BJ's Wholesale Club Selects Symbol Wireless Mobile Computing to Maximize Efficiency of In-Store Operations, Customer Service

Symbol Technologies, Inc. announced today that BJ's Wholesale Club has selected the Symbol for its wireless infrastructure, along with an array of Symbol mobile devices, such as rugged handheld computers and wireless Internet telephony, for deployment across its 131 store chain in the Northeast U.S. Symbol's Wi-Fi compliant IEEE 802.11b wireless network will serve as an enabler for a host of applications increasing in-store efficiency and customer service.

With Symbol , BJ's Wholesale Club employees will communicate with the store's server via the WLAN to perform in-store tasks such as inventory, put away, cycle counting, price verification and item tracking. Symbol's Voice-over-Internet Protocol (VoIP) will be used to talk over the WLAN in real time, optimizing employees' time for tasks and customer servicing. Wireless scales, connected to the store's price file via the WLAN, allow further flexibility and improved management of in-store operations.

"Symbol is providing a complete mobile solution that equates to enhanced customer service for BJ's Wholesale Club shoppers," said Tom McMahon, VP Manager of Systems Services, BJ's Wholesale Club. "We're putting in place a wireless network tied to mobile wireless scanning computers and wireless Internet telephony that will allow us to consider and implement future wireless applications to capture and manage information from anywhere in the store."

"BJ's Wholesale Club is a pioneering retailer, which we've worked with for a number of years to develop solutions, that invests in technology with a payoff for its customers," said "We're partnering with a number of large and mid-size retailers who are developing long-term wireless mobile computing strategies and are considering Symbol's 11 Mbps WLAN for more robust applications."

Symbol's trusted and proven bar code scanning is also at work throughout BJ's Wholesale Club. Symbol cordless are used at the club's point of sale to capture UPC checkout information on large, heavy or bulky items, as well as in the backroom, for speedy and accurate receiving as merchandise is delivered and accepted. Symbol serve double duty for new member registration photo-capture and to read bar codes for returns or refunds.

Headquartered in Natick, Massachusetts, BJ's Wholesale Club, Inc. is a leading operator of warehouse clubs in the eastern United States, with 131 clubs in the chain. In 2001, net sales rose to $5.2 billion and comparable club sales increased by 3.6%. BJ's common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "BJ". For more information on BJ's, log on to .