STORES Magazine - February 2009 - (Page 43)

that [previous] patterns were inconsistent with what was selling on the floor. “We have provided instant visibility across production and sales delivery requirements, which improved our shipping efficiency from 80 percent air and 20 percent ocean to 45 percent air and 55 percent ocean.” More than 500 retailers and all but one of the top 20 consumer product companies use IBM Cognos, according to Patricia Waldron, AVP, global retail industry, for IBM’s Cognos software brand. They are “adopting our performance management application quickly,” she says, “because everybody wants to answer” several key questions: How are we, as a company, doing? Why is that happening? Why is a product not moving well? Is it a regional pattern, is it a particular color, or is it perhaps bad weather in a certain market? What should we do next? If sweaters are hot in the east and not in the west, how much merchandise should be transferred, and to where? And what about the required planning, budgeting and forecasting for that transfer? How should the merchandise be shipped, and how will all those decisions affect profit margins? While the traditional retail model always offered its own litany of mind-boggling complexity, subtlety and a mountain of important details, today’s sophisticated version of retailing helps make a strong case for these applications, she says. “The trend toward multichannel operations began eight to 10 years ago with consumer companies entering the retail space with outlet stores,” Waldron says. “The centers became so popular that manufacturers said, ‘we should have our own stores.’ The brands began to move from being manufacturers to being retailers, as well, and they started outsourcing their manufacturing.” IBM Cognos “allows companies like Elie Tahari, which has its own stores and outlet locations in addition to its retail customers, to use the same tools and metrics to manage” all of its business parts, she says. “And that is what companies are looking for — a single system to match the other elements of their business. “Retailers and brands want to better understand individual markets and results from a variety of options and individual stores, as well as how they can best compete for the consumer,” Waldron says. “It’s all about differentiating the brand … and making sure it’s positioned to be viable and profitable.” Level of detail Through the IBM Cognos application, Atayman says Elie Tahari has access to a remarkable level of detail that helps the company with its brand management goals. “We get retail sales information from department stores on a weekly basis, and we use that information and other internal information to track sellthroughs and see what merchandise is moving through stores,” Atayman says. “It makes a difference on what is going to be advertised.” Aside from brand management, another critical advantage IBM Cognos provides is actual savings within the company’s supply chain. “Across all of our channels, the biggest savings is within our supply chain — from production to delivery,” Atayman says. “We are in the high-end fashion business: We cut based on the fashion interest and the changes, [and] we are almost always cutting at the last minute. In the past we would have to air [ship] most of our merchandise, but by using the BI tool … we can provide our logistics and import team with [better data about] when we should start shipping to customers and how much can be StORES air versus boat.” Michael Hartnett is a Brewster, N.Y.based business writer. STORES / FEBRUARY 2009 43

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of STORES Magazine - February 2009

STORES Magazine - February 2009 Contents Executive Editor's Page President's Page Are You a Pusher or a Puller? What Shoppers Think Online Retail Satisfaction 10 Things You May Have Missed Numbers Worth Counting Full Price/Markdown Retail People Cover Story - Something’s Got to Give First Look Concept2Watch Online Partners Merchandising Sustainability Inventory Systems Drug Store Systems Business Intelligence Inventory Managment Online Marketing Supply Chain - Better Data, Better Decisions Returns Management - Identifying Fraud Data Security - Securing Intimate Data Anti-Shoplifting - Mall of Shame? Risk Management - Securing Consumer Confidence Loeb Retail letter ARTS Update Point of View NRF News Retail Crossword Retail Industry Calendar End Cap

STORES Magazine - February 2009

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