In-Store Analytics Leader RetailNext Expands Leadership Team with Addition of Four Executives

SAN JOSE, Calif., Aug. 15, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- RetailNext Inc., the leader in Applied Big Data for brick-and-mortar retail, today announced the addition of four executives to its leadership team. With roots in the retail, technology and consulting sectors, the experienced leaders will help RetailNext to optimize international expansion and maintain the company's leadership position in the in-store analytics space. The key hires are based in San Jose, Atlanta and Chicago.

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RetailNext provides the most comprehensive technology platform to deliver ecommerce-style shopper analytics to brick-and-mortar stores. The Company has experienced rapid business growth in recent years, fueled by demand for solutions that leverage big data in retail – earning recognition among the Red Herring 100 and Fast Company's list of the World's Top 10 Most Innovative Companies in Big Data.

"The demand by retailers for comprehensive in-store analytics is skyrocketing. Our platform is providing valuable insights for thousands of stores across five continents. The sector is embracing RetailNext because we help retailers uncover the metrics and insights to increase sales, reduce theft, and improve the customer experience," said RetailNext CEO Alexei Agratchev. "We have expanded our executive team because it's important for us to continue to provide the best technology and service possible in this time of rapid growth."

The recent additions to the RetailNext executive team are:

• Kenton D. Chow, Chief Operating Officer (San Jose) – With nearly 30 years of experience managing operations for high-growth public and privately held companies, Ken oversees RetailNext's financial strategy, operations, customer support, M&A, and corporate infrastructure. Prior to RetailNext, Ken was the CFO of Wine.com, Inc. and served as the CFO at Aurora Networks, where he helped profitably grow revenue to $175 million from $80 million in three years. Ken has also held CFO positions at Silicon Valley software and systems companies such as Azul Systems and Cobalt Networks, Inc., where he lead the company through its successful IPO and then a $2 billion acquisition by Sun Microsystems. 
• Maria Fernandez Guajardo, VP of Product Management (San Jose) – Maria has thirteen years' experience in technology and business development and product management. In her RetailNext role she oversees the team responsible for understanding how forward-thinking retailers use in-store measurement and metrics ─ and then delivering innovative products that help them improve their business. Prior to RetailNext, Maria led the worldwide team at Texas Instruments in charge of product management and marketing for the company's multimedia application processor division.  Maria holds a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from the Universidad de Zaragoza in Spain.
• Michael Manlapas, VP of Business Development (Atlanta) - Michael brings his broad retail technology background and international experience to RetailNext, where he is responsible for building out the RetailNext partner network and spearheading the Company's worldwide expansion. Michael has directed many operational and business teams, managing enterprise software implementations, integrating acquisitions, opening new international markets, and managing business on six continents. Most recently, he was VP Business Development at Qmatic – Americas, where he managed US and Latin American distribution. He has also contributed to the growth of enterprise retail software companies, including Radiant Systems and RedPrairie. 
• John Crimmins, VP of Strategy (Chicago) – John brings more than 25 years of strategic consulting experience to RetailNext. As head of strategy, he helps retailers interpret the metrics gathered from their stores and translate those insights into actions that improve store performance. Before RetailNext, John was Director of Consulting Services at ShopperTrak for six years, where he worked closely with retailers across segments to help them optimize the ROI of their front-door traffic counting investment. He also served as the SVP of the Client Solutions Group at ChoicePoint Precision Marketing, where he drove annual sales growth through the use of complex data analytics, and began his career as a strategy consultant with Bain and Company. 

About RetailNext
RetailNext is the leader in Applied Big Data for brick-and-mortar retail, delivering real-time analytics that enable retailers and manufacturers to monitor, collect, analyze, and visualize in-store data.  The Company's patent-pending solution uses best-in-class video analytics, Wi-Fi detection, on-shelf sensors, and data from point-of-sale systems and other sources to automatically inform retailers about how people engage with their stores.  The highly scalable RetailNext platform easily integrates with promotional calendars, staffing systems, and even weather services, to analyze how internal and external factors impact customer shopping patterns – providing store operations executives with the ability to identify opportunities for growth, execute changes and measure success.

RetailNext makes sense of more than 500 million shopping trips per year by collecting data from more than 30,000 sensors in retail stores and analyzing trillions of data points annually.  Headquartered in San Jose, CA, RetailNext is a growing global brand operating in more than 20 countries.  For more information, call +1-888-609-5877.

SOURCE RetailNext Inc.