Jan 22, 2007__The year 2007 will see radio frequency identification (RFID) fulfil its promise to revolutionise retail chains, delegates of a United States retail conference have been told.

A panel of experts at the National Retail Federation in New York City agreed business is starting to realise the potential of RFID, after a year of hype (2005) and consolidation of standards (2006).

Soon RFID will track items out of stores and trigger information or advertisements for the customer ¡ª like, as one panellist suggested, which top will match the purchased pants.

Business is also embracing the technology to improve its training and labour force.

One retailer, Best Buy, tracks CDs and DVDs in its store ¡ª it can mark the time an item leaves the shelf, alerting staff to re-stock or even helping authorities in shoplifting cases.

"Whether people have it at item-level tagging, or for the movement of assets, it's important that the retailer look at it holistically in order to get the full value," one panellist, Rachael McBrearty from technology firm Icon Nicholson, says.

"At the end of the day, the customer experience should come first."

But security remains a concern. Panellists said customers will only trust the technology if they have some control over it.

source:  www.supplychainreview.com.au