Dallas, TX January 30, 2002 estorefixture.com, a B2B site for the retail industry, announced that it has performed several reverse auctions for Belk Inc., reducing the North Carolina-based retailer's previous costs on fixtures and hardware by an average of 65 percent.
estorefixture.com is procuring other items for the department store retailer, including multiple store fixtures, stock room shelving and showcases. All items are bid using the reverse auction feature of the site, allowing suppliers to compete in real time.
David Bradshaw, estorefixture.com's vice president of operations, claims that the reverse auction format has given Belk a chance to realize tremendous savings. "It would be nearly impossible to save this kind of time and money procuring by traditional methods, so the Internet has given retailers tremendous opportunity."
estorefixture.com complements companies' current procurement procedures with its flexible online bidding solution, which allows retailers to take advantage of the Internet technology.
"As a company, Belk strives to be a leader, and it has become increasingly apparent that the future of procurement is online," said Roger Henry, vice president of architecture and store planning at Belk Inc. "By moving some of our initiatives online with estorefixture.com, we have been able to reap benefits of technology by making the procurement process comprehensive, faster and easier."
According to the company, estorefixture.com serves allows retail clients can see their projects go from concept to reality by using the downstream services offered through estorefixture.com's sister company, Fixture Perfect International Inc. FPI's turnkey retail development services include program management, store and fixture design, site survey, logistics management and consolidation, store and fixture installation, and retail merchandising.
