Index Launches with New Seasons Market to Provide End-to-End Security and an Enhanced Customer Experience

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 4, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Index, a leading retail software company that brings the personalization and measurement of online commerce to the offline world, announced today that it is deploying across all New Seasons Market (NSM) stores to deliver end-to-end security and personalized customer experiences.

A leading natural foods grocer in the Pacific Northwest, New Seasons Market operates 15 stores in the Portland-Vancouver area and recently acquired Santa Cruz-based New Leaf Community Markets, with eight locations in California's Central Coast region.

The collaboration with Index provides NSM with a real-time understanding of customer behavior while helping to deliver relevant product recommendations and shopping experiences that savvy consumers now expect both online and offline.

"Index not only helps us implement industry-leading security for our customers' data, but also helps us deliver personalized shopping experiences," says Wendy Collie, New Seasons Market's CEO. "What we are most excited about is that Index delivers incredible value to our customers without the time and cost-intensive need to replace existing systems. Our customers are very important to us and we always look for new ideas to enhance their shopping experience with us."

Index integrates directly with NSM's existing PIN pads, improving NSM's security and helping to tailor the checkout experience for each customer. Index's Point-to-Point Encryption (P2PE) protects payment card data from the moment a card is swiped, ensuring complete end-to-end security and providing a range of value-add services. Index will also help NSM to support EMV, the global smartcard security standard that is rolling out in the US next year.

In addition, Index enables New Seasons Market to dynamically update PIN pad content through a simple web interface that enhances and personalizes the checkout experience. For instance, it will enable customers to optionally receive emailed receipts instead of paper copies. Index provides an opt-in on the PIN pad for those shoppers.

Index has integrated directly with NSM's existing technologies, from point-of-sale platform, Toshiba SurePOS, to PIN pads, Verifone MX 915 and MX 925, and serves as a certified gateway to NSM's chosen payment processor, First Data. By teaming up with NSM's industry leading partners, Index adds new value alongside existing solutions.

"There's a scientific-approach to improving the grocery shopping experience. Online retailers test, learn and constantly improve customer experiences and we're excited to empower brick-and-mortar leaders like New Seasons Market with that same capability," says Index Co-founder and CEO Marc Freed-Finnegan. "Index provides a layered approach to security to ensure the highest level of protection for New Seasons Market customers. A good customer experience starts with security," adds Index Co-founder Jonathan Wall.

New Seasons Market will launch its custom mobile app for iPhone and Android, powered by Index in early 2015 that will leverage iBeacon / bluetooth technology to welcome customers with personalized experiences that include customized product recommendations designed to inspire in-store discovery. Based on known preferences, a customer will be able to receive real-time personalized offers and check-out in a fast, secure manner without ever taking out their phone or wallet.

About Index
San Francisco-based Index provides retailers with software that brings the personalization and measurement of online commerce to the offline world. Index delivers the backbone that powers lifelong customer relationships through actionable insights and relevant shopping experiences at the customer level. Index helps retailers to meet and greet customers in the channels where they engage, and harnesses the potential of mobile to elevate and expand these relationships. For more information visit www.index.com and follow @index.

About New Seasons Market
Founded in 2000, New Seasons Market is a leader in the grocery industry. It is the first grocer in the world to become a certified B Corporation, which recognizes businesses that place as much value on taking care of their staff, the community and the environment as they do on growing and operating their business. Giving back to the community is a core value and part of New Seasons Market's culture, as demonstrated by the company's commitment to giving 10 percent of its after tax profits to hundreds of nonprofit organizations. With nearly 3,000 employees, the independently owned grocer operates 15 stores in the Portland-Vancouver area and is one of the Portland area's largest private employers.

About First Data
First Data is a global technology leader in the financial services industry. With 24,000 employee-owners and operations in 35 countries, the company provides secure and innovative payment technology and services to more than six million merchants and financial institutions around the world, from small businesses to the world's largest corporations. Today, businesses in nearly 70 countries trust First Data to secure and process more than 2,000 financial transactions per second, totaling $1.8 trillion a year. First Data's unparalleled infrastructure, scale and partnerships go "beyond the transaction" with next-generation point-of-sale technology fueled by powerful analytics to detect fraud, gain insights into consumer spending, and strengthen customer loyalty. All day, every day, First Data helps its clients thrive in the evolving world of commerce. For more information, visit www.firstdata.com.

About Toshiba Global Commerce Solutions
Toshiba Global Commerce Solutions is retail's first choice for integrated in-store solutions and is a global market share leader in retail store technology. With a global team of dedicated business partners, we deliver innovative commerce solutions that transform checkout, provide seamless consumer interactions and optimize retail operations that are changing the retail landscape. To learn more, visit www.toshibacommerce.com or engage on Twitter @toshibagcs

About VeriFone Systems
VeriFone Systems, Inc. ("VeriFone") is the global leader in secure electronic payment solutions. VeriFone provides expertise, solutions and services that add value to the point of sale with merchant-operated, consumer-facing and self-service payment systems for the financial, retail, hospitality, petroleum, government and healthcare vertical markets. VeriFone solutions are designed to meet the needs of merchants, processors and acquirers in developed and emerging economies worldwide. For more information, visit www.verifone.com.

SOURCE Index

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