Shopatron Unveils Coex Freedom

Shopatron today announces the launch of Confident Order Exchange (Coex) Freedom. The new solution offers complete flexibility for manufacturers, retailers and consumers in fulfilling and obtaining orders, without costly upgrades to IT systems.

With Coex Freedom, manufacturers can accept orders online and provide standard shipment, express shipment or pickup at a local retailer. Coex Freedom also enables ship-to-store capabilities and local installation services. Retailers participate in Coex Freedom as order fulfillment partners for manufacturers.

“It’s becoming increasingly evident that online shoppers desire the freedom to receive their goods as they see fit,” said Ed Stevens, founder and CEO of Shopatron. “Coex Freedom gives manufacturers and retailers the ability to offer customers choice and convenience. With options including direct shipment to the buyer’s home, shipment to someone else or buying online and returning in-store, consumers can shop in ways that fit their lifestyle.”

A recent survey conducted online via Harris Interactive, a global custom market research firm, on behalf of Shopatron among 2,175 U.S. adults determined growing interest in using in-store pickup services, especially as the holiday shopping season nears.

• 32 percent of online shoppers have picked up orders in store and of those, almost 70 percent cite no shipping fees as the primary reason for doing so.
• 73 percent of those who have not used in-store pickup expressed interest in participating if given the option. Among all U.S. adults, 48 percent are at least somewhat likely to consider it for holiday purchases.
• Of the shoppers who have already picked up online orders, 80 percent are considering doing it again during the 2008 holidays.

Coex Freedom, which also features dedicated call center support, provides consumers with more choice for receiving online orders. The solution allows manufacturers and retailers to offer shoppers:

• Parcel shipment - shipment by postal service or ground courier
• Shipment to the home - deliver to and setup in the shopper’s home
• In-store pickup - opportunity for shoppers to obtain items the same day
• Express delivery - retailer guarantees next-day delivery to the home
• Installation - expert care for items such as bicycles and auto parts
• Ship-to-store - order online and pickup at a local retailer to save shipping costs, particularly for big-ticket items

Panasonic North America launched the Shopatron solution in mid-2008, and will be implementing the in-store pickup portion of the program in early 2009. “Panasonic understands the consumer’s demand for selection, convenience and premium customer service, all guaranteed by Coex Freedom,” said Jeremy Dalnes, vice president of e-business for Panasonic. “Our retail partners’ in-store business will undoubtedly grow, as customers often purchase additional items while picking up a product in-store. We anticipate Shopatron will provide a great advantage to both shoppers and retailers from the moment we put it into practice.”

For more information on Coex Freedom click here.

Additionally, Shopatron is launching Coex Private exclusively for retailers. The solution will provide low-cost cross-channel order fulfillment systems for small and medium retailers’ own Web sites. Coex Private will enable the full range of delivery options, including in-store pickup and ship-to-store capabilities.

Survey Methodology

Harris Interactive® fielded the study on behalf of Shopatron from August 1-5, 2008 via its QuickQuerySM online omnibus service, interviewing 2,175 U.S. adults aged 18 years and older, among whom 1,964 purchase products online. Data were weighted using propensity score weighting to be representative of the total U.S. online adult population on the basis of region, age within gender, education, household income, race/ethnicity, and propensity to be online. No estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated; a full methodology is available.

About Shopatron

Shopatron, Inc., the leading provider of global eCommerce solutions for consumer goods manufacturers, enables consumer brands to accept and fulfill orders online while avoiding channel conflict. Through Shopatron, orders placed on manufacturer's Web sites are fulfilled by shipment or in-store pickup using the manufacturer's existing network of retailers.

Headquartered in San Luis Obispo, CA, Shopatron manages a network of more than 500 manufacturers and 8,000 retailers, across 35 consumer products industries. Some of Shopatron's clients include: Berkley Fishing, Brooks Running, Callaway Golf, D'Addario, Johnson Outdoors, Mammut, MK Diamond, Nordica, Panasonic, Philips/Avent, Spy Optic, Stearns and Thule.

About Harris Interactive

Harris Interactive is a global leader in custom market research. With a long and rich history in multimodal research that is powered by our science and technology, we assist clients in achieving business results. Harris Interactive serves clients globally through our North American, European and Asian offices and a network of independent market research firms. For more information, please visit Harris Interactive.

Media Contact:

Danielle Berg
Shopatron, Inc.
805.547.2144
pr@shopatron.com