Search Sophistication

Previously, Neiman Marcus had an out-of-the-box solution that did searches only on a text and product-category basis. “It had to be a one-to-one match [to work],” says Crotty. “But we wanted shoppers to be able to search however they choose. We needed a very flexible solution.”

The need was especially important, Crotty says, because, “We’re different from other apparel retailers in that ours is a collection of the best brands.” Instead of displaying, for example, all the SKUs of belts together, Neiman Marcus officials wanted to display all Prada belts, handbags and shoes together, all Burberry products together, and so on. What’s more, such a plan would better match the organizational structure of the retail stores, as well.