Unified Retail Planning

Very thoughtful piece in ChainStoreAge, the Introduction ...

" ... Using Unified Retail Planning to Break Out of Functional Silos

Retail today isn’t for the faint-hearted. A recent quote from business magnate and investor Warren Buffet is quite telling, “I think retailing is just too tough for me, just generally.” 

The sector is undergoing profound transformation and only time will tell who the winners will be. In any case, it is evident that retailers no longer can afford to sustain inefficient operations. The ability to keep operational costs in check is essential for profitability and even survival. 

Three Types of Operational Costs

In retail, three kinds of costs dominate: space, staff and stock. The relative importance of each expense varies by retail segment and company. Proportionally, apparel retailers typically have the largest cost of space (real estate and leases), while grocery retailers have the largest staff costs (store personnel), and specialty retailers fall somewhere in between. 

Improvements in each of these cost areas – space, staff and stock – can have a significant impact on the bottom line. Consequently, you can be sure that the merchandising, store operations, and supply chain departments at any given retailer are constantly honing their processes for improved efficiency.  .... "