SUPPLY CHAIN EXCELLENCE AWARDS 2017
CATEGORY: RETAIL & E-TAIL
Winner: Lesara
Highly Commended: Ted Baker with XPO
Shortlisted:
Kingfisher with DHL International Supply Chain
Lesara
Granngården with RELEX Solutions
Heineken UK and ASDA
Ted Baker with XPO Logistics
H&M with XPO Logistics
The retail sector continues to display some of the most exciting aspects of supply chain management, driven by the growth of online sales and the complexities surrounding multi-channel retailing.
Once again we had some excellent entries. Kingfisher with DHL scored well and the judges admired their use of control tower technology. However, the two front-runners were Ted Baker with XPO and Lesara.
Ted Baker is an international omni-channel brand with over 400 stores and concessions worldwide. Recognising the need to consolidate and centralise its distribution operation the company partnered with XPO on a transformation programme to rationalise its supply chain network in the UK. The result was the building and fitting-out of an omni-channel NDC in Derby which allowed the transition from 12 other facilities and enabled one site to service retail, wholesale, ecommerce, outlets, returns and direct deliveries, along with a number of value added activities such as steaming and pre-retailing. The judges said, “the complexity of the programme made it a difficult one to achieve, but achieve it they did and they did it very well”. However, as the site only became operational in spring this year they didn’t have the clarity on metrics to give them the trophy. Also, they were up against tough competition. So the judges decided to Highly Commend Ted Baker with XPO. Perhaps one to watch for next year?
In the last 12-18 months Lesara, the Germany based online fashion store, has expanded its geographic coverage to 28 countries, with dedicated services to 11 markets. The business has had to constantly optimise its supply chain operations, applying agile supply chain principles to allow it to cut trend-to-mass market time from 12-18 months to less than two weeks. In addition, the company has implemented an automated shipping BI system that enables supply chain tracking, developed a network of returns warehouses across Europe and put in place a shipment consolidation process.
The judges were impressed with Lesara’s “can do” approach, its focus on growth and its ability to constantly benchmark itself against competitors, using key metrics on speed, flexibility, cost per order, stock turnover and net promoter score to monitor its success. There was clear evidence of close collaboration with suppliers and service providers, creating what was visibly an agile supply chain. This was the winner, and so the trophy for Retail and E-Tail was awarded to Lesara.
