Optic 2000 Focuses on Customer Experience and Growth With Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 for Retail

ISSY-LES-MOULINEAUX, France, March 20, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The Optic 2000 group, with more than 1,850 specialty stores for eyewear and hearing devices, has chosen Microsoft Corp.'s enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution, Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 for Retail, to manage its sales, supply and inventory across its entire network of operations in France. Usability, simple maintenance, functional excellence and ease of upgrading are the key advantages that led to the company's strategic decision to adopt the Microsoft business solution.

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"The choice of Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 for Retail is part of a comprehensive strategic vision for our company, which sees Microsoft as a key partner for stability, trust and innovation. Our objective is to streamline our resource management with this ERP solution, to deliver a real value proposition to our customers — through the advice and support we offer during the sales process and beyond, as well as by ensuring we are offering real value for the money," said Didier Papaz, CEO of the Optic 2000 group. "We counted on our IT department to find a unified solution that was innovative and easy for our employees to use. The solution needed to transform IT into a genuine asset for our company, as a way of managing sales and inventory as well as the specifics related to all our lines of business."

"We are excited about the partnership established between Microsoft Dynamics and Optic 2000, who clearly have a vision for the future and are working to offer the best possible level of customer service," said Michael Griffiths, global product director for retail, Microsoft Business Solutions. "Microsoft is all in when it comes to retail — from our stores and consumer devices to the customer already running Microsoft Dynamics AX for Retail in more than 30 countries. We are taking that investment to the next level with Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 for Retail and customers such as Optic 2000."

Unify, Simplify and Look to the Future

With more than 1,850 stores (cooperatives, franchises and outlets) whose tools were no longer simple and effective to use and which were not able respond to industry developments, Optic 2000 was looking to adopt a unified and easy-to-use solution that could be adapted to the needs of each outlet. After extensive research, the team abandoned the idea of an eyewear-specific ERP solution in order to benefit from the power and flexibility of Microsoft solutions. Over and above the stability, the performance, the ease of maintenance and the wealth of functionality, Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 for Retail distinguished itself as an innovative and open ERP solution, ideal for developing new tools specific to the eyewear industry.

"We wanted a single solution that was easier to manage and that allowed us to optimize the quality of services provided by our IT department to our users," said Patrick Seux, director of organization and IT of the Optic 2000 group. "By using Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 for Retail, we can regularly update the entire system, all the applications on all the workstations. We also wanted to manage, archive and share our data from each point of sale. The data will remain specific to each outlet, but their security features will be centralized. In addition, the Microsoft solution allows us to look to a future in which we will be able to confidently access data on the go from mobile devices and heterogeneous point-of-sale terminals, and this for a price lower than that of the solution currently in place."

An Agile and Flexible ERP Solution

Beyond the standard ERP functions of purchasing, inventory and pricing, Optic 2000 wanted to manage requirements that are specific to the optical sector. Glasses and lenses sold by prescription are constrained by prescription management, reimbursement, health insurance and third-party payer regulations. The supply of technical products, such as custom-made lenses, is also particularly complex to manage. This is why Optic 2000 has entrusted Prodware to develop complementary solutions specific to its industry, leveraging the adaptability of Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 for Retail.

"Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 for Retail brings us longevity, flexibility and ability to upgrade our technology, which are fundamental for enabling us to anticipate changes in the marketplace, whether in terms of in-store sales techniques or consumer buying preferences," said Yves Guenin, secretary general of Optic 2000 group.

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SOURCE Microsoft Corp.