Foot Locker signs global networking deal

Foot Locker, the international retail footware chain, has signed a global networking contract with AT& T to streamline processes and improve customer service.

Retail outlets in the UK and across Europe will be connected by the US telecoms provider, which is expanding its international strategy following a merger with SBC last year.

Under the contract, AT&T will provide an IP frame relay network integrating Foot Locker’s corporate facilities and more than 4,000 stores in 20 countries in North America, Europe and Australia.

The single unified network will increase the retailer’s bandwidth and data speeds, allowing it to streamline point-of-sale credit card transactions and improve customer service and inventory management.

The network will run on AT&T’s multiprotocol label switching (MPLS) platform and provides disaster recovery capabilities, enhanced security and a migration path to voice over IP services.

Foot Locker will be able to access real-time information about network performance 24x7 and have a direct connection to electronic billing and ordering systems via the AT&T BusinessDirect portal.

‘This enables Foot Locker to provide our customers with speed, accuracy and simplicity at the checkout counter and the best in-store selection of products possible at a very economical cost,’ said William Johnson, director of telecommunications for Foot Locker.

Further reading:

Helly Hansen overhauls network

Cirque du Soleil gets flexible network