Optical Fibre Connections for Retail

Retail – under pressure

It’s easy to see why retailers are turning to dedicated optical fibre network solutions. Large retail chains with bases all over the UK need to link those stores over a secure and dependable network. And they have other secure networking needs, like sending credit card data to and from a central repository.

These data networks need to be always on, with information needed immediately for real-time transactions. Retailers also generate large amounts of customer data that needs to be sent off-site to a datacentre facility, so that it can be properly secured. This all adds up to a need for resilience, speed and high bandwidth.

With network security vital in so many ways it benefits retailers to own their own data communication facilities, rather than using public networks,. There have been a number of high profile cases in the UK and the US where major retail chains have accidentally made customer credit card details public, at huge cost to their credibility.

A totally dedicated network can’t be hacked so easily. If you don’t transmit your data over a public network then it can’t get lost in the middle. Nowadays this is not just a ‘nice to have’ – it’s covered by a number of strict regulations.

The web is now contributing more to some retailers’ sales than the biggest flagship stores. A dedicated fibre network can help with the pressures of e-commerce as online sales continue to grow and demand speedy transaction fulfilment.