Traditionally, manufacturers were the dominant forces in the supply chain in the consumer goods industry. With the trend toward retail consolidation and the emergence of large retailers, power in the supply chain has been shifting toward the retail level making Supply Chain Management a central node of the retail business.
Responding to this pull in a coordinated and efficient way, in order to avoid what in literature is known as “the bullwhip effect”, requires approaches known as Efficient Customer Response (ECR) based on constant access to fresh information.
Information availability is extremely important at all stages of the supply chain. For example, suppliers need information from the retailer on sales, inventory turnover, and feedback on competitors or on the level of customer returns. Information is also needed from consumers on attitudes toward the products, brand loyalty, willingness to pay, etc. Retailers need, for example, sales forecasts, information on product specifications, advance notice of new models, training materials for complex products, and information from consumers on their shopping needs, where else they shop and their satisfaction level with the retailer and the merchandise. Retailers play a crucial role in collecting information on consumers, because they have direct contact with the customers at the point of sale and can collect information which goes beyond sales or scanning data and is important for marketing and logistics. They thus can traditionally act as gatekeepers in the supply chain who are able to control information flows.
The purpose of this case study in the context of NEFFICS is to develop a connected retail network (CR) in the cloud supporting the value chain of a company in the Fashion Industry. The connected retail makes use of cloud techniques to establish the connection between customer and supplier pushing the concept of ECR to its very edge and complementing retailers’ flow of information. This connection is complemented with the customers’ experiences inside premises ranging from directly operated flagship stores to franchising stores. Retailers and suppliers will also use cloud services to complement traditional enterprise resource planning systems (ERP) or merchandise information systems (MIS) already in place.
Collaboration within the CR will be supported by extended use of Web 2.0 technology. Business Process Innovation will be integrated part of the CR solution.
