Passionate amateur athletes rely on specialty retailers to get the products they need to stay on top of their game.
Tennis Express offers customers everything they may need to compete, from apparel, to rackets, shoes and accessories. With a target consumer who is 20 years or older and is a loyal tennis player, the multichannel retailer is tasked to engage lovers of the sport. This consumer group accounts for only 1.7% of all Americans, according to Brad Blume, Managing Partner of Tennis Express.
“In the online tennis specialty market, there are four large players,” said Blume in an interview with Retail TouchPoints. “Tennis Express is in that top group. We are each competing for our share of the avid tennis player’s spend. Many passionate players shop locally at neighborhood stores, pro shops, clubs and national sporting goods chains. Tennis Express is always motivated to keep up with customer preferences and expectations.”
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To win customers’ eyes and dollars, Tennis Express empowers shoppers to interact across multiple touch points, including the web site, via mobile, tablet, digital and print catalogs, phone and a variety of marketplaces. Providing seamless omnichannel experiences, in fact, is “key to our future,” Blume noted. “Customers want a smooth and hassle free experience. Tennis Express continues to lead the way within the tennis community as new channels arise. Our customers are able to shop us across multiple channels.”
Tennis Express has established its omnichannel strategies using Celerant, which helps the retailer manage all business processes, including POS, ERP, purchasing, receiving, inventory management, the e-Commerce site and mobile experience. All data is continuously updated, so employees can access business information in real time.
Since launching on Celerant in November 2008, Tennis Express has established all-in-one integration for the business, which enables the retailer to deliver “’wow’ customer experiences,” Blume explained. Customers tap multiple channels throughout the buying journey. They use their desktops at work during the day, browse on their tablets at home while sitting on the couch and use their smartphones while they’re on the go, he added. As a result, “it’s critical that our experience is seamless across all channels. With Celerant, our team is able to focus on tennis and retailing versus technology and integrating various software solutions together.”
Real-time inventory management plays a central role in the omnichannel success of Tennis Express. However, keeping a constant pulse on product levels and assortment continues to be a challenge due to shrinkage or missing products, which can “delay our delivery of product to the customer,” Blume said. Moving forward, Tennis Express is focusing on implementing more handheld and portable devices “to better track and keep up with inventory. We also are considering implementing RFID in the future. Celerant has this build into the platform.”
