Blue Martini Software Extends E-Merchandising To Clicks and Mortar Retailing.

Business Editors/High Tech, Retail & Telecom Writers

SAN MATEO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 16, 2000

Wireless Sales Assistants, Built on Hand-held Computing Devices

from Symbol Technologies, Leverage Web

Infrastructure for Bricks and Mortar Stores

Blue Martini Software, a provider of e-business applications that build brands everywhere, today announced a new wireless solution as the latest step in the company's strategy to leverage a retailer's merchandising expertise across all customer touch points.

The solution uses wireless hand-held devices from Symbol Technologies (NYSE: SBL), a global leader in wireless mobile computing and Internet based mobile data management systems and services. The solution is designed to give salespeople in bricks and mortar stores finger-tip access to cross-category product data, strengthening the ability of retailers to provide cross-sell and up-sell opportunities right in the store. The solution will also allow shoppers to assemble personal gift registries designed to be distributed via email, which in turn supports viral marketing programs to reinforce and extend a retailer's brand.

"This isn't simply about the Internet, this is about raising revenue across all customer touchpoints," explains Susan Neal, vice president of business development at Gymboree. "The Web is only one channel for the product, market, and behavior data we are capturing. However, the benefit of Blue Martini's infrastructure applies just as directly to our more mature bricks and mortar channel."

Personalized Shopping In Bricks and Mortar Stores

Today's savvy shoppers benefit from personalized shopping sessions on the Web where their individual likes and dislikes are recognized to dynamically change merchandise assortments. Consumers also enjoy the person to person interaction and sensory experience of bricks and mortar shopping. The solution announced today by Blue Martini blends the best of both worlds.

For example, as a customer enters a changing room with shirts and trousers, the salesperson assisting the customer would use a Symbol mobile computing device to scan product identification codes on the merchandise. While the customer is in the changing room, the salesperson gathers matching accessories, based on data maintained by the Blue Martini software and presented by the Symbol hand-held device. When the customer exits the changing room, these ideal cross-sells are presented by the salesperson.

Customers can also directly use the Blue Martini solution running on wireless devices to access their online account while shopping the bricks and mortar store. A gift registry started on the web can be completed in the store, using the Symbol device to simply scan desired items to add to the registry. These lists can be distributed to friends and relatives for purchase either on-line or in-store.

Business customers can scan selected office products at retail locations for direct delivery to the office. Discounts, delivery terms, and assortments are those negotiated by the customer's business.

Leverage Web Infrastructure to Power In-Store Sales

Symbol's palm-sized information appliances, based on the popular Palm/OS, incorporate bar code scanning and network communications. When combined with the Blue Martini server-based application suite, easy to learn and use Symbol devices are expected to provide a repository of cross-referenced product and customer information to retail salespeople. This information, in turn, can be turned into instant yet "smart" cross-selling and up-selling opportunities right at the point of live customer interaction, increasing revenue per retail transaction.

"With a complex maze of product categories including larger assortments of specialized products, retailers struggle to quickly empower new and existing salespeople with the necessary knowledge to deliver the right products at the right time to customers," said Carl Lehmann, vice president, electronic business strategies, META Group. "High training costs, increasing turnover of sales staff, a tight labor market, lack of a centralized product knowledge base, and constant product assortment changes prevent companies from realizing brick and mortar retail operating efficiencies. Leveraging an e-merchandising infrastructure for brick and mortar sales is a common-sense solution and is a key step in the convergence of brand building between the Web world and the real world."

Availability

The offering announced today is part of the Blue Martini Wireless Initiative. The solution is scheduled for availability in Spring of 2000, and will be compatible with existing Blue Martini installations.

About Blue Martini Software

Blue Martini Software provides enterprise-scale e-business applications that build brands everywhere. With comprehensive packaged solutions for e-merchandising, e-marketing, and e-service, Blue Martini enables companies to engage their customers on the Web, through call centers, via e-mail, and over wireless devices.

Blue Martini business-to-business customers include Club Colors, Deluxe Corporation, and medchannel.com. Business-to-consumer customers include craft.com, gazelle.com, gloss.com, Gymboree, Harley-Davidson, Levi Strauss & Co, and The Men's Wearhouse. For more information, contact Blue Martini Software at 2600 Campus Drive, San Mateo, Calif., 94403; phone [phone]; fax [phone]; www.bluemartini.com.

Note to editors: Blue Martini Software and the Blue Martini Customer Interaction System are trademarks of Blue Martini Software, Inc. All product names and references contained herein remain the property of their respective owners.