The InterContinental Buckhead Atlanta and Park Hyatt Chicago have both benefited from the control and accountability established by the InvoTech Systems, Inc. Uniform System for more than ten years. The RFID upgrade will provide cost saving benefits with more efficient operations by automating manual tasks.
The InvoTech Uniform System with RFID technology automatically tracks each piece when it is assigned to an employee and as it goes to and from our laundry company. The company knows how many pieces we send out, and how many return after washing.
InterContinental Buckhead Atlanta also utilizes a White Conveyors U-Pick-It System to automate the distribution of the uniforms to employees.
InterContinental Buckhead Atlanta also uses the InvoTech Linen System to reduce labor costs and track daily movement of linen items at the property. The hotel has approximately 20,500 linen items, towels, sheets, and pillowcases with durable UHF-RFID laundry tags. InvoTech’s system monitors the location of each tagged linen piece to cut lost-item cost and minimize handling. When the laundry company does not return a linen item they are held responsible for the replacement cost.
The Park Hyatt Chicago also upgraded its operation to InvoTech’s latest RFID Uniform System. The property manages uniforms for its staff of 400. Uniforms are automatically tracked when staff members take delivery and when they are sent to the property’s laundry company. Park Hyatt Chicago also uses a White Conveyors U-Pick-It System to securely distribute uniforms to the correct employee and ensure uniforms are accurately monitored. The InvoTech Uniform System reduces labor expenses associated with manual garment handling and increases employee accountability with automated uniform tracking
216 Restaurants Impacted by Jimmy John's Data Breach
Jimmy Johns’s has released a statement addressing a nationwide data breach that affected approximately 216 corporate and franchised restaurants between June 16, 2014 and September 5, 2014. The statement is posted on its website and lists the restaurants that were involved in the breach. The release also offers answers to questions that customers may have. The chain states that the security compromise has been contained, and the company is securely processing credit and debit card data.
The statement follows:
On July 30, 2014, Jimmy John’s learned of a possible security incident involving credit and debit card data at some of Jimmy John’s stores and franchised locations. Jimmy John’s immediately hired third party forensic experts to assist with its investigation. While the investigation is ongoing, it appears that customers’ credit and debit card data was compromised after an intruder stole log-in credentials from Jimmy John’s point-of-sale vendor and used these stolen credentials to remotely access the point-of-sale systems at some corporate and franchised locations between June 16, 2014 and September 5, 2014. The security compromise has been contained, and customers can use their credit and debit cards securely at Jimmy John’s stores.
Approximately 216 stores appear to have been affected by this event. Cards impacted by this event appear to be those swiped at the stores, and did not include those cards entered manually or online. The credit and debit card information at issue may include the card number and in some cases the cardholder’s name, verification code, and/or the card’s expiration date. Information entered online, such as customer address, e-mail, and password, remains secure. The locations and dates of exposure for each affected Jimmy John’s location are listed on www.jimmyjohns.com.
Jimmy John’s has taken steps to prevent this type of event from occurring in the future, including installing encrypted swipe machines, implementing system enhancements, and reviewing its policies and procedures for its third party vendors.
We apologize for any inconvenience this incident may have on our customers. Jimmy John’s values the privacy and security of its customers’ information, and is offering identity protection services to impacted customers, although Jimmy John’s does not collect its customers’ Social Security numbers. To take advantage of these services, or for more information, call (855) 398-6442. In addition, customers are encouraged to monitor their credit and debit card accounts, and notify their bank if they notice any suspicious activity. Additional recommendations for protecting your information can be found at www.jimmyjohns.com.
Jimmy John’s will post information related to its ongoing investigation on the Company’s website,www.jimmyjohns.com.
Geo-location Stimulates Mobile App Use and Quick ROI
Hoteliers looking to enhance their current mobile strategy and increase guest engagement with their branded mobile app are turning to GEO-Location. Through targeted hotel-to-guest messaging based on location (indoor or outdoor), hotel marketers are finding that mobile app use is on the rise. This not only drives incremental revenues and provides a faster mobile app investment return; it simultaneously increases guest satisfaction, builds loyalty and improves the hotel's bottom line.
GEO-Location provides hoteliers with the latest in technology — GPS, Latitude/Longitude positioning, Bluetooth BLE 4.0, NFC and WiFi — to locate guests and send them personalized messages by SMS, Push, or via the hotel's Mobile App. The geo-location component can easily be added to any existing app by use of our software development kit, or it can be included in a full Mobile Engagement Solution by RoamingAround.
Proximity marketing drives impulse purchases by accurately pinpointing where a guest or group of guests is on property. This ensures that all triggered messages can be personalized to each individual or group, and it increases the likelihood that the guest will accept the offer and engage. Properties and brands decide the areas and rules of when and who gets hit with these messages; different content is shown to different users based on proximity and preferences. Messages can even be triggered in multiple languages for a multi-cultural experience.
To facilitate indoor geo-fencing, RoamingAround works with each hotel to identify the best indoor access points (iBeacon, Bluetooth BLE 4.0 and WiFi) throughout the property. Being able to detect a guest's movement vertically between floors or levels of a space greatly improves the accuracy of sending relevant messages. These messages can be discounted deals, complimentary offerings or luxury incentives, such as a private booking. RoamingAround's GEO-Location enables marketers to manage automated triggers that contain hyper-personalized messaging to ensure they are not only gaining incremental revenue, but also engaging each customer with different experiences, based on their personal preferences, habits and history.
RoamingAround's outdoor geo-fencing solution tracks customers as they explore the surrounding areas and entices guests to take immediate action within “fenced” locations, such as hotel outlets, partnering businesses, transportation hubs and even competitor locations. The technology combines individual customer profile data, business intelligence rules and uses latitude and longitude coordinates, GPS or Bluetooth 4.0 capabilities, to automatically streamline each scheduled or event-driven trigger.
Customer Engagement Hub Drives In-Store Experiences
For a fully integrated enterprise solution built from the ground up for omnichannel retail, Starmount has introduced the Customer Engagement Suite. Starmount defines POS as a data-rich hub that supports shopping experiences, more efficient store operations, and seamless access to data, inventory and capabilities throughout the retail enterprise.
The Customer Engagement Suite allows retailers to deliver the consistent, personalized shopping experience that today's consumers expect, with the ability to browse in one channel and purchase in another. Consisting of three integrated applications, the suite includes:
- Customer Engagement: Engage allows associates to conduct personalized, consultative sales that combine in-store and online experiences. Associates can view available inventory across the enterprise, upsell and cross-sell related products, arrange shipping and complete transactions from the sales floor.
- Store Operations: The new Enact application simplifies day-to-day store operations, including employee management, security and store configuration. It streamlines the flow of information between the enterprise back office and retail stores, allowing retailers to monitor and report business changes, operations and transactions, as well as associate data and business-rule exceptions.
- Omnichannel Commerce Platform: Connect brings customer, inventory and product data from enterprise systems and the web into the store to support omnichannel commerce. Connect provides real-time access to enterprise systems, e-commerce sites and social media resources needed to engage customers and facilitate personalized interactions.
Together, this suite helps to create an omnichannel engagement hub at the POS, while enable store associates to engage with customers on the sales floor via mobile device. Personalizing the selling process with clienteling based on customer preferences and purchase history also helps retailers to increase sales and profits. For endless aisle capabilities, retailers can now view, sell and fulfill inventory from any channel, driving transactions and ultimately sales.
