Meridian Retail: 47-Store Infrastructure Rollout

The Challenge

Meridian Retail Group was expanding rapidly, acquiring regional chains and opening new locations. Their existing technology infrastructure was a patchwork of different vendors, standards, and equipment. Each store was an island—no central visibility, inconsistent customer experience, and mounting support costs.

They needed a partner who could standardize infrastructure across all locations while keeping stores operational during transitions. The timeline was aggressive: 47 stores in 8 months, with zero tolerance for downtime during business hours.

Our Approach

We developed a modular deployment playbook that could adapt to different store layouts while maintaining consistent standards. Each location received:

• Structured Cabling: Cat6A infrastructure with labeled patch panels, cable management, and detailed documentation
• POS Network: Dedicated VLAN for payment processing with PCI-compliant segmentation
• Surveillance: IP camera system with on-site NVR and cloud backup
• Managed Network: Centrally-managed switches and access points with 24/7 monitoring

Our field teams worked overnight shifts to minimize disruption. We maintained a rolling inventory of pre-configured equipment so failed hardware could be swapped same-day.

Technical Implementation

Network Architecture

Each store connects to headquarters via SD-WAN with automatic failover to LTE backup. Traffic segmentation ensures POS transactions never compete with back-office operations or customer WiFi.

Store Network Topology:
├── WAN Edge (SD-WAN + LTE Failover)
├── Core Switch (48-port managed)
│   ├── VLAN 10: POS/Payment (isolated)
│   ├── VLAN 20: Corporate/Back-office
│   ├── VLAN 30: Surveillance (isolated)
│   └── VLAN 40: Guest WiFi (throttled)
├── Wireless (2x AP per 2,000 sq ft)
└── NVR (16-channel, 30-day retention)

Deployment Automation

We built a provisioning system that pre-configures all equipment before shipping. Technicians scan a barcode on arrival, and the equipment pulls its store-specific configuration automatically. This reduced per-store deployment time from 3 days to 8 hours.

Results

The standardized infrastructure transformed Meridian's operations:

• Central Visibility: IT team monitors all 47 stores from a single dashboard
• Faster Troubleshooting: Average issue resolution dropped from 4 hours to 23 minutes
• Reduced Costs: Support ticket volume decreased 62% after standardization
• Scalability: New store deployments now take 2 weeks instead of 2 months

Client Testimonial

"DolphyTech delivered what our previous vendors couldn't: consistency. Every store works the same way, our team can support any location remotely, and we haven't had a single POS outage since deployment. They became an extension of our IT department."

— Marcus Chen, VP of Technology, Meridian Retail Group