Omnichannel vision fuels Manhattan’s mobility deal

Manhattan Associates continues to close the loop on its supply chain and omnichannel service offering with the recent acquisition of in-store mobile solutions provider GlobalBay Technologies from VeriFone.



The Manhattan’s deal to acquire Global Bay extends the reach of the company, once known primarily for its warehouse management systems, all the way to the sales floor with the promise of unprecedented supply chain visibility. The combination of Manhattan's Enterprise Inventory Visibility, Order Management and Store solutions with GlobalBay's point-of-sale and clienteling applications will deliver the industry's only true omnichannel sales and fulfillment platform, according to the company.



"Our decision to acquire GlobalBay was driven primarily by our customers asking us to extend our omnichannel scope within their stores. Moving beyond inventory and fulfillment and into sales and clienteling is one way we'll provide a comprehensive store platform with omnichannel at its core," said Manhattan Associates CEO Eddie Capel. "For our customers, this means that they will now have the ability to unlock the information that presents a single view of customers, orders, and inventory. This unique combination allows our customers to provide a complete sales and clienteling solution, including best-in-class inventory and order management capabilities to their stores and deliver the retail experience that the new, omnichannel shoppers expect."



Digital selling and omnichannel commerce have transformed the way customers shop and raised the bar for retailers in how they engage with their customers, according to Manhattan Associates. Store associates today are expected to deliver a customer experience that is as engaging, informative and profitable as it is accurate and efficient. To do this, they must have the ability to see a complete, omnichannel view of the customer, sell any unit of inventory across the entire retail network, and effortlessly handle cross channel transactions, such as returns and exchanges, the company explained.



Manhattan’s acquisition of GlobalBay from VeriFone comes less than three years after the payment systems provider acquired GlobalBay with similar mobile aspirations. VeriFone bought GlobalBay in November 2011 as part of a mobile payments strategy. At the time, the deal was seen complementing VeriFone’s desire to offer a broader portfolio of solutions and, much like Manhattan, give retailers a way to achieve a deeper level of engagement with shoppers.



The big difference between GlobalBay’s ownership under Manhattan Associates versus VeriFone is that Manhattan possess the deep supply chain expertise that will allow retailers to unlock the potential of GlobalBay’s mobility solutions more fully.