Inventory Planning in an Omnichannel Environment
Merchandise and inventory planning for catalog retailers used to be a thorough, highly detailed process from start to finish. The goal, of course, was to establish the best possible product assortment and inventory plan to optimize the sales and profits from the catalog mailing.
This approach was driven in large part by the fact that the catalog typically functioned as the single marketing event. After all, the catalog was "the store" for the customer, so when it arrived in the mailbox it was critically important to have not only the best possible product assortment in place to maximize customer orders, but also sufficient inventory in stock to fulfill those orders. Considering inventory reorders from suppliers could take weeks if not months to arrive, the initial plan needed to be as close to perfect as possible.
- Categories:
- Inventory Management
- Omnichannel
Joe is Vice President of Product Solutions at Software Paradigms International (SPI), an award-winning provider of technology solutions, including merchandise planning applications, mobile applications, eCommerce development and hosting and integration services, to retailers for more than 20 years.
Joe is a 34-year veteran of the retail industry with hands-on experience in marketing, merchandising, inventory management and business development at multichannel retail companies including Lands’ End, LifeSketch.com, Nordstrom.com and Duluth Trading Company. At SPI, Joe uses his experience to help customers and prospects understand how to improve sales and profits through applying industry best practices in merchandise planning and inventory management systems and processes.
