Expediting Omni-channel Retailing at C&A Brazil: A Timely

Response to the COVID19 Pandemic Powered by RFID

Rebecca Angeles

University of New Brunswick Fredericton, 7 Macauley Lane, Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada

Keywords: Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), Supply Chain Management (SCM) for Retailing, Omni-channel

Retailing, Inventory Management.

Abstract: This case study features the experiences of C&A Brazil, in deploying radio frequency identification (RFID)

initiative to lay the foundation for omni-channel retailing capabilities as it meets the retailing requirements

of the marketplace during the Covid19 pandemic. The exploration of C&A Brazil is successful beyond even

the firm’s initial expectations. The significant benefits experienced by C&A Brazil after rolling out RFID in

a number of stores to manage its inventory systems more efficiently include: (1) reduction in inventory

inaccuracy from 20 percent down to 3 percent; (2) cutting back on customer order cancellations from 10+

percent to less than 3 percent; (3) sales growth in RFID-enabled stores reported 80 to 100 percent increase

compared to stores without RFID; (4) omni-channel business operations were conducted two times faster in

RFID stores versus non-RFID stores; and (5) C&A Brazil expects to break even from investments made in

its RFID projects by 2022. This case study uses the qualitative research method of content analysis and the

“structurational model of technology” as its theoretical framework in understanding the firm’s experiences.

INTRODUCTION

The Covid19 pandemic has introduced

unprecedented challenges in the retail marketplace.

Societal mandates to put customer safety first has

created the intuitive directive to conduct buying and

selling online as much as possible. Add that to the fact

that customers are also demanding to reach retailers

using different channels of distribution and sales to

meet their preferred means of gaining product

information and purchasing products. Customers

have the longest experience walking into brick-and-

mortar stores. But with the onset of the Internet,

online electronic, virtual stores, and marketplaces

became commonplace.

Currently, use of smartphones and global

positioning systems, along with the influences of

social media marketing, has powered location based

mobile commerce, following the tracks of customers

who are now demanding retailers to provide the ability

to purchase anything, anytime, anywhere. Thus, the

concept of “omni-channel retailing” emerged

dissolving the boundaries separating the physical,

virtual, and mobile storefronts. “…The omni-

channel concept is perceived as an evolution of the

multichannel. While the multichannel implies a

division between the physical and online store, in the

omni-channel customers move freely between the

online (PC), mobile devices, and physical store, all

within a single transaction process….the journey

should be smooth and should provide a seamless,

unified customer experience, regardless of the

channels used….” (Pioytrowicz and Cuthbertson,

2014). This case study features the radio frequency

identification (RFID) initiative of C&A Brazil, a south

American retailer that is part of the larger C&A

umbrella firm based in Europe. What is so remarkable

is the way C&A Brazil leapfrogged the journey of

establishing a tight and accurate inventory

management system that eventually became the

foundation of its omni-channel retailing initiative

during these pandemic days.

This case study

features the use of the

“structurational model of

technology” as the

theoretical framework for

understanding C&A

Brazil’s deployment of RFID

as the basis of its

intelligent inventory system and

ultimately, its omni-channel retailing efforts.

This paper is organized accordingly. Section 2

Angeles, R.

Expediting Omni-channel Retailing at CA Brazil: A Timely Response to the COVID19 Pandemic Powered by RFID.

DOI: 10.5220/0010968200003179

In Proceedings of the 24th International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems (ICEIS 2022) - Volume 2, pages 473-483

ISBN: 978-989-758-569-2; ISSN: 2184-4992

473

Covers the literature review that includes a

discussion of the structurational model of

technology, omni-channel retailing, and C&A Brazil

firm background. Section 3 covers the research

method. Section 4 covers the findings that include:

1) structure of legitimation; 2) structure of

signification; 3) structure of domination; and 4)

social consequences. Section 5 covers the

conclusions.

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1

Structurational Model of

Technology

This study applies Orlikowski’s “Structurational

Model of Technology,” (Orlikowski, 1992;

Orlikowski and Robey, 1991) to understand how

information technology(IT) interacts with

organizations. This model draws on Giddens’

( Giddens, 1984; Giddens, 1979; Giddens, 1976)

theory of structuration, which proposed the concept of

the “duality of structure,” “…which refers to the

notion that the structure or institutional properties of

social systems are created by human action, and then

serve to shape future human action” (Orlikow ski

and Robey, 1991, p.147). “In Giddens’ theory,

structure is understood to be an abstract property of

social systems. Structure is not something concrete,

situated in time and space, and it lacks material

characteristics. Structure cannot exist apart from the

human actors who enact and interpret its

dimensions. Structure has only virtual existence.

Interestingly, people readily allow their actions to be

constrained by these shared abstractions as social

structure. The ability of organizational structures to

elicit compliance and conformity in the absence of

material constraints attests to the power of those

socially constructed abstractions. Social structure

conditions by providing contextual rules and

resources that allow human actors to make sense of

their own acts and those of other people…”

(Orlikowski and Robey, 1991, p. 147). Furthermore,

Giddens specifies that human interactions are an

amalgamation of structures of meaning, power, and

moral frameworks enacted in what he calls

“modalities of interactions: interpretive schemes,

resources, and norms.

“Interpretive schemes form the core of mutual

knowledge whereby an accountable universe of

meaning is sustained through and in processes of

interaction (Giddens, 1979, p. 83). Orlikowski and

Robey (1991) translate Giddens’ concept of

“interpretive scheme” within the realm of IT and

explain that IT represents reality through a set of

concepts of symbols embedded in it by which end

users understand their world. Thus, IT is not only a

medium for the construction of social reality, but also

a means of institutionalizing certain “interpretive

schemes” or stocks of knowledge within the

organization by standardizing, sharing, and taking

them for granted.

Resources are the media through which power is

exercised by human actors because it is through these

resources that humans can accomplish their objectives

and thus, gain “domination” (Orlikowski and Robey,

1991). Therefore, the deployment of IT institutes a

certain order of authority, dictating the way work will

be performed, and also, resulting in the differential

distribution of power in the

organization.

Norms are

understood as organizational rules that

shape

“legitimate” behavior. IT is a medium for

installing

such norms in order to control human

behavior in

an organization (Orlikowski and Robey, 1991).

Orlikowski incorporates the following

components in her framework: first, the human

agents, consisting of technology designers, end users,

and decision makers; second, the material artifacts

that constitute IT itself, and third, the institutional

properties of organizations ---

structural

arrangements, business strategies, ideology, culture,

control mechanisms, standard operating procedures,

division of labor, expertise, communication patterns,

and environmental pressures (Orlikowski, 1992;

Orlikowski and Robey,

1991).

The structural model

of technology discusses four

critical issues

(Orlikowski and Robey, 1991). First,

IT is the

product of human action, which is

responsible for

the creation, use, and maintenance of

different forms

of IT. It is only through human

appropriation of

action that it is able to influence

human activity.

Second, technology is the medium of human action.

Since different forms of IT are used by

organizational workers, they mediate organizational

work either by facilitating it and in some ways, also

constraining it. Third, organizational contexts shape

human action within organizations. Human agents

are influenced by the institutional properties of their

setting which provide the resources, norms, and

knowledge they need to work. Furthermore, IT is

created and used within certain social and historical

circumstances which influence the form and features

of this technology.

Fourth, human agents either

reinforce or

transform the institutional properties of

organization when using IT. Weick

(1979)

characterized technology as enacted

ICEIS 2022 - 24th International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems

474

environment

whose construction is determined by an

organization’s structure of signification, domination,

and legitimation. Any change in these structures

indicates the “appropriation” and use of technology.

“Structure of signification” refers to the way the

concepts and procedures intrinsic in the knowledge

embedded in IT directs the manner are interpreted and

work is conducted in the organization (Orlikowski,

1992). “Structure of domination” refers to IT’s

ability to control the work of organizational members

once it is deployed. “Structure of legitimation”

refers to the ability of IT to sanction a particular way

of conducting work and thus, propagate a set of

norms about what is considered legitimate business

practice. Orlikowski also incorporates the three

modalities of structuration --- interpretive schemes,

resources, and norms --- in her application of

structures of signification, domination, and

legitimation in the deployment of IT in an

organization.

2.2

Omni-channel Retailing

The retailing industry was already on its way to

transitioning to omni-channel retailing, but the onset

of the Covid19 pandemic in March 2020 accelerated

this shift. To stem the rapid spread of the virus,

governments worldwide instituted formal measures

mandating lockdowns and social distancing, thus,

severely limiting if not stopping customer traffic to

brick-and-mortar venues for products and services

(Verhoef, 2021; Zeynep, 2021; Weber, 2021;

Kulkarni, 2020). Online purchasing was encouraged

instead resulting in an unexpected and unprecedented

boon for ecommerce and more so, for omni-channel

retailing.

The concept of “omni-channel retailing” has

been

revisited again recently especially with the

onset of the 2020 Covid19 pandemic (Verhoef,

2021; Zeynep, 2021; Weber, 2021). Verhoef,

Kannan, and Inman (2015) refer to omni-channel

retailing as “…a business model in which different

channels are integrated to provide consistency to

consumers throughout their experience."

Brynjolffson, Hu, and Rahman (2013) define omni-

channel retailing as a business model that provides

customers a seamless shopping experience on

account of using integrated sales channels. Picot-

Coupey, Huré, and Piveteau (2016) view omni-

channel retailing as a vehicle that enables customers

to move seamlessly between integrated front-end

and back-end operations (involving order fulfillment

and last-mile delivery options) across different

connected channels. To Vanheems,

omni-channel

retailing refers to “…a strategy of

assembling

various channels into a single distribution

system

promoting interchangeability and the transfer

customers between channels...” (Vanheems,

2009).

The Aberdeen Group, an IT consulting firm

the U.S., on the other hand, considers omni-channel

retailing “…as a set of integrated processes and

decisions that support a unified view of a brand from

the perspective of product purchase, return, and

exchange, irrespective of the channel (in-store,

online, mobile, call center, or social)….” (The

Aberdeen Group, 2012). The critical role of item-

level RFID tagging has also been articulated by Bill

Hardgrave, founder and former director of the RFID

Research Center of the University of Arkansas

(Hardgrave, 2015, 2012) : “’Anywhere, anytime,

any product’

is the mantra of omni-channel retailing

and retailers of

all types are clamoring to make it

happen….Customers should have a consistent and

seamless experience whether they’re shopping in a

store, on a mobile device, on a home computer or via

a catalog….But omni-channel retailing starts with

operations --- in particular, those that deliver real-

time, accurate inventory data efficiently and cost-

effectively. If you don’t know what you have, where

you have it and when you have it, the great mobile or

online app you created for your customers is

worthless….” (Hardgrave, 2012).

Omni-channel retailing has its specific

technological and business process change

requirements in order to guarantee a successful

customer experience. Customers expect both

information (content) and business process

consistency across the integrated sales channels they

are using to complete a purchase transaction (Hure,

Picot-Coupey, and Ackermann, 2017). Changes will

have to be made in the firm’s enterprisewide- and

supply chain- related business processes to support

an integrated suite of sales channesls. A vital digital

gateway supporting integrated sales channels is a

connected artery linking a firm’s inventory system,

order management system, and warehouse

management system (Zeynep, 2021). Front-end and

back-end ecommerce systems operations also need

to be fine tuned in order to fulfill orders accurately

and on time as elements of even just a single

customer transaction may require synchronizing

elements of that purchase involving different sales

channels (Weber, 2021; Mirsch, Lehrer and Jung

(2016). Front-end operations include the website

user interface that give access to the firm’s

electronic catalog of products, shopping cart

features, and an online ordering process. For

instance, a customer may use a store’s physical store

Expediting Omni-channel Retailing at CA Brazil: A Timely Response to the COVID19 Pandemic Powered by RFID

475

for fitting an evening gown; then, this customer may

also research this item online further to check out

alternative colors and/or fabrics; and finally, she

may use the store’s mobile app to review coupons

just released by the retailer that applies to this item.

Then, this customer could also use the same app to

place an order for this gown at a discounted price

indicated in the coupon. Back-end operations

involve the inventory, order management/

fulfillment, and warehouse management systems.

With omni-channel retailing, the firm now has to

curate inventory items differently, keeping in mind

the specific and differing demand levels per sales

channel. With respect to outbound logistics

impacting warehouse management, it would satisfy

customers to have different last-mile delivery

options (Kembro, Norrman, and Eriksson, 2018),

that would, in turn, lead to decisions like shipping

direct to customers from distribution centers or

physical stores, whichever is closer to the customer

(Kulkarni, 2020).

2.3

C&A Brazil: Firm Background

Created in 1976, C&A Brazil is part of the umbrella

company called C&A, founded in 1841 by the Dutch

brothers Clemens and August Brenninkmeijer in

Sneek, Holland. Headquartered in Zug, Switzerland,

C&A belongs to the COFRA Group. The C&A

umbrella firm, which is considered one of the larger

retail chains in the world, covers 24 countries in

Europe, Latin America, and Asia (C&A, 2021,

November 21). The first C&A Brazil store was set

up in Shopping Ibirapuera in Sao Paulo. The C&A

firm, as a whole, specializes in making and selling

ready-to-wear quality apparel for men, women, and

children. As of late, the firm has been focusing on

environmentally sustainable manufacturing processes

and product design. C&A Brazil has more than 280

stores in 125 cities and employs about 15,000 workers

(C&A, 2021, November 21).

Even before the pandemic (March 2020), C&A

headquarters in Germany had expressed its desire to

pursue omni-channel retailing and consider the role

of RFID item-level tagging as critical in this

endeavor once the firm has achieved accurate

inventory counts

(Angeles, 2018, 2017, 2015a and

b). The onset of the pandemic, however, has made

online

shopping and ecommerce initiatives not just

important, but essential and critical.

RESEARCH METHOD

This study uses the case study approach in applying

the concepts of the structurational model of

technology as articulated by Orlikowski (Orlikowski,

1992; Orlikowski and Robey, 1991) in the RFID

deployment at C&A Brazil to pursue omni-channel

retailing in response to the retail conditions

introduced by the COVID19 pandemic in Brazil.

Primary data was gathered from the transcripts of

the presentations given by Vicente Neves, Senior

Supply Chain Manager and Michael Bergel, Supply

Chain Strategy Division Manager, C&A Modas,

C&A Brazil, in the RFID Journal Live! 2021 Annual

Conference in Phoenix, Arizona, USA, September

26-28, 2021 (Neves and Bergel, 2021).

Secondary data using academic journal articles,

trade articles on C&A, and vendor website

information were used as well. All of these materials

were content analyzed using key concepts embodied

in the structurational model of technology. The

following are accepted definitions of the content

analysis method:

“Content analysis is any research technique for

making inferences by systematically and

objectively identifying specified characteristics

within text.” (Stone, et al., 1966, p. 5).

“Content analysis is a research technique for

making replicable and valid inferences from data

to their context.” (Krippendorff, 1980, p. 21).

“Content analysis is a research method that uses a

set of procedures to make valid inferences from

text.” (Weber, 1990, p.9).

In this study, the concepts used for content analysis

were derived from the structurational model of

technology. This framework forms the “context” of

the content analysis method as applied to C&A

Brazil’s RFID system. The secondary data was

analyzed within the context provided by the

Orlikowski framework, which is considered the “prior

theory.” “Analytical constructs operationalize what

the content analyst knows about the context,

specifically the network of correlations that are

assumed to explain how available text are connected

to the possible answers to the analyst’s questions and

the conditions under which these correlations could

change analytical constructs ensure that an analysis

of given texts models the texts’ context of use.…”

(Krippendorff, 2004, p. 34). The following key

conceptual elements of the

content analysis method

as stipulated by Krippendorf

(2004) were used in this

study: (1) body of text

selected for the analysis; (2)

ICEIS 2022 - 24th International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems

476

research question that

needed to be addressed; (3) a

context of analysis

within which interpretations will

be made; (4)

analytical constructs that

operationalize what the

analyst knows about the

context; and (5) inferences

that will be arrived at to

address the research question.

FINDINGS

4.1

C&A Brazil: Structure of

Legitimation

The RFID initiative at C&A Brazil has attained a

“structure of legitimation” due to a number of

developments recently in the economy and retailing

industry. Having “structure of legitimation,” RFID

item-level tagging has been the technological means

by which retailers have sanctioned a specific way of

developing information systems to address certain

business operations needs and propagate a set of

norms about what is and what is not “professional”

social practice.

What is happening now is that by item-level

tagging with RFID for certain product categories,

C&A Brazil is laying the foundation for omni-

channel retailing. This concept is complex, bridges

the linkages among the multiple channels of selling

to customers, and will require the integration of the

IT infrastructure pieces used for capturing, storing,

and processing order transactions and creating

integrated customer profiles via these different

channels. This case study focuses solely on C&A

Brazil’s efforts to achieve a robust inventory

management system as its groundwork for taking on

the challenge of linking transaction data from the

various channels that would have to sit on top of an

inventory system serving all these

channels.

The other pillar supporting the “structure of

legitimation” underlining RFID item-level tagging

are the initiatives of the organization called GS1, a

nonprofit international organization that develops

and maintains standards for supply and demand

chains across industries. Firms in the retailing

industry use GS 1 electronic product code or EPC

global standards that govern the workings of RFID

technology. For instance, RFID Gen 2 was released

by GS 1 as a worldwide standard for ultra-high

frequency (UHF) RFID to simplify visibility, boost

read rates, and improve RFID tag performance

(Swedberg, 2013).

Recent developments legitimized and reinforced

the practice of omnichannel retailing in Brazil. The

pandemic created pressures for retailers that had

brick-and-mortar presence to introduce online

shopping channels via ecommerce platforms to meet

the social distancing mandates that gained

widespread invocation in the world. Retailers that

were operating many sales channels that were not

integrated (e.g., simultaneously supporting separate

online and brick-and-mortar channels for example)

very quickly discovered the unsustainable high costs

of doing so (Roberti, 2017). Worse

yet, inaccurate

inventory views on account of

unintegrated online

and physical store channels

usually meant that the

retailer could not expose all of

its physical store

inventory to customers shopping

online.

Consequently, customers cannot shop online

and

pick up the product items from the physical

stores;

they also cannot use their smartphones to help

them

shop while they are in the physical store

(Roberti,

2017). In this situation,

retailers would usually

withhold product information

from customers

because they are aware that they have

inaccurate

inventory counts and that the product items

may not

be in the physical store even if the inventory

figures

report that they are there. Retailers would

rather risk

the customer perceptions of “stockouts”

rather than

disappoint customers who are left with the

false

impression that items are in the store, even if

they,

in fact, are not there. Omnichannel retailing has

been the “holy grail” of

retailers for sometime now,

even before the

pandemic. Recent research results

attest to the ever

increasing acceptance and

recognition of this

initiative as a promising avenue

for generating

increased revenues, amplifying

customer satisfaction,

and enhancing the purchase

experience. Though

there isn’t yet a majority of

retailers that have adopted

this practice, the research

data attests to a growing

number of “converts”

quickly shifting their resources

and assets towards

omnichannel retailing, with the recognition that

accurate inventory is a prerequisite.

A recent article discussed the findings of the 2018

RFID research study by Adrian Beck, Emeritus

Professor, University of Leicester, U.K. (Handley,

2021). A key finding of Professor Beck is that

firms in the 10 case studies used in the research

considered omnichannel retailing a standard and

desirable business practice (Handley, 2021). These

forward looking retailers are using their brick-and-

mortar stores as fulfillment centers for online sales.

Only RFID-tagged product items are available for

on-line sales because the inventory accuracy benefits

derived from the technology make online sales-

based business processes easier to execute. These

Expediting Omni-channel Retailing at CA Brazil: A Timely Response to the COVID19 Pandemic Powered by RFID

477

retailers are encouraged by the following outcomes

resulting from this RFID deployment: increased

inventory turnover, a more accurate capture of

customer orders, decreased customer complaints and

returns, and optimized working capital (Handley,

2021). These retailers also used their distribution

centers as fulfillment centers for online orders, with

RFID tracking both inbound and outbound shipments

to and from distribution centers (Handley, 2021).

The RFID study of Professor Antonio Rizzi of

the

Department of Engineering and

Architecture,

University of Parma, Italy, reinforce these findings

(Swedberg, 2019). study covered a

sample of 97

firms and 23,400 stores in Europe and

the U.S. that

deployed RFID in the period 2001 to

2018. RFID

projects in the later years closer to 2018

feature the

dominance of omnichannel retailing,

managing

product returns, and process automation

(Swedberg,

2019). In 2015, there were

only eight firms in the

sample that used RFID for

omnichannel retailing,

but in 2018, that number increased to 28 firms. An

uptick in the trend from

there is also anticipated.

These retailers reaped

benefits from reduced

product processing times and

product tracking times,

and increased inventory

accuracy counts

(Swedberg, 2019).

Rizzi considers the fashion and

apparel industry a

very appropriate industry

deploying RFID in a wider

scale compared to other

industries due to the wide

range of stock keeping

units (SKUs) of product items

that need to be

managed, the rapid changes in

customer tastes and

preferences that drive the

constant movement of

inventory in and out of

physical stores and

distribution centers, and the

resulting dynamic

online purchases.

The most updated assessment of the state-of-

affairs

in omnichannel retailing was offered by

Retail

TouchPoints, an online publishing network for

the

retailing industry (Roberti, 2019). It turns

out that

Europe and Canada are ahead of the U.S. in

terms

of “BOPIS” or “buy online, pick up in-store”:

about

64 percent of U.K. retailers offer BOPIS to

customers, followed by 50 percent in France, 43

percent in Germany, 31 percent in Australia, and 31

percent in Canada. About 2,000 international

retailers were covered the research study that revealed

this important finding. Mark Roberti, editor of the

RFID Journal offered a possible explanation for this

finding --- the physical stores in the U.S. are

much bigger and thus, carry more products. The

costs of this alone may prove it financially

prohibitive for U.S. retailers to be doing BOPIS at

the same time (Roberti, 2019).

4.2

C&A Brazil: Structure of

Signification

Because of the pandemic, C&A Brazil allowed its

suppliers to ship garment products ahead of schedule

to their distribution centers where these were tagged.

SensorMatic RFID tags and labels were used in

tagging these items (Johnson Controls, 2021).

Distribution center (DC workers used Zebra mobile

handheld RFID readers to read the tagged items as

they are prepared for packing and distribution to the

stores. These RFID readers interact with fixed Zebra

portal antennas installed in strategic locations in the

doors, walls, and ceilings of the DCs. An example of

a Zebra mobile handheld RFID reader they could be

using is the MC3330xR Integrated UHF RFID

Reader.

The MC3330xR Integrated UHF RFID Reader

which is light to carry but has a sizeable touchscreen

for good visibility and a keypad. This mobile RFID

reader is the

“brain” of C&A’s RFID system in that

it interrogates

the RFID tags and labels and in so

doing, transmit and

receive radio waves from these

tags. The

fixed portal antennas, though, act as an

intermediary

between the mobile RFID readers and

RFID tags and

labels. In order for the RFID reader

to communicate

with the RFID tags and labels,

though, these fixed

portal antennas need to convert

the mobile RFID

reader signals into radio

frequency or RF waves that

the RFID tags

eventually receive. These fixed portal

antennas

receive their power from the mobile RFID

readers,

then, as a result are able to generate a radio

frequency (RF) field. This field is what enables RF

signals to be transmitted to the

tags.

Zebra

Technologies also offers a wide variety of

fixed

portal antennas. An example is the Zebra RAIN

RFID AN440 RFID antenna capable of covering a

large area in the firm’s physical facility. This

specific model is capable

of high-speed radio

frequency signal conversion to

enable fast and

accurate data capture. This antenna

could be

mounted in the ceilings and walls of

warehouses or

distribution centers. Its power can

help create

superior read zones around stockroom

shelves,

warehouse doorways, and dock platforms.

There are

usually the areas where cases and pallets of

products

are rapidly moved in and out of a facility.

When the packed garments are delivered to the

stores, sales staff use the mobile handheld RFID

readers to read the tags on these newly arrived items.

Product information embedded in the tags is, then,

forwarded by RFID readers to SensorMatic’s

TRUEVUE intelligent inventory software that

ICEIS 2022 - 24th International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems

478

primarily supports C&A Brazil’s back-end store

systems.

This software updates the inventory file for

the day to

account for the newly arrived garment

items in the

backroom. This software also

interacts with an

application written by the in-

house programmers of

firm for inventory allocation.

After unboxing the

garments and putting them on

shelves or hanging

them on hangers, the sales staff

read the RFID tags

again to account for items now

on display and

available for sale. SensorMatic also

has a point-of-sale software used

in the sales

counters of the physical stores, and this is

connected

as well to the TRUEVUE intelligent

inventory

software. Tagged items brought by

customers to the

sales counters are read by the RFID-

enabled POS

hardware that accompanies the POS

software such

as the AdvanPay 120 RFID POS

system --- this is

an “all-in-one” RFID reader and

antenna

configuration that uses advanced tag

isolation

technology.

In 2022, C&A will extend RFID deployment in

two areas: theft detection in the retail storefront and

use of RFID in fitting rooms (Neves, and Bergel,

2021, September 26-28). The theft detection will be

achieved using SensorMatic’s Electronic Article

Surveillance System (EAS).

When the pandemic hit in March 2020, the state

of affairs in C&A Brazil was not ideal for surviving

the challenges faced by the retailing industry

worldwide. The firm’s inventory statistics were

definitely inaccurate; the store chain’s inefficiencies

resulted in frequent customer order cancellations;

customers complained about not finding items they

wanted. The dominant customer perception was that

C&A Brazil could not handle its frequent product

stockouts. Meanwhile, within the retail stores, staff

perceptions were that they, indeed, had the products

but just couldn’t find them during the picking

process in time for customer inspection and

checkouts.

The pandemic also forced many brick-and-mortar

stores to close many of their branches. C&A Brazil

was put in a similar position. The firm’s inevitable

option in a situation like that was to ramp up its

ecommerce deployment which it launched way back

in 2014, using VTEX as its platform provider

(Gheorghia, 2021). Transforming itself into a digital

firm had its challenges for C&A Brazil. They needed

an ecommerce platform that would help them

manage about 150,000 stock keeping units (SKUs)

of products from different suppliers and 10

subsidiary brands, which they should be able to

include in one catalog to support the online store. It

was important to be able to associate SKUs of newly

introduced product items to those of existing products

as a key part of tracking items available for sale. The

VTEX platform allowed the firm to define software

rules that covered different product categories,

brands, and products to facilitate associating SKUs of

new products with those of existing product lines

(Gheorghia, 2021). Furthermore, VTEX enabled

C&A Brazil to customize its online catalog and

assemble product categories into “clusters” to

facilitate easy management.

The VTEX platform has long-term

advantages such as allowing C&A Brazil to expand

its product

offerings and accommodating more

suppliers and

product categories. This is critical in

an online store

where the customer expectation is

for it to clearly

outstrip the ability of the physical

storefronts to sell a

wider range of products. The

VTEX platform also allows for having

different

payment and logistics options that can be offered

in the same online store.

Another layer in C&A Brazil’s omni-channel IT

infrastructure was the adoption of the Centric Product

Lifecycle Management software. The firm thought

this software was important especially during its

omni-channel retailing initiative as it needed a tool

for managing the complexities of omni-channel-

based business processes. C&A Brazil wanted to

expand product lines offered online and increase the

number of suppliers it dealt with. Its existing

software tools were too limited in scope and

functionality in order to support the firm’s more

ambitious and expansive short-term goals --- all

directed towards omni-channel retailing. ”…The

pandemic not only greatly increased our digital

channel sales and made it much more relevant, but it

also accelerated the digital transformation of the

company as a whole. And, with that, we needed more

assortments, more new models; it was in this context

that we decided to leverage PLM,” explains Joao

Souza, Head of Sourcing for the Women’s

Department of C&A Brazil (Centricsoftware.com,

2021). Furthermore, he said, “Our product

development was very centered around each

designer and emails with suppliers but no real

strategic organization.” (Centricsoftware.com,

2021). The Centric PLM software will greatly

complement and enhance the firm’s ecommerce and

omni-channel retailing initiatives in a number of

ways.

Expediting Omni-channel Retailing at CA Brazil: A Timely Response to the COVID19 Pandemic Powered by RFID

479

4.3

C&A Brazil: Structure of

Domination

“Structure of domination” refers to RFID’s ability

control the work of organizational members once it

deployed. RFID systems exerts this control

through its built-in assumptions, features, and

standardized procedures, which impose the way work

is done within the specific context of the business

application where they are applied (Orlikowski,

1992). The RFID system in C&A Brazil’s inventory

system undergirding their omni-channel retailing

initiative required the training of all store staff

members who would be interacting with the

technology in order to introduce them to the new

ways their work would change.

Due to the changes in work brought on by the

pandemic, store staff members were trained in the use

of the RFID systems 100 percent online --- an

unprecedented experience in the firm (Neves and

Bergel, 2021). A total of 500 staff

members were

trained within 600 online meetings

(Neves and

Bergel, 2021). After gaining experience using

RFID-tagged product items

in the store, C&A Brazil

experienced significant

improvement in store staff

morale on account of the

rewards of doubling their

sales performance and

benefiting from locating

product items in the store in

“speed record time”

using mobile RFID readers

(Johnson Controls,

2021). C&A Brazil’s future plans include the

following.

First, RFID will be deployed in all other C&A

Brazil stores for a full RFID rollout by the second

quarter of 2022.

Second, the firm will deploy other SensorMatic

Software Suite features to support loss prevention in

the physical storefronts. This will involve using

features of SensorMatic’s Electronic Article

Surveillance (EAS) systems that track products

selected and purchased by customers in the stores

and keep them secure by providing the store staff

item-level visibility into the whereabouts of these

items. This module will help C&A Brazil

understand how customers move in and out of the

store; which entrances and exits they use the most;

and the times, days, and routes within the store with

the highest traffic. The system will also identify

which product items are statistically most likely at

risk for theft and help the store add layers of product

protection/security.

Hardware components for detection of the

RFID EAS system such as the “RFID Only Door-

Max” or the “RFID Overhead 360” could be

installed in doorways or overhead. Both can be

configured to identify vulnerable store areas with

electronic product code (EPC) item-level loss event

reports. Store associates could be alerted using its

color LED lights and audible indicators when a

potential loss event situation is occurring.

Third, the firm will enable self-checkout

procedures that can naturally be supported by RFID

tracking capabilities at the sales counters to speed up

the exit process for customers.

Fourth, the firm will install RFID readers in

fitting rooms in order to collect more data on

customer behavior and choices of product items

which can be

later analyzed for better decision

making (Neves and

Bergel, 2021). C&A

Brazil will

use other advanced features of the

SensorMatic

software suite and one of them is

designed to be used

in the fitting rooms, to enable

integrated RFID

tracking in the storefront floor,

fitting rooms, and

point-of-sale zones. Called

“TrueVue Fitting Room

360 degrees,” this module

will enable C&A Brazil to

capture more detailed

data on customer behavior in

the fitting room to

allow it to track which apparel

items are selected

together and which accessories are

chosen to

go with these apparel items. While the

usual information sought is on which apparel pieces

sell, tracking data on apparel items that are not

purchased but are selected and left behind in the

fitting rooms is also very informative and could lead

to unexpected insights. Data analytics answers could

lead to ideas that sales consultants on the floor could

use to cross-sell and/or up-sell product items, and also

provide a personalized, memorable

customer

experience.

4.4

C&A Brazil: Social Consequences

4.4.1 Social Structure and Social

Consequences of IT

In looking at the “social structure and social

consequences of IT,” the structurational model of

technology investigates how the IT, in this case, the

RFID system, is implemented, assimilated, and

adopted by the end users, and the consequences of

usage (Orlikowski and Robey, 1991). IT, once again,

acts as a medium of human action, and human action

is also shaped by the use of IT. The end users’

behavior at C&A Brazil in the process of using the

RFID system is mediated by interpretive schemes,

resources, and norms perceived to be embedded in the

technology. Since the RFID system is a medium of

human action at C&A Brazil, it will shape the end

ICEIS 2022 - 24th International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems

480

users’ behavior in the firm, resulting in facilitating

certain outcomes and constraining

others. In C&A Brazil’s earnest attempt to meet the

new

requirements imposed upon the store due to the

Covid19 pandemic, it renewed its focus on

ecommerce and more seriously pursued omni-

channel

retailing founded upon a strong inventory

system that

was accurate. This was the right

approach as

omni-channel retailing demands tighter

control over a

firm’s inventories across its different

sales channels in

order to work. C&A Brazil initiated

their RFID pilot

project in 2020 and covered their 10

best stores within

a four-month period (Neves and

Bergel, 2021).

First, they started with one store

and after one

month, when the pilot was over in that

location,

C&A Brazil proceeded to deploy pilots in

nine other

stores. To accommodate the requirements

of the

pilot projects, C&A Brazil required the “test”

stores

to tag product items after store hours so as not

disturb normal store operations during business

hours (Neves and Bergel, 2021).

C&A Brazil made one significant change on

account of the pursuing omni-channel retailing and

rationalizing the business operations of the physical

stores (that were not shut down during the pandemic)

and its ecommerce online site (Neves and Bergel,

2021; Johnson Controls, 2021). They took what

used to be the

“safety margin” for products sold

online off and

offered all inventories in the physical

stores, their sales

grew by 50 percent overnight

(Johnson Controls,

2021). This meant that

customers

who went to the physical stores had access

to all of the

firm’s inventory. This resulted in higher

customer

satisfaction because they always found what

they were

looking for.

Also observed was the time it took sales

reps to

process an order which was cut in half because

RFID’s ability to help them locate precisely where

the products were in the store ( Johnson Controls,

2021). With RFID deployed in the

stores, C&A

Brazil was able to ensure that whatever

product was

sold to a customer, it would, in fact, be in

the store

and be located and allocated for that customer

(Johnson Controls, 2021).

Another significant change made was to use

C&A

Brazil’s distribution centers as RFID tagging

staging

areas for imported product items. Spaces

within DCs

were needed because a number of C&A

Brazil

physical stores needed to be closed on

account of the

pandemic. The staff initially had to

contend with poor WIFI reception in the DC staging

areas; eventually,

they solved this problem.

Suppliers of imported products were allowed to

deliver the products ahead of the usual delivery

times in order to accommodate the increased amount

of time needed to prepare the products during the

time of the pandemic (Neves and Bergel, 2021).

Table 1 summarizes the benefits experienced during

the pilot projects:

Table 1: Benefits from pilots for RFID stores.

Benefits for stores with RFID from

ilot

ects

65% sales growth in stores VS non-RFID stores

5+ p.p. increase in Omnipresence VS non-RFID stores

50% faster in-store

rocesses VS non-RFID stores

1,000 in one day for one store ---1

time in chain’s

history

50+% increase inventory visibility on digital channels

VS non-RFID stores

Source: Neves and Bergel, 2021

4.4.2 Action and Social Consequences of IT

The “action and social consequences of IT”

discussion refers to the current and future changes

needed in terms of “action initiatives” to more clearly

delineate the path towards a more fully developed

omni-channel retailing efforts. The future action

initiatives, though, in the case of C&A Brazil are

consequences of the benefits they experienced from

the RFID pilot projects conducted in the 10 stores.

The following are the more notable improvements

that caught the attention of top management and the

store staff. First, the 10 pilot stores experienced a

65 percent or greater sales growth compared to the

non-RFID stores. In fact, for the first time in firm’s

history, certain stores processed as many as 1,000

orders per day. Omni-channel sales growth was

estimated to have increased from 80 to 100 percent

compared to sales figures reported by stores that did

not tag product items. Second, store business

processes related to selling product items increased

in speed by 50 percent. Third, inventory visibility

increased by 50 percent in their online store and other

digital channels. Fourth, product inventory

inaccuracy decreased from 20 percent and above to

less than 3 percent in stores that used RFID. Fifth,

order cancellations due to product stockouts

decreased from 10 percent and higher to less than 3

percent since the time product items were RFID

tagged (Neves and Bergel, 2021). Table 2

summarizes the benefits experienced after the formal

roll-out of RFID following the pilot projects:

Expediting Omni-channel Retailing at CA Brazil: A Timely Response to the COVID19 Pandemic Powered by RFID

481

Table 2: Benefits from rollout for RFID stores.

Benefits from actual RFID Rollout

Reduction in inventor

inaccurac

: from 20%+ to <3%

Reduction in order cancellations: from 10+% to <3%

Omni-channel sales growth: 80% to 100% in RFID

stores VS non-RFID store

Omni-channel sales operations: 2X faster in RFID

stores VS non-RFID stores

ROI: breakeven expected in 2022 (year 2)

Source: Neves and Bergel, 2021

5 CONCLUSIONS

The structurational model of technology has

provided a useful theoretical framework for

understanding C&A Brazil’s approach to stretch

their capabilities and step up to the plate in meeting

the demands of omnichannel retailing at an

appropriate time. Having the support of RFID

vendor SensorMatic that provided a one-stop shop

for key RFID system modules was critically needed

to power up a comprehensive solution to C&A

Brazil’s physical storefront and digital e-commerce

presence. It was also key to the firm’s unanticipated

success attained within such a short period of time.

C&A Brazil faced the same challenges that the

retailing industry confronted during the pandemic

but reacted rapidly and launched their RFID pilot

project immediately. The firm has always intended

to attain full omnichannel retailing capabilities

within the long term --- but had to leapfrog the

process by tackling their inventory inaccuracy

problems in all stores in order to meet customer

demand and to lay the “right foundation” for

managing inventories under the new conditions in

the marketplace.

REFERENCES

Angeles, R. (2018). “American Apparel’s Journey

Towards Accurate Inventory Management: Prelude to

Omnichannel Retailing,” Proceedings of the 11

IADIS International Conference Information Systems,

Lisbon, Portugal, April 14-16, 2018

Angeles, R. (2017). “Marks & Spencer’s and Lululemon

Athletica: Two narratives on RFID-enabled

omnichannel retailing,” Proceedings of the European

Decision Sciences Institute 8

Annual Conference,

Granada, Spain, May 29-June 1, 2017.

Angeles, R. (2015a). “Marks & Spencer’s RFID Initiative:

Laying the Foundation for Omnichannel Retailing,”

Proceedings of the 12

Conference of the Italian

Chapter of the Association for Information Systems

(ITAIS), October 9-10, 2015, Rome, Italy.

Angeles, R. (2015b). “Information Technology

Infrastructure Support for Omnichannel Retailing,”

Proceedings of the 45

Atlantic Schools of Business

Conference, September 25-27, 2015, Wu Centre,

University of New Brunswick Fredericton.

AtlasRFIDStore.com (2021, November 5). The Beginner’s

Guide to RFID Systems. https://www.atlasrfidstore.

com/rfid-beginners- guide/?utm_feeditemid=&utm_

device=c&utm_term=&utm_source=google&utm_me

dium=cpc&utm_campaign=05++ Dynamic+RLSA++

US/CA/MX&hsa_cam=12242908997&hsa_grp=1218

72031401&hsa_mt=b&hsa_src=g&hsa_ad=51184778

9752&hsa_acc=4442410237&hsa_net=adwords&hsa_

kw=&hsa_ tgt=aud1207860637367:dsa19959388920

&hsa_ver=3&gclid=CjwKCAiAv_KMBhAzEiwAsrX

1KbYheuGseClZCHK5sH_Wen9fvNkpUTmpCpzJ5x

P5Kt75SJKJLCEBoCz6AQAvD_BwE

Brynjolfsson, E., Hu, Y., & Rahman, M. (2013).

Competing in the Age of Omnichannel Retailing. MIT

Sloan Management Review, 54(4), June, 23-29.

C&A, (2021, November 21). About C&A: caring for ge

nerations.https://sustainability.c-and-a.com/uk/en/sust

ainability-report/2019/about-ca/

C&A, (2021, November 5). C&A completes modernisation

of first 200 stores in Europe. https://www. canda.com

/uk/en/corporate/company/newsroom/press-releases/20

21/ca-completes-modernisation-of-first-200- stores-

across-europe/

Centricsoftware.com. (2021, January 27). C&A Selects

Centric PLM as their Strategic Foundation for Digital

Innovation. https://www.centricsoftware.com/in-the-p

ress/ca-selects-centric-plm-as-their-strategic-foundatio

n- for-digital-innovation/

Gheorghia, S. (2021, May 3). C&A: Fashion retail

ecommerce at its finest. https://vtex.com/en/blog/cus

tomer-stories/ca-fashion-retail-ecommerce-at-its-finest/

Giddens, A. (1984). The Constitution of Society: Outline of

the Theory of Structure. University of California Press,

Berkeley.

Giddens, A. (1979). Central Problems in Social Theory:

Action, Structure and Contradiction in Social

Analysis. University of California Press, Berkeley.

Giddens, A. (1976). New Rules of Sociological Method.

Basic Books, New

York.

Handley, R. (2021, August 19). ECR Retail Loss

Group

Issues Report on RFID in Retailing. RFID

Jour

nal

Hardgrave, B. (2015, April 5). Get Hip to BOPIS. RFID

urnal, http://www.rfidjournal.com/articles/view?12911

Hardgrave, B. (2012, December 18). You can’t do it

without RFID. RFID Journal, http://www.rfid

journal.com/articles/view?10247

Johnson Controls. (2021, November 15). C&A RFID

Project Sensormatic by

Johnson Controls. https://

www.sensormatic.com/resources/cs/2021/c-a-videocase

study#:~:text=C%26A%2C%20with%20more%20than

%20280,some%

20of%20the%20brand's%20stores.

Huré, E., Picot-Copey, K. & Ackermann, C.L. (2017).

Understanding omni-channel shopping value: A

ICEIS 2022 - 24th International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems

482

mixed-method study. Journal of Retailing and

Consumer, 39, 314–330.

Kembro, J.H., Norrman, A. & Eriksson, E. (2018).

Adapting warehouse operations and design to omni-

channel logistics: A literature review and research

agenda. International Journal of Physical Distribution

& Logistics Management 48(9), 890–912.

Krippendorff, K.(2004). Content Analysis: An Introduction

to Its Methodology. Sage Publications, Thousand

Oaks, California.

Krippendorff, K. (1980). Content Analysis: An

Introduction to Its Methodology. Sage Publications,

Beverly Hills, California.

Kulkarni, Y. (2020). COVID-19 Has Revealed Retailing’s

Omnichannel Future. Mass Market Retailers, 37 (10), 18.

Neves, V., & Bergel, M. (2021, September 26-28). C&A

Enhances Inventory Visibility to Boost Omni-channel

Capability. RFID Journal Live! 2021, Phoenix,

Arizona.

Mirsch, T., Lehrer, C. & Jung, R. (2016). Transitioning to

an omnichannel approach: A Dynamic Capability

perspective. in Thirty Seventh International Conference

on Information Systems, Dublin, December 11–14,1–12.

Orlikowski, W.J. (1992). The Duality of Technology:

Rethinking The Concept of Technology in

Organizations. Organization Science, 3(3), August,

398-427.

Orlikowski, W.J., & Robey, D. (1991). Information

Technology and the Structuring of Organizations.

Information Systems Research, 2(2), 143-169.

Picot-Coupey, K., Huré, E. & Piveteau, L. (2016).

Channel design to enrich customers’ shopping

experiences: Synchronizing clicks with bricks in an

omni-channel perspective–the direct optic case.

International Journal of Retail & Distribution

Management, 44(3), 336–368.

Pioytrowicz, W., & Cuthbertson, R. (2014). Introduction to

the Special Issue Information Technology in Retail:

Toward Omni-channel Retailing. MIS Quarterly,

18(4), Summer, 5-15.

Roberti, M. (2019, January 13). The State of

Omni-

channel Retailing. RFID Journal.

Roberti, M. (2017, September 22). E-Commerce is not the

Answer. RFID Journal.

Stone, P.J., Dunphy, D.C., Smith, M.S., and Ogilvie, D.

M. (1966). The General Inquirer: A Computer

Approach to Content Analysis. MIT Press, Cambridge.

Swedberg, C. (2019, January 4). RFID Enters Early

Majority Phase in Retail.

RFID Journal.

The

Aberdeen Group (2012). The 2012 omni-channel retail

experience.www.stores.org/assets/whitepapers/EpicorT

he2012OmniC hannelRetailExperience.pdf

Vanheems, R. (2009). Multichannel retailing: Why do

multichannel customers deserve special attention.

Decision Marketing, 55, 41-52.

Verhoef, P.C. (2021). Omni-channel retailing: some re

flections. Journal of Strategic Marketing, 29 (7), 608-617.

Weber, R.P. (1990). Basic Content Analysis, 2

Edition.

Sage Publications, Newbury Park, California.

Weber, A. (2021). Responding to supply chain disruptions

caused by the COVID-19 pandemic: A Black Swan

event for omnichannel retailers. Journal Transport

and Supply Chain Management, 15, 1-16.

Weick, K. (1979). The Social Psychology of Organizing.

Addison-Wesley, Reading, Massachusetts.

Zeynep, B. (2021). Omni-channel Trends in Covid-19

Pandemic. Journal of International Trade, Logistics

and Law, 7 (1), 97-104.

Expediting Omni-channel Retailing at CA Brazil: A Timely Response to the COVID19 Pandemic Powered by RFID

483