ASICS runs managed Cisco SD-WAN – If the shoe fits… – Cisco Blogs

ASICS Europe chose a managed Cisco SD-WAN service from Avit Group to deliver on their cloud-first strategy.  The partner, the service, and the technology are all a perfect fit for ASICS and their business. Initially, ASICS focused on Europe, Middle East, African and Russia regions, but have plans to roll out an SD-WAN service globally.

In 1949, Kihachiro Onitsuka founded the Onitsuka Company in Japan.  He became a shoemaker.  His goal was to help the less fortunate youth in his hometown of Kobe improve body and soul through sports.  ASICS is an acronym for Anima Sana in Corpore Sano (a sound mind in a sound body).

At that time, canvas slippers or tabi socks were being worn as footwear for sports.  Kihachiro knew specialized shoes would allow young athletes to reach their full potential.  This upgrade in shoe technology created a better experience and enabled proficiency.  Onitsuka Tiger merged with GTO and JELENK in 1977 to form ASICS Corporation.  Today they are one of the world’s largest and oldest sports fashion retailers with 54 office locations worldwide, including 14 in Europe.  ASICS has approximately 9,000 employees.

Reducing the cost of redundant WAN connectivity

ASICS EMEA used a traditional Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) network from one of the region’s largest MPLS providers.  Two of the desirable attributes of MPLS are that it’s generally quite stable and is provided as a managed service.  There was no management for ASICS to concern themselves with.  You request it, it gets delivered, and it works.

As ASICS moved applications to the cloud, the cost for redundant MPLS circuits became more and more prohibitive as access locations expanded.  It wasn’t easy for ASICS to get their MPLS provider to flexibly deliver lines in a timely or efficient manner.  The MPLS circuits were only about 10 to 50 Mbps, and quite expensive, especially in emerging markets like South Africa.  When ASICS opened their new head office 2 years ago in the Netherlands, it took over a year (56 weeks) to get two MPLS lines delivered for that building.

ASICS researched technology stack options that would retain the desirable attributes of an MPLS network, but at a higher cost efficiency and bandwidth.  Being a retailer means their margins couldn’t be spent entirely on a corporate network. Another consideration was that their culture is not to force employees to use a locked-down device provided by the company.  If you can protect the data, it shouldn’t matter what device is used.  They needed to provide redundant access for every user, from any device, from anywhere – securely.  They needed all this at a price they could afford.

Managed SD-WAN addressed ASICS needs

ASICS EMEA looked to the Avit Group in Europe to provide managed SD-WAN connectivity.  It was the perfect fit for their ‘cloud-first’ strategy.  When Cisco purchased Viptela in 2017, they thought, “OK – well this is the solution – we get internet connectivity using a layer 3 overlay, which means we can basically plug any internet line in.  We are not reliant on outdated or expensive MPLS technology, and we can still connect securely.” says Niels de Milliano, IT Infrastructure Manager, ASICS.  However, they also wanted to do their due diligence selecting an SD-WAN product.

They looked at several vendors.  What really spoke to ASICS was that Cisco SD-WAN was an ‘in router’ technology.  That meant they would not need to add more hardware to racks in buildings that are a 12-hour flight away, and where they don’t have an onsite network engineer.  The same router they needed anyway would provide SD-WAN.  Avit would manage connectivity, so for ASICS, it would feel exactly like an MPLS service.

ASICS started a proof of concept with the Integrated Services Router (ISR) 1100 series at smaller locations.  They knew they would ultimately need more bandwidth, so they deployed on ISR 4300 Series models for the EMEA region.  The global project is underway with completion planned for August.  They will move to the Catalyst 8000 Edge Platform Family with a mix of 8200 and 8300 models.  Platform selection will be based on the location and throughput requirements at each location.

Avit’s managed Cisco SD-WAN aligned with ASICS existing strategy

For ASICS EMEA, it was critical they selected a service provider that would be a true business partner.  One that could be nimble and react to change quickly.  An enormous MPLS provider has vast numbers of customers they service.  In the case of an outage ASICS might be compensated 2%-3% of the monthly service cost from the MPLS provider when service level agreements are not met.  However, when you compare that to the impact of having an entire warehouse offline for 2 days, that compensation is of little value.  Avit was the right fit for ASICS.

“We have received personalized service from Avit.  We are a Sports fashion retail company, so the exception is the rule and not the other way around, there is always a business need that we couldn’t think of beforehand.” says Niels.  “We get that single pane of glass in the managed service.  Cisco SD-WAN was the right fit for our business requirements.”

ASICS no longer has any on-prem servers hosting applications.  They are fully cloud and have most of their compute and storage in Microsoft Azure.  They have a small set of proprietary information they maintain direct connections to the cloud for.  ASICS has Equinix colocation facilities in the Netherland.  Cisco Cloud OnRamp for Colocation helps to ensure the solution is compatible with future version.

The pandemic has created challenges for the overall project.  ASCIS had already rolled out a quarter of the locations before the lockdowns in Europe.  Literally overnight, with only a handful of exceptions, all employees were told to work from home.  The locations that were migrated before the pandemic lockdown benefited from higher bandwidth availability. Cisco SD-WAN allowed them to leverage the existing MPLS lines.  However, this configuration didn’t allow them to reduce operating expense as much as when they are able to completely leverage internet lines.

ASICS Internal stakeholders and internal customers noticed that bandwidth had increased significantly.  That made a huge difference in terms of the transition to work from home.  Without even knowing about the pandemic’s impact, ASICS had been planning for the work from home environment for over three years – everyone had a laptop – no desktops.  Their direction has been to be a fully mobile workforce for about 7 years, but with the pandemic, it showed everyone how well that strategy works.  “We talk about work as what we do, not where we go.” said Niels, “Cisco SD-WAN fits that storyline for us. It’s one of the enablers for a modern workforce – to work with what the pandemic has forced us into.”

When using unified communications and leveraging video conferencing, retailers saw the benefits of a significantly faster network when communicating with ASICS.

Avit will catch you in the “trust fall”

ASICS has is a very small IT team.  They have a couple solution architects and no in-house engineers.  They don’t want to eliminate technical knowledge entirely; they simply want to focus them on innovation.  ASCIS didn’t want 30 or 40 full-time employees (FTEs) managing the infrastructure and hoping their skills remain at the right level.

ASICS saw Avit as an extension of their team and having that cultural fit. This elevated the way they work and built a foundation of trust. In some cases, before ASICS even knew of a network issue, Avit has notified them, “Hey, this issue occurred.  It’s already been addressed, but just wanted to let you know.”  It’s that trust from ASICS that Avit is most proud of. It’s an achievement that has come from working together for more than 5 years.

Avit provides all service integration and management for ASICS. Umut Kilicarslan, ASICS Account Manager at Avit explains, “We act like a general contractor that you might hire for building a house.  We meet with the folks responsible for the electricity and the plumbing to coordinate and ensure everything is implemented properly.”

“As the account manager for ASICS, I have one foot in ASICS and the other in AVIT.  I represent these companies and look out for the best interest for both”, said Umut.  By combining managed SD-WAN with other managed services from Avit, ASICS has a single point of contact for their complete infrastructure.  Outsourcing the management of the network enables ASICS to focus on their core business.

Going global

ASICS has numerous regions; roughly split into EMEA, North and South America, Japan, South East ASIA, and ASIA Oceania Pacific. Each  operates largely independently.  Moving forward, part of Niels role is to consolidate and standardize the infrastructure across regions and protect business assets in the process.  “I think the Avit group with Cisco SD-WAN is the perfect fit for our business.”, said Niels.

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ASICS Corporation

Region: EMEAR

Industry: Retail

Challenge: Reduce connectivity costs by leveraging lower cost transport

Solution: Managed Cisco SD-WAN solution provided by Avit Group on edge platforms

Results:  34% connectivity cost savings

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