devices and UHF enabled VUEPoints^TM, Vue allows standard readers to network across thousands of antennas, exponentially increasing the number of zones that readers can support and dramatically reducing the cost barriers previously associated with item-level RFID roll-outs.  As a result, Vue provides unprecedented visibility into inventory levels, location and authenticity, while removing prohibitive cost barriers previously associated with item-level RFID.   

Item Level RFID at Marks & Spencer and New Balance

According to Calderbank, RFID technology is steadily emerging from the carton and pallet levels and advancing into the benefit-rich item-level. The true RFID advantages for retailers are in the store, he says. And there are a couple of leading businesses that are already showing this. Marks and Spencer, for example, which calls RFID intelligent labeling, is enjoying an increase in sales that can be traced to product availability facilitated by its item-level RFID program. The company has been so successful, that it is increasing the program from 32 to 120 stores during 2007. That expansion constitutes a powerful statement about the money-making potential of item-level RFID.

Another example is apparent at athletic footwear producer and retailer New Balance, Calderbank continues. Item-level RFID technology empowers New Balance sales associates equipped with a PDA to check backroom inventory without ever leaving the customer. If the requested SKU happens to be out of stock, the salesperson can suggest a style that is available. This is a clear case of RFID technology with bottom line benefits.

Visit: www.ris.averydennison.com