If 2020 taught retailers anything, it’s that disconnected systems lead to gaps that can turn into canyons in a heartbeat.
In a recent conversation that I posted, I discussed, with my colleague Julian, the fact that disruptions are a way of life in retail and the reasons that legacy category planning tools that have been around for 30 years are preventing retailers and CPGs from having the flexible infrastructure and actionable insights to manage those disruptions.
As a follow up to that, I want to share our whitepaper, Rise and Thrive: Retail imperatives for 2021 and beyond. This paper addresses the issues that are facing FMCG retail now and how they can guard against future issues – from category, to supply chain, to promotions and more. In this post, I’ll give you a peek inside the paper and the insights it offers.
Customer-centric assortments are vital, online and in-store – and the supply chain has to be connected to support them
In today’s world, it’s essential that supply chain and category planning support each other using real-time data and insights. However, too many retailers continue to operate in siloed systems which, as we saw in 2020, causes inefficiencies and unclear communication. By breaking down the silos between supply chain and category planning, retailers can leverage internal knowledge to effectively react to shifting consumer trends and demands to increase sales and amplify the in-store experience.
To further illustrate the issues retailers are facing with category and assortment optimization, a recent study performed by Incisiv shows that not only are retailers operating on disconnected systems, they sorely lack actionable insights and are clearly dissatisfied with their current technologies.
Beyond the store, focus must be put on ensuring that online assortments are customer-centric and efficient for the supply chain. The concept of the “endless shelf” for online retail is no longer an effective method. Retailers need to be applying SKU rationalization online as well as in-store to provide an optimized assortment that both meets shopper demand but also reduces strain on the supply chain to fulfill that demand.
Explore the paper to get a full picture of the importance of not only updating your category and assortment optimization, but how all of the functions of today’s retail are interconnected and need to be integrated for success now and in the future. Other topics covered include:
- Why omnichannel optimization is no longer ‘nice to have’
- The importance of personalizing promotions across all touchpoints
- How retailers can eliminate ‘blind spots’ in inventory visibility
- Creating a future-proof supply chain that is unified from end-to-end
Access the paper to get the full story
Read part 1 of this series: What are the FMCG retail imperatives for success in 2021 and beyond?
Read part 3 of this series: Personalized promotions across all touchpoints result in greater loyalty
