BevMo’s IT Is ‘Up in the Cloud’

CONCORD, Calif. — Most of the technology platforms used by BevMo! (formerly Beverages and More!) here, including its POS systems, are running via Web-based cloud services, rather than hosted in-house. 

The private cloud, provided by  Rackspace, San Antonio, Texas, “is very cost effective,” said Bob Graham, vice president of IT for BevMo!, which operates 130 stores. Applications can be “up and running in three hours” rather than “three days,” he added.

Among BevMo!’s cloud-based systems is its POS platform from NCR, which includes  the Advanced Checkout System (ACS) 6.2 / 7.0, the Advanced Back-Office (ABO) system and the Advanced Marketing Solution (AMS), a web-based customer relationship marketing (CRM) platform.

BevMo’s cloud-based data warehouse is provided by Teradata “as a managed service,” said Graham. The platform supports the data warehouse infrastructure, master data management, vendor portal and CRM. BevMo! is the first pilot for Teradata’s “fully managed cloud services,” he added.

Additional systems running on the cloud/software-as-a-service (SaaS) include. a forecast and replenishment solution from Just Enough and a pricing/optimization solution from Revionics. The retailer uses Cumulus Data to access information from the cloud.

BevMo! does run an inventory management system in-house on IBM P700 servers, including one on premise and one remote disaster-recovery server.

Read more: BevMo! Testing Mobile Coupons, Clearing System

BevMo’s applications also leverage the data model and standards developed by ARTS (the Association for Retail Technology Standards), a division of the National Retail Federation, Washington.

In addition to beverages (wine, beer, spirits, soft drinks, energy drinks), BevMo! carries such food items as candy, caviar, cookies, crackers, snacks and gourmet foods.