FSI News

 The internet portal EatSmarter launched in January 2010 is a cookbook, nutrition advisor and health website all at once. The aim: to encourage consumers to adopt a healthy lifestyle. METRO GROUP joined the website as a partner in April and promotes the Mobile Shopping List of Real, among others.

 The real,- Future Store in Tönisvorst celebrated its second anniversary. In the framework of the celebrations, Real invited its customers for a three-day activity programme. Since its opening in May 2008 already more than 16,000 visitors as well as camera teams from 43 nations have participated in tours of the real,- Future Store.

 On 16 March 2010 the Deputy Prime Minister of Ireland, Mary Coughlan, and the Irish Ambassador, Dan Mulhall, visited the real,- Future Store in Tönisforst with a 20-member delegation of industry representatives.

 The new real,- app is very popular among the iPhone community. Only a few days after its launch, this application had already been downloaded more than 20,000 times and made it to rank three within the category "lifestyle" on the download chart in the German App Store.

 The DHL Innovation Awards were presented on the occasion of the DHL Innovation Days held in early December 2009 under the slogan "Growing Ideas". At the panel discussion and exhibition, METRO GROUP showcased the application opportunities for Radio Frequency Identification (RFID).

 Also nearly a year and a half after its opening, the real,- Future Store continues to be a point of attraction for technology enthusiasts who receive explanations about the innovations deployed on the occasion of a tour of the store.

 Retail companies around the world are facing the same challenges: They have to continually improve their service quality and at the same time work more effectively and cost efficiently within their supply chains. As a pioneer in the field of innovative technologies, METRO GROUP uses a software for monitoring the merchandise along the complete supply chain.

 The Volkshochschule Duisburg, on 31 October 2009, to mark its 90th anniversary, held an Open Day. Alongside various brief lectures and workshops, the Future Store Initiative introduced itself with a few new technologies and provided some insights into the retail trade of tomorrow.

 At the expert congress "Efficient Consumer Response" (ECR) held on September 3, 2009, METRO GROUP together with leading consumer goods manufacturers and retailers demanded the area-wide deployment of electronic data interchange by late 2010.

 On 25 June 2009, the thirteenth real,- store opened in Turkey. For this reason, Roger, the 'innovation guide' from the real,- Future Store, "travelled" to Fulya, a district of Istanbul, to do his bit to communicate the benefits of the store to its visitors in clear terms.

 On the occasion of the 1st anniversary of the real,- Future Store in Toenisvorst on 28 May 2009, Real looks back on a positive year. At the same time it also presents its latest customer service: the "Mobile Shopping List" for the mobile phone. Since the opening of the innovation workshop in May 2008 the latest technologies as well as innovative retail concepts have been tested and developed there in the framework of the Future Store Initiative.

 Prof. Dr. Andreas Pinkwart, Vice Minister-President of North Rhine-Westphalia and Minister for Innovation, Science, Research and Technology visited the real,- Future Store in Toenisvorst.

 On 17 March 2009, the METRO GROUP Future Store Initiative presented a donation of €1,500 to the Heilpädagogische Kindertagesstätte (Therapeutic Education Day-Care Centre for Children) in Tönisvorst. This donation was collected at a meeting of the Initiative's partners.

 As the innovation leader in the use of Radio Frequency Identification and sponsor of the CeBIT Forum AutoID/RFID, the METRO GROUP Future Store Initiative on 6 March 2009 presented a lecture series on the topic "RFID in Retail and Logistics" at the world’s largest IT trade show in Hanover.

 The real,- Future Store in Toenisvorst, Germany, receives the Innovation Award of the Planet Retail commerce information service.

 METRO GROUP and DHL have embarked on the first nationwide Radio Frequency Identification deployment in France. Starting in fall this year, DHL, a subsidiary of Deutsche Post World Net (DPWN), has been fitting RFID transponders to all deliveries bound for the country’s 89 Metro cash & carry wholesale stores. In doing so, the two partners are piloting the biggest RFID implementation project seen in French retail logistics.

 The Federal Minister of Labour and Social Affairs, Olaf Scholz, visited the real,- Future Store in Toenisvorst on 14 November 2008 to inform himself about the work situation of older employees.

 With 224 exhibitors and more than 3,500 visitors from 40 nations, the 25th German Logistics Congress had again prompted leading industry, retailing and science experts from all over the world to meet in Berlin. In line with the conference slogan "Creating Value – Connecting Cultures," the three-day event was devoted to in-depth discussions about current business challenges in the world of logistics.

 Since 22 October 2008 it is clear that Germany’s best fish counter is not found on the coasts of Northern Germany but at the real,- hypermarket in Tönisvorst. This was the decision of the jury which awarded the sectoral prize "Fish Counter 2008" in a contest organized by the trade magazine Lebensmittel Praxis.

 Innovative concepts and technologies at a glance: the brochure "Welcome to the real,- Future Store – A journey into the future of retail" focuses on the hypermarket in the town of Tönisvorst as seen through the eyes of the popular comic family, the Taylors.

 A wide range of new technology, unique innovations and ground-breaking customer service: That is how Invidis described the new real,- Future Store in its online portal.

 "The next Step to the Internet of Things"- that’s the title of an EU Conference on the subject of RFID to take place in Lisbon on 15 and 16 November 2007. Organized by the Portuguese Council Presidency, this is the second RFID Conference to be held this year, after the successful Berlin Conference in June.

 The largest Italian trade fair for the hospitality sector will be held from October 19 – 23, 2007 in Milan. More than 1,800 international exhibitors will present trends, novelties and technologies that will shape the future of this sector on an exhibition space of over 110,000 sqm.

 On 25 October 2007, the international conference "Gesünder essen – aber sicher: Lebensmittel und RFID" [eating more healthily – but safely: food and RFID] was held in Duisburg. In addition to the latest trends, visitors could learn about the opportunities and potential offered by radio frequency identification in the field of food products.