The New Brains Of EAS

June 2012 Integrated Solutions For Retailers

By Matt Pillar, editor in chief

EAS (electronic article surveillance) — that tried-and-true LP tool — is about to get a whole lot smarter.

For an update on EAS and RFID, we caught up with Alan Sherman, senior director of global marketing, merchandise visibility, and apparel labeling solutions at Checkpoint Systems, Inc.

What does the future hold for EAS and RFID tag application functionality?

Sherman: The value of RFID for in-store inventory visibility and management has been proven in multiple studies and realworld implementations. Perpetual inventory accuracy, which previously ranged from 45% to 65%, consistently improves to 98% to 99%+, delivering benefits in reduced out-of-stocks, improved working capital, and increased sales. RFID is beneficial for apparel retailers and department stores, due to SKU complexity and the challenges of maintaining shelf availability. Once justification is achieved with improved inventory visibility, retailers often find it makes business sense to extend the benefits of RFID into other areas of their operations.