Argos has admitted that a radical revamp of its IT systems was needed to stop its running costs getting out of hand, as inter-departmental conflict threatened to disrupt the business.
According to Ken Adcock, marketing vice president of consultant i2, which was brought in to rationalise the retailer's IT, Argos's IT infrastructure is 15 years old, and intelligence seemed to have become less reliable as the business expanded.
Adcock said: 'All the different parts of Argos had a different view of where the company was, because they all had different versions of company information. It meant they drew up conflicting plans.'
Argos supply chain programme manager Caroline Bell agrees, and says: 'With a more efficient supply chain, we need less stock, and we have improved our buying process.'
She added that the challenge became more intense as Argos expanded its online and telephone ordering presence.
Argos is the third most popular Web store in the UK, behind second-place Tesco and first-place Amazon, according to online research firm Nielsen Net Ratings.
Meanwhile, Argos has signed with search engine marketing specialist Ivantage, in a move aimed at improving its online marketing strategy.
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