Retail giant adopts VAR's procurement technology

Retail giant Marks & Spencer has adopted VAR Probrand's on-line IT procurement portal after a successful trial period.

Probrand's portal, theitindex.co.uk, lists 100,000 IT product lines from various manufacturers by price and availability within an on-line private procurement hub.

Tony Griffiths, IT procurement manager at Marks & Spencer, said: "It is important that we continue to adopt innovative methods of working to help take us forward as a business.

"At a first glance, theitindex.co.uk appeared to offer us a highly evolved IT procurement tool providing information on almost any IT product within the UK mainline distribution channel."

Steve Bushell, group head of new business development at Probrand, said: " Marks & Spencer has adopted our solution as part of a tool suite for buying to deliver enhanced business benefits through improved efficiency.

"The Mercato powered solution is saving businesses an average of one day a week in man hours as well as delivering greater levels of IT spend visibility," Bushell claimed.