The little things are often an important part of what makes a brand successful. No one knows that better than Carter’s, Inc., a leading provider of apparel and related products exclusively for babies and young children. The company owns a number of apparel brands, including Carter’s and OshKosh B’gosh, two of the most recognized brands in the marketplace. But at the same time that Carter’s specializes in colorful prints, cute characters, and thoughtful little details like a mitten sleeve that protects babies from scratching themselves, the company also understands the importance of the network that supports its operations.
Productivity, Security, Performance
That’s why Hughes is providing Carter’s with a major network upgrade to deliver stronger security, better performance, and in-store wireless connectivity to more than 500 Carter’s retail sites.
“When looking to expand our network and applications, Hughes demonstrated that they understood our business and could respond to our needs, allowing us to focus on the bigger picture,” said Janet Sherlock, Carter’s CIO. “We’re gaining more bandwidth, and meeting tougher security and compliance requirements with the network applications and infrastructure which Hughes manages for us.”
Highly committed to providing a superior shopping experience to its customers, Carter’s is taking advantage of Hughes Enterprise Wi-Fi services to enable its employees to stay connected, productive, and more responsive within the store. Hughes also provides a secure, private wireless connection that protects confidential corporate communications. And the Hughes rogue scanning functionality is a managed wireless scanning and reporting service that helps the retailer protect against rogue devices accessing sensitive corporate traffic.
Leveraging Technology
As part of the upgrade, Hughes is also increasing access bandwidth to all store locations, which are securely networked via Hughes Optimized VPN services using a variety of technologies, including DSL, cable, 3G, and T1.
In addition, Carter’s is leveraging Hughes WAN optimization technology, integral to the Hughes access router, to increase the virtual bandwidth at each store. The additional bandwidth is needed to support inventory management, human resources, and back-office applications, along with point-of-sale (POS) system functions for its Carter’s and OshKosh B’gosh stores.
Taking Care of Business
“Hughes prides itself on delivering tailored solutions that meet the needs of our customers now and into the future,” said Mike Cook, senior vice president, North America Sales & Marketing at Hughes. “We are continuing to expand our service portfolio well beyond managed transport as evidenced by our recently announced Wi-Fi, VOIP, and virtualized branch server offerings. Carter’s is an example of a customer that has grown with us and we are thrilled to be delivering a more advanced infrastructure to such a marquee name in the retail industry.”
Just as Carter’s believes in taking care of the little details so its customers can focus on celebrating the little ones that light up their lives, so too, Hughes is committed to taking care of networks— so customers like Carter’s can focus on running their businesses well into the future.
|