Coin: Digitizing internal processes developing their own apps
About Coin
Coin, the most widespread department store chain in Italy, operates throughout the country, in the most important city centers and shopping streets, with 37 shops and 116 Coincasa branded stores in Italy and abroad. With a customer sales turnover of around 425 million under the brand name, Coin has 30 million visitors and a portfolio of more than 1,000 brands.
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Contact usCoin has developed a way of working that uses Google Cloud solutions to analyze data and processes without relying on external suppliers for implementations.
Google Cloud results
- From 25k to 50k euros of savings per app
- Up to 40% savings at the end of the digitization process
- Customer-time optimization
- Production times reduced
Internal production x20 faster than external suppliers
When deciding to automate or digitize an internal process through the creation of a dedicated application, companies face the difficult task of finding the ideal supplier to partner with. But sometimes, the fastest and most efficient solution is right at hand and it can be even x20 faster: you can create your own app, instead of relying on an external source. This is exactly what Coin, the well-known Italian department store with over 100 points of sale, did by choosing to focus on apps and developing them internally, thanks to the AppSheet platform on Google Cloud.
"We gradually adopted AppSheet, digitizing and optimizing processes that were cumbersome and complex," explains Claudio Modanese, CIO, Coin. "The first app we created was made to manage the provisioning in the new stores. We needed an internal tool to enter and deal with new openings' requests in a structured and safe way. The legacy process was manual and unstructured, based on email bombing: you had to write to everyone finding the right recipient randomly. This modality produces a lot of confusion and makes it difficult to handle the results. The app we developed allows you to define the different suppliers, their supplies and request services in a timely, structured and managed way. Thanks to this app, we have supervised around fifty initiatives, including new openings and system updates."
Getting rid of paper and making possible to operate on the go
A lot of time has passed since the first experiment, and now there are over a dozen deployed apps, adopted in various areas of activity. They include the ticket system for maintenance suppliers, Coin Card activations with different levels of approval, the assignment of phone sims and the internal approval flow, which has also made it possible to get rid of paper, avoid repetitive tasks, and speed up the work of managers, which can now be carried out on the go.
"Every time we need to automate and digitize a process, we rely on AppSheet, a solution that we also used to supervise our stock in non-owned stores. I can assure that if we asked to operate externally, the production time would be x20 longer than the one required today. The internal team knows each step and need and, above all, Google Cloud's platform is very intuitive and fast." The model itself with which these applications are developed is extremely different from the standard model. "I call it Extreme Agile. We start from an idea, then a first prototype is sketched out and presented within a few hours at the P.O. who, seeing it implemented, realizes what is being achieved. This optimizes person-time ratio, reduces production times and so we reach the production step very quickly. I believe that time optimization is one of the key factors for success."
A UX designed by experts through millions of apps to test
"AppSheet's simplicity is what makes the difference. Ease often comes with limits in what you can do. As for AppSheets, you immediately realize that what may be seen as a limitation is actually a best practice on how applications should be built. I personally believe that relying on the UX designed by someone who develops apps for millions of people is smarter than getting stuck on individual and fragmented requirements. This is my advice to other organizations: give it a try. Identify a suitable use case and try to develop it autonomously with AppSheet. I am sure that the real added value is in setting applications internally."
"The simplicity of AppSheet makes the difference. This is my advice: give it a try. Identify a suitable use case and try to develop it autonomously with AppSheet. Working on it within the team is an added value."
—Claudio Modanese, CIO, CoinIn addition to time saving, there is also the economic saving. "To give an idea about costs, the apps we created would have cost between 25.000 and 50.000 euros each if they had been developed by a software house."
From physical data centers in each store to centralized data
Coin has been at the forefront of digitization processes in Italy, but time flies and technologies evolve. "Paradoxically, today Coin pays the price for being "one of the first'" since the systems implemented optimally in the past have remained the basis of our processes." Quick data access without limits in terms of space and time requires further steps: "The challenge, for us, is to bring our company to modern data management, taking advantage of the technologies provided by Google Cloud. Our data will be available on an integrated cloud system that can be implemented with different solutions, with a full governance of the systems in a fast and secure way."
"We pay the price for being among the first to digitize. By taking advantage of Google Cloud's technologies, we want to achieve modern data management on an integrated system that can be implemented with different solutions and guarantee a total governance of the systems."
—Claudio Modanese, CIO, CoinPreviously, physical store servers and data centers were used at Coin. "With the transition to a modern system on the cloud, we have streamlined the store infrastructure. Now it is possible to get a real-time overview of our stores' sales data and to set some omnichannel aspects." To date, Google Cloud is used to manage the entire sales network and the implementation in all areas will also have repercussions on the group's accounts in the near future. "With the conclusion of the project, we estimate a 40% saving on Opex IT costs. This is due to the adaptability of cloud resources and the possibility of paying for them according to the actual use."
Instant business intelligence and energy optimization for more sustainability
Coin's journey aims to collect all data in a single central point, to provide it to anyone who needs it within the group, in a simple and accessible way. "By making the most of BigQuery potential, we want to connect it to Business Intelligence platforms that give visibility to real-time data." An instant reporting model, which helps to make the best decisions in a short time. "We are already using artificial intelligence for some e-commerce activities, but we would like to implement it on other services as well and we will start testing shortly."
It will also be important to keep consumption under control to optimize it. "Energy sustainability has been a priority for the company for 5-6 years, from lighting to photovoltaic systems, and to technologies," said Alessandro Faccio, CFO, Coin. Coin will draw up its first social report next year and CoinCasa, the brand linked to household products, already has a series of products made with organic materials in its catalog: "All the interventions to eliminate paper and internal physical servers, which are obsolete, lead to a more sustainable management of IT activities," Faccio explained.
Tell us your challenge. We're here to help.
Contact us
About Coin
Coin, the most widespread department store chain in Italy, operates throughout the country, in the most important city centers and shopping streets, with 37 shops and 116 Coincasa branded stores in Italy and abroad. With a customer sales turnover of around 425 million under the brand name, Coin has 30 million visitors and a portfolio of more than 1,000 brands.