o9 Solutions, Inc. Case Studies Revamping Supply Chain Planning for a Direct-to-Consumer E-commerce Retailer

Edit This Case Study Record

	Revamping Supply Chain Planning for a Direct-to-Consumer E-commerce Retailer o9 Solutions, Inc.

Revamping Supply Chain Planning for a Direct-to-Consumer E-commerce Retailer

o9 Solutions, Inc.

Technology Category	Functional Applications - Inventory Management Systems Platform as a Service (PaaS) - Application Development Platforms
Applicable Industries	Consumer Goods E-Commerce
Applicable Functions	Sales & Marketing Warehouse & Inventory Management
Use Cases	Digital Twin Inventory Management
Services	System Integration
Challenge	The case study revolves around a direct-to-consumer e-commerce retailer that operates numerous micro-fulfillment centers across the US. The retailer had been managing its business using internally developed shared spreadsheets. However, as the company expanded, it became clear that this approach was creating silos and limiting cross-functional collaboration. The retailer recognized that to continue its growth trajectory, it needed a platform that could scale its supply chain planning capabilities. The company faced challenges with immature planning processes, order fulfillment, and long-range business planning. The use of shared spreadsheets across the business led to a lack of collaboration and business silos. The company needed the right assortment of products at the right time and location for their micro-fulfillment centers to meet local consumer demands. Furthermore, the company was running their business planning processes at monthly intervals, which was not sufficient for their growing needs. Read More
About Customer	The customer in this case study is a direct-to-consumer e-commerce retailer that operates numerous micro-fulfillment centers across the US. The retailer ships thousands of products directly to consumers' doors within minutes. The company had been managing its business using internally developed shared spreadsheets, but as the company grew, this approach was creating silos and limiting collaboration across functions. The retailer recognized the need for a platform that could scale its supply chain planning capabilities to support its growth and improve efficiency. Read More
Solution	The company decided to leverage the capabilities of the o9 platform to integrate various planning functions across the organization, thereby increasing collaboration, visibility, and efficiency. The o9 platform's digital twin was used to optimize replenishment plans and its assortment planning capabilities were utilized to create hyper-localized assortments to boost sales and customer satisfaction. The company also used o9's processes to develop a forward-looking view of demand, allowing them to be more deliberate in creating future-focused goals and strategies. Key functionalities implemented included replenishment planning, demand planning, assortment planning, and merchandise financial planning. The internally built solution that the company was previously using was replaced with the o9 platform. The o9 platform was chosen for its ability to work in partnership with the company to develop creative solutions, its ability to develop a custom implementation timeline, and its open architecture, flexibility, and agile platform. Read More Log in to view content
Contents

Technology Category

Functional Applications - Inventory Management Systems

Platform as a Service (PaaS) - Application Development Platforms

Applicable Industries

Consumer Goods

E-Commerce

Applicable Functions

Sales & Marketing

Warehouse & Inventory Management

Use Cases

Digital Twin

Inventory Management

Services

System Integration

Challenge

The case study revolves around a direct-to-consumer e-commerce retailer that operates numerous micro-fulfillment centers across the US. The retailer had been managing its business using internally developed shared spreadsheets. However, as the company expanded, it became clear that this approach was creating silos and limiting cross-functional collaboration. The retailer recognized that to continue its growth trajectory, it needed a platform that could scale its supply chain planning capabilities. The company faced challenges with immature planning processes, order fulfillment, and long-range business planning. The use of shared spreadsheets across the business led to a lack of collaboration and business silos. The company needed the right assortment of products at the right time and location for their micro-fulfillment centers to meet local consumer demands. Furthermore, the company was running their business planning processes at monthly intervals, which was not sufficient for their growing needs.

About Customer

The customer in this case study is a direct-to-consumer e-commerce retailer that operates numerous micro-fulfillment centers across the US. The retailer ships thousands of products directly to consumers' doors within minutes. The company had been managing its business using internally developed shared spreadsheets, but as the company grew, this approach was creating silos and limiting collaboration across functions. The retailer recognized the need for a platform that could scale its supply chain planning capabilities to support its growth and improve efficiency.

Solution

The company decided to leverage the capabilities of the o9 platform to integrate various planning functions across the organization, thereby increasing collaboration, visibility, and efficiency. The o9 platform's digital twin was used to optimize replenishment plans and its assortment planning capabilities were utilized to create hyper-localized assortments to boost sales and customer satisfaction. The company also used o9's processes to develop a forward-looking view of demand, allowing them to be more deliberate in creating future-focused goals and strategies. Key functionalities implemented included replenishment planning, demand planning, assortment planning, and merchandise financial planning. The internally built solution that the company was previously using was replaced with the o9 platform. The o9 platform was chosen for its ability to work in partnership with the company to develop creative solutions, its ability to develop a custom implementation timeline, and its open architecture, flexibility, and agile platform.

Impact #1	The implementation of the o9 platform brought about significant operational improvements for the e-commerce retailer. The platform's capabilities allowed for the integration of various planning functions across the organization, leading to increased collaboration, visibility, and efficiency. The use of the digital twin technology optimized replenishment plans, ensuring that the right assortment of products was available at the right time and location. This not only boosted sales but also improved customer satisfaction. The forward-looking view of demand provided by the o9 platform allowed the company to be more deliberate in setting future-focused goals and strategies. The hyper-localized assortment planning ensured that each micro-fulfillment center had a selection of products tailored to the local consumer demographics, further enhancing sales and customer satisfaction.

Impact #1

The implementation of the o9 platform brought about significant operational improvements for the e-commerce retailer. The platform's capabilities allowed for the integration of various planning functions across the organization, leading to increased collaboration, visibility, and efficiency. The use of the digital twin technology optimized replenishment plans, ensuring that the right assortment of products was available at the right time and location. This not only boosted sales but also improved customer satisfaction. The forward-looking view of demand provided by the o9 platform allowed the company to be more deliberate in setting future-focused goals and strategies. The hyper-localized assortment planning ensured that each micro-fulfillment center had a selection of products tailored to the local consumer demographics, further enhancing sales and customer satisfaction.

Benefit #1	Reduction in inventory investment
Benefit #2	Increased inventory turns
Benefit #3	Reduction in out-of-stock items

Benefit #1

Reduction in inventory investment

Benefit #2

Increased inventory turns

Benefit #3

Reduction in out-of-stock items

Download PDF Version

Overview

Revamping Supply Chain Planning for a Direct-to-Consumer E-commerce Retailer

Operational Impact

Quantitative Benefit