Retail Dude

We all agree that supply chain is a backbone of retail business, but if retail is all about customers centricity and for the past 10 years it strived hard to change its product centric strategy to customer centric strategy and developed a face, a face that cares about customers, for whom customer is a king, then it definitely need its behind the scene player i.e. their supply chain to be customer centric. That strategic shift has weathered recent economic uncertainty, and we have seen it grow in both scope and complexity as retailers look to tackle localization and customer service that increasingly crosses channels. But this strategic shift from supply chain 1.0 to supply chain 2.0 have lots many hurdles in  its path, and one of is as usual the evergreen challenge that is getting the forecast to match demand. Apart from that due to globalization the supply chain is extended and require more resource to operate effectively, moreover the virtual stores also depend on the supply chain for their proper operations, these increases the pressure on precision in planning and execution of supply chain. The other challenges that are there on the way to shift are localization of assortment, SKU proliferation, and even customer demands for more supply chain precision – are putting new and different pressures on supply chain.

Now if we talk about solutions or about what will be new in the supply chain 2.0 than I will like to say that “the visibility” is what is a one word answer from many problems that supply chain faces today. With the help of latest technologies like RFID, intranet and real time information movement/Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), data synchronization and defined Universal Product Code (UPC), evolved and more enhanced and powerful Transport management systems (TMS) & Warehouse management systems (WMS) and other optimizer packages, the face of supply chain will definitely changed. But along with these technology enables the supply chain require to work out of their silos in collaboration with retailers.

Ultimately the customer will be satisfied with the combined efforts of both the retailers and their supply chain.

In last what I think I forgot to mention one big block in the path of supply chain 2.0 to be implemented in India is the infrastructure, so along with visibility the Indian supply chain requires good support from the infrastructure of the country.

-Prateek Katiyar

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Carrying forward the Customer  Centricity and collating it with the technology, what we came up with will be a 360 degree experience for the customer while he shops and for deploying it Infosys launched a retail offering known as ST360 i.e. Shopping Trip 360. It focuses on a wireless infrastructure of sensors and mobile data links that give retailers and packaged goods suppliers highly detailed information about customer behaviours. Moreover it doesn’t uses the expensive RFID technology inspite it uses slab sensors that can give real-time data on, among other things, how many units of a particular product are on the shelves, how many products are facing the customer on the shelves and how many customers passed by the product.

Infosys CEO Kris Gopalakrishnan said: “Shopping Trip 360 is really a consolidation of some of the research we have been doing in the retail industry. It takes all the point solutions which we have deployed and combines that to create what we believe to be the next wave of innovation. This then brings that online experience back into the store, into the physical world and creates an environment which is as rich in terms of applications, in the information it can provide.”

By using this technology retailers can dig deep into customers behaviour and their shopping pattern which inturn help them to improve their operations and modify their business strategy so as to provide enhanced experience to the customers.

ST360 is a information service for the retailers, the solution is based on the network of tiny wireless sensors in the store, enabling an active and aware environment to support a number of applications. For the brick and mortar model or even for the online model the visibility as well as the awareness of the customer is very vital for prediction and forecasting. So this solution provide a real time shoppers and shelf activities.

The three major components of ST360 are

• Instore Heat map
• Smart Shelf Pad
• Shopper Concierge service.

To know more about the solution and about its services, Click here

- Prateek Katiyar

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As i talked about some of the tech inventions that retailers are using to enhance the experience of a shopper, and also Rajeev asked about some of the tools for social retailing, so here is a look in to a future store all equipped to deliver beyond expectations. Welcome to Future Store……………

source - NRF (click on image to enlarge)

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