I credit RMSA with my store's success. My merchandising analyst and I watch RMSA forecasts closely. It's uncanny how accurate they are. I would recommend RMSA to any retailer.


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Letter From the Founder

I founded this company in 1953 to help small retailers improve their operations and profitability.  It was originally named RMS but was changed to RMSA in the 70’s as automation through the use of computers began.  When I started the Company, shopping centers were first being developed and women made up less than 3% of the work force versus over 50% today.  Shopping centers changed the whole world of retailing and since my training was in the large department store environment, I quickly realized that the smaller stores did not know how to make a profit.  At the time, over 50% of new stores failed in the first year of business and less than 5% were still in business three years later.

With a new retail landscape developing, I moved my family to California and started RMS.  At first, the stores I tried to sell our services to laughed and did not believe we could help them.  The few that did believe, though, became very successful and RMSA grew with them.  After our reputation grew within the retail industry, we went on to work with both large and small retailers, and serviced one of the largest chains in the world, along with its Canadian subsidiary.

We revolutionized merchandising by assigning a unique id to every piece of merchandise, just like a license plate on a car.  We knew everything about that item including size, style, color, manufacturer’s cost and store location.  Each item was tracked by store until it was sold.  In the beginning, we were constricted by the limitations of technology as all of the information required a large amount of storage on our computer.  We used our own id tickets and sent them to the stores to attach to each individual item.  When the item was sold, they would then send the other half of the ticket back to RMSA for processing.  We collected all of this data and generated the reports that evolved into the product we sell today.  As the communications infrastructure and technology evolved, we moved to an on-line system that allowed us to work with all types of customers.

Retailing has seen many changes over the years as technology has changed the way people shop.  To stay successful, retailers need to take advantage of new technologies to enhance the shopper’s in store experience and optimize their operations.  The stores of the near future need to be exciting, like going to a Broadway opening.  Buying fashion should be fun.  The days of large department stores with poor service are over but traditional retailing will always continue as long as shopping is a fun and enjoyable experience.

Mr. Vernon J. Rossi


RMSA is a portfolio company of Diagram Partners.