PTC is a global software company that provides a complete product lifecycle management (PLM) technology solution to retail, footwear, apparel sectors, etc. Headquatered in Massachusetts (USA), PTC has built R&D centre in Pune, India, which is their largest R&D centre in the world. Rafiq Somani, country manager, PTC India dicusses with Gaurav Kumar on how FlexPLM would help retailers to improve collaboration across merchandising, design, and sourcing departments, as well as with supply chain partners.
1) Retail is a technology dependent business, what do you have to offer?
A full-scale IT structure for a retailer includes several systems to work together, from the beginning (planning) to the end (retail) of the whole operation process. PTC provides the system to support the operation management during product design and development phase.
2) What is the product you have designed for the retail customers? Which are the companies using your technologies?
FlexPLM, designed for retail industry, supports the development requirements from all retail and consumer products. Many leading international retailers are PTC’s customers such as JCPenney, Nike, adidas, Limited Brands, AEON etc.
3) Does your technology solutions help in product development process? How do you position your solution?
FlexPLM is supporting the product design and development phase in the (supply) chain. It includes season planning, calendar management, line planning, colour management, material management, spec management, sourcing and costing, sample management etc. The FlexPLM solution is positioned for domestic retailers that own brands and take product development as a core part in the business process.
4) You have been around for a while, what initiatives or steps you have taken to allure potential customers?
We arranged a CXO event to introduce PTC and FlexPLM backgrounds to potential customers in Mumbai and Bangalore in February this year. We will announce more activities to communicate with our potential customers in India soon.
5) What is your impression about the Indian market?
The Indian retail market is growing very fast, many domestic retailers are expanding their business toward international level. As there is a huge growing domestic demand market, there will be strong needs on relevant IT system including PLM in the near future. Indian retailers are facing growing domestic and international competition as well as increasingly sophisticated and demanding consumers who change brands and preferences frequently. Fullscale adoption of PLM is the industry’s best practice and has served our global customers extremely well. PTC launched FlexPLM solution in India this February and has received many enquiries from key players in the sector.
