Pitney Bowes Business Insight (PBBI), a global leader in customer data, analytics and customer communication software and services, has announced that Dixons Retail plc, the UK's leading electrical retailer, has chosen its MapInfo Professional® geographic analysis tool to optimise the location of its stores in the UK, Ireland, Italy, Spain, Turkey and Nordic countries. 

In the UK, the Dixons Retail brand encompasses Currys and PC World stores as well as Dixons.co.uk and Pixmania.com online.  Dixons Retail uses MapInfo Professional to analyse the catchment areas and demographics of its 600+ store locations in the UK and Ireland to assess how far customers are prepared to travel to buy electrical and computing goods. This intelligence enables Dixons Retail to identify exactly which type of store from its portfolio needs to be in which location, thereby ensuring its customers are best served, and maximising profit and market share on the ground.  It also helps with sales forecasting and the correct allocation of products.

Drive time data - the amount of time it takes to travel between locations by road - is a vital element for Dixons Retail in deciding where best to locate its stores. This information helps determine whether the current site of each store is accessible and profitable or whether the store might need to be re-located - from moving to a different town to changing unit within a retail park.

"We operate a market-leading multichannel business," says Kate Broad, Site Location Analysis Planner at Dixons Retail.  "It is absolutely vital for our customers and for our bottom line that our stores are located in the most attractive and accessible locations.  MapInfo Professional significantly improves our strategic decision-making in terms of store location, which has a direct and positive impact on customer engagement, sales and profits."

Dixons Retail is also using MapInfo Professional to analyse store locations across its portfolio of shops across Europe, which includes 200+ sites across the Nordic region. The retailer is currently reassessing the placement of its stores during its property transformation plan.  MapInfo Professional enables the location team at Dixons Retail to accurately assess their European property portfolio, making it operate more efficiently and more profitably.