Modernising Store Intelligence for a Leading US Specialty Retailer

For this leading specialty retailer, relying on spreadsheets to manage an expanding network of nearly 300 stores was no longer sustainable. Data lived in silos, processes were manual, and visibility was limited. By bringing together store data, visual assets, documentation, and operational attributes into a single, governed platform, the retailer replaced manual coordination with real-time collaboration. Colateral acts as a central data hub, aligning teams, improving visibility, and giving the business a reliable source of truth to plan, audit, and manage its store estate with confidence.

Client Snapshot

This U.S. based specialty retail chain operates nearly 300 physical stores alongside an e-commerce platform. The business offers a curated mix of globally sourced furniture, home décor, textiles, and gourmet food products.

The Challenge

Previously, this retailer managed master store data through multiple spreadsheets maintained by different teams. These spreadsheets were stored and updated independently across departments, creating several challenges:

• No single source of truth 
• Difficulty tracking manual updates and changes
• Limited visibility of the latest updates across teams
• Time consuming coordination between departments – with lots of time spent on cross-referencing data before making operational decisions

This created difficulties when planning store rollouts, remodel projects, store audits and updates. Without a centralised store intelligence platform, ensuring consistent and reliable information across the organisation was increasingly difficult.

Why They Chose Colateral

The retailer’s primary goal is to use a centralised system that stands as the source of truth, and a data hub where all departments with access can maintain store data records simultaneously. This provides a trusted source that’s accessible to all authorised teams across the business and their partners. 

Colateral now allows key store information to be managed:

• store metadata
• operational attributes
• images and floor plans
• documentation and store records

This prevents the need of maintaining separate spreadsheets.

The platform also introduces data governance and visibility, ensuring that only authorised users can modify key information. Updates are logged and traceable through user activity tracking and incomplete or outdated store profiles can be identified more easily. This structure helps the business maintain greater confidence in the accuracy of its operational data.

Using Colateral’s New Features

Several new features in Colateral will support the retailer’s operational planning and oversight.

The Image Search functionality allows users to quickly identify and review stores through visual references such as store photos and floor plans.

Advanced Search (Global Search) enables teams to filter and locate stores based on specific operational criteria, such as fixtures, capabilities, or regional attributes. This allows project teams to analyse and compare similar store environments, making it easier to identify the right locations for initiatives and projects.

User Activity tracking provides greater operational transparency, allowing teams to review recent changes and updates within the platform. This supports quicker troubleshooting and improves visibility of how store data evolves across the organisation.

Together, these capabilities support more efficient planning for:

• store remodels
• operational audits
• rollout initiatives
• refurbishment projects

By consolidating store intelligence into one platform, teams can make decisions with greater confidence and reduced administrative overhead.

Who Uses the Platform

Colateral serves as a collaborative ecosystem, aligning departments through shared store intelligence. Business Partners and Administrators utilise the hub to maintain data integrity and oversee governance, ensuring that marketing and planning initiatives are always based on a single, trusted version of store information. Regional Managers use it to conduct live audits, feeding real-time site data back into the system to keep store profiles current. Licensing Teams use it to track and manage store licensing requirements and renewal schedules.

The Result

By moving from spreadsheets to a centralised store platform, this retailer is building a more reliable foundation.

Colateral allows teams to:

• access a trusted source of store data
• collaborate across departments more efficiently
• plan projects with greater confidence
• maintain stronger governance over operational information

This shift supports more informed decision making across the business while reducing the operational friction previously caused by fragmented data.

Still managing store data on spreadsheets?

At Colateral, we work with retailers to build a central, reliable source of store intelligence for use across Operations, Estate Management, Marketing and Retail Media teams. Sound like something your organisation needs? Come and take a look.