Joseph D. (Jody) Giles, Chief Information Officer of Under Armour will keynote this year's highly anticipated Retail Executive Summit (RES) which will take place from June 16-18, 2010 at the Grand Del Mar in Del Mar, California. 

Giles will address an audience of 100 high-level retail executives in a session titled" Playing to Win," which will delve into how Under Armour developed a playbook that focuses on business first and IT second to win in the highly competitive sporting goods marketplace. Giles also will share insights into how Under Armour uses innovation "one of its business pillars" along with deep-rooted principles to win in a challenging business environment.

Joseph D. (Jody) Giles has served as Chief Information Officer for Baltimore-based Under Armour since January, 2005. In that time, the company has grown dramatically, experienced a very successful IPO, implemented SAP in eight months and is completely revamping their supply chain and product development systems.

Prior to assuming the challenges at Under Armour, Jody's career was based in Southern California, where he served as CIO for Vans. He also worked in the entertainment industry, serving as CIO for Virgin Interactive Entertainment and Executive Director of Systems Planning for Paramount Pictures. Jody began his IT career in the public utility industry, with Southern California Gas Company. 

In 2004, Jody was named "CIO of the Year" by the Gartner Midsize Enterprise Summit. He has been featured in several articles in industry magazines, including a cover story in Information Week and Apparel Magazine.

Jody graduated with honors from the University of New Mexico with a degree in Business Computer Systems, and earned his Masters of Business Administration, with distinction, from Pepperdine University.

Giles keynote session will take place on Wednesday, June 16, 2010 from 8:20 - 9:10 am

 

Dollar General recently announced its plans to open 600 new stores in 2010 based on its new customer-centric format which will include an improved store layout. The retailer also unveils a series of IT projects which includes rolling out enhanced handheld technology, upgrading its energy management system and electronic pay cards for employees.

"The store format is a dramatic improvement in the appearance of our stores and creates a compelling shopping environment based on extensive customer insights, from focus groups, and from proprietary market basket data," said Rick Dreiling, chairman and CEO, Dollar General. "By the end of our fiscal year 2010, we expected have 1500 stores in our new format."

Dreiling adds, "We are completely rebranding our new stores for the use of signs and visual, that explain our value proposition to the customer at the point of sale." 

The retailer also announced plans to update its sourcing, distribution and transportation strategy, and focus on shrink reduction and comprehensive in-store marketing campaigns. 

In the area of distribution and transportation, engineered labor standards are being implemented, and should be completely rolled out by the end of the year according to the retailer. "In 2010, we believe we should benefit from relocating high-shrink items, adding closed circuit TV, stand-based trading, and automated exception-based reporting," adds Dreiling.

 

Borders Ramps Up Social Media, M-commerce and Web

Borders unveils a series of digital initiatives that will help transform its business which includes plans to reinvent its Borders Rewards customer loyalty program, upgrade its Web site, and ramp up its social media presence.

According to the company, 37 million customers have signed up for its Borders Rewards program since it was launched. The retailer plans to revamp the Borders Rewards program with enhanced personalization, which the retailer anticipates will help drive customer engagement.

Borders also announces it will invest and improve the customer interface, checkout and search capabilities on its Web site. The company also announced a new Borders powered Kobo e-bookstore that will become part of the borders.com experience. 

According to Mike Edwards, Interim President and CEO of Borders, there will be more than two million e-book titles available on Kobo. In addition, Borders launched mobile apps with Kobo that will enable customers to purchase e-books from Borders on the iPhone, Blackberry, and the iPad. 

The retailer also is enhancing its social networks including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, as well as exclusive Web content with its publishers to extend the Borders brand experience.