The introduction of cloud-based versions of Merchandise Management and Direct Commerce is part of RedPrairie’s overall cloud platform strategy of making access to its cost-saving, efficiency-improving solutions easier and more affordable for small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs).

“The up-front cost of servers, infrastructure, and licensing has traditionally made Merchandise Management and Direct Commerce cost-prohibitive for SMBs,” says Tom Kozenski, VP, product marketing at RedPrairie. “By offering hosted, cloud-based versions of these solutions, we are able to replace the huge up-front investment with a subscription-based model for SMBs.”.

Cloud-based solutions are particularly valuable for retailers with seasonal businesses, allowing them to pay for the capacity they are using at that time.

Businesses can also greatly reduce their maintenance costs, since all the hardware is managed by RedPrairie in its hosting facilities. Additionally, moving to RedPrairie’s hosted model ensures SMBs that the desired levels of disaster recovery and downtime prevention provisions are in place.