When AS Watson’s previous IT partner stopped, they faced a challenge: 1,750+ stores, lots of hardware and applications, and everything must be up and running every single day.
Centric stepped up to the challenge: AS Watson Benelux needed a new managed services team that could take over fast, keep stores stable, and execute large POS-system rollouts without consuming all internal IT capacity and adding unnecessary overhead.
Kees Bovée on Keeping AS Watson Stores Running Smoothly with Centric’s Managed Services for Retail
In this interview, Kees Bovée shares how Centric’s “boots on the ground” support helps AS Watson keep stores online and ready to serve customers every day.
As Benelux Head of IT, Kees Bovée describes exactly the situation many retail IT leaders are in: “We have many stores, a lot of equipment, many applications - and it all has to be up and running every day.”
Instead of building an even bigger internal team, AS Watson chose Centric as its “boots on the ground”: pragmatic, well‑trained engineers who can convert 10-15 stores per day, while the head office maintains central control and monitoring.
For retail leaders, the value is strategic: a repeatable rollout model you can reuse for every major change - POS refresh, new concept, self‑scan - so your own team can focus on the roadmap, formats, and omnichannel growth rather than coordinating vans and incident calls.
“In the Benelux we have about 1,750 stores. We have many stores, a lot of equipment, many applications – and everything must be up and running every single day.”
Kees BovéeHead of IT Benelux at AS Watson
Today, AS Watson trusts Centric’s Managed Services for Retail expertise across its Benelux brands, backed by a partner relationship of more than 10 years that balances effectiveness, efficiency, and operational reliability with the agility to change at scale, while keeping overhead at a minimum.
If you are planning a large POS or hardware rollout - or your next store concept - this case shows what it looks like when rollout execution and “boots on the ground” are handled by a specialist, and your internal team can stay focused on steering the business.
