How do we change the paradigm? How can we convert this retail data into an opportunity for both the retailer and the vendor? How can we elevate the vendor into something far more than a trading partner receiving data from a retailer?

This is where the power of the V Net differentiates itself from most third party software providers. Not only do we receive data from the retailers and create a platform where the vendors and retailers can collaborate looking at the same information. This is a great first step, but V Net goes the next step. We integrate into any retailers ERP system. Once we receive the data we do something far more powerful with it such as creating store level orders that are electronically transmitted to the retailer for approval and then to a DC, warehouse, direct to store or a cross dock facility. All this done seamlessly. Not only do we deliver this via the power of the inventory management solution, we also have highly trained inventory managers optimizing all sales opportunities and turning them into store level orders ready to be delivered.

All of a sudden our vendors go from a trading partner supplying product to a strategic partner managing the entire supply chain at the retailer level. Suddenly the touch points with the retailer extend, access to the buying team, access to demand planners, collaboration with the retailer looking at a true CPFR process.

Empowering the vendor who uses the information generated via the V Net solution leads to a collaborative approach to ranging. The highly automated functions within V Net make store grading far more flexible. Working with our inventory experts we then optimize this more micro level of store grading and create ranges more tailored to the consumer profile of the stores.

Australia’s largest retailers are all working with vendors using the V Net solution to manage inventory at a store level. This access to retailers has V Net’s algorithms tried, tested and trusted. Once the ranging process has been signed off by all parties, we know we have the right product mix in the right store, it’s now time to make sure that product is in stock when the consumers walk into the store. This is where V Net and our inventory specialists turn daily consumer data into orders. Our sophisticated algorithms take into account promotions, decay curves, seasonality and any other factor that may affect store level inventory. Based on joint KPI’s with the retailer such as days cover the V-net system will then create orders. This is where the true power of V Net kicks in, orders are then sent to vendors and retailers for approval. Once approved v-net feeds retailer systems seamlessly, the same way an internal retailer order would be created and then flows through to the stores as per the standard process. V Net has integrated its powerful inventory management order process into Australia’s largest retailers.

In summary retailers can change your relationship from a vendor to a strategic partner in the following 4 ways:

1. Engage directly with the retailer and jointly solve the out stock issue at stores

2. Take the pressure of the retailers buying and demand planning team by providing an inventory specialist using a state of the art system

3. Create a product ranges using both the retailers and vendors market intelligence thereby ensuring the optimal range in each of the stores based on consumer profiling

4. Not only solving store out of stocks but also using the consumer data to forecast for future demand planning and ensuring a greater fulfilment from the DC

In this current world of powerful technology do we want to continue to partner vendors and retailers by simply analyzing data. The future of retailer / vendor relationships is a true category partnership where the data is taken to the next level and the true winner here is the consumer.

The V Collaborate solution provides incredible benefit in aligning joint business objectives, and creating a platform where all parties (retailer and vendor) can access one environment to publish, monitor and measure the success of the business plans.

The nominated strategic trading partners now have access to one source of the truth to monitor the progress of their investment within the retailer’s environment.

Tony Bugge, Director of Sales APAC at V Net explains, “What makes us unique to the dime-a-dozen Business Intelligence Tools in the marketplace is our ability to create a platform that becomes the conduit between retailer and trading partner. The dashboards are specifically designed to measure each of the key business objectives between retailer and vendor, but more importantly, they allow for dynamic navigation that highlights the success or missed opportunities within that strategy. This allows the Buyer and Vendor Sales Executive to walk out of their business reviews with clarity around what actions are required to improve business performance.”

The success of this program will lead to an accelerated roll-out plan for other key V Net trading partners.

The challenge of being armed with a legacy system that allows for only 200 items to be managed at any one time, placed huge pressure on the buyers and planners within the Books category of this leading Australian retail brand. The V Category roll-out has led to immediate operational efficiencies.

Tony Bugge, Director of Sales APAC for V Net explains, “The physical books category is making a resurgence, so the challenge put to V Net was to help introduce a core range of 1,200 SKUs that could be replenished on a weekly basis.”

The results were immediate, with a double digit sales growth on last year being driven by a disciplined replenishment process that filled shelves based on consumer demand by SKU at a store level.

The success of this program will lead to the roll-out of V Category to other departments with similar operational inefficiencies.

The solution has been found in V Net Insights that has not only armed the buyers and planners with access to daily sales, margin and inventory insights, but also provided users with an interactive mechanism to very quickly identify missed opportunities to improve their respective business units.

Sanjeev Balasubramaniam, GM of Business Development at V Net comments, “The scalability of the rigid environment within the V Insights platform allowed us to import 104 weeks of daily data for sales and inventory. This atomic level data was then aggregated to create a data model that would provide the buyers and planners with the flexibility to dive into their respective business unit information via custom built dashboards.”

The results have been instantaneous with all users now able to make important product, placement and promotional decisions based on real time data.

The roll-out of a V Collaborate vendor portal has now been greenlit to provide both the retailer and its strategic trading partners access to this very valuable data model; allowing for joint business monitoring of shared objectives and plans. Most importantly, V Collaborate provides a vehicle for both parties to quickly identify missed opportunities and areas for profitable future growth.

V-Net’s GM, Business Development, Sanjeev B explains “Using V-Net CPFR the V-Net team was able to facilitate a functioning CPFR model between the supplier and the retailer. Firstly, V-Inventory was implemented to ensure that consumer demand was accurately forecasted. This was achieved using a combination of V-Net’s demand algorithms and the work of our inventory experts in facilitating planning collaboration between the supplier and retailer on the impact that upcoming activity would have on demand and stock levels.

Then V-Net CPFR was able to bring to together this demand, orders, shipments and store receipts to report on the gaps between the retailer’s commitment to purchase, required stock and the suppliers’ ability to manufacture and provide stock.

The results identified on average $260k in additional stock orders over Buyer and Account Manager forecast to meet consumer demand. V-Net also Identified order fulfilment gaps on a weekly basis highlighting on average $2m missed each week on requested stock

These gaps were analysed and changes were made the forecast horizon to accommodate vendor manufacturing constraints

Subsequently, the on shelf availability increased by 5.9% and sales rose by 19.05%, improving stock turns from 3.8 to 5.2 within a period of four months.

The success of this program has led to other global consumer electronics vendors rolling out V-CPFR to gain similar efficiencies and improvements”.

Ben Sammut, V Net’s Team Leader at explains “By engaging close communication with the publishers & distributors, as well as the internal buying team, the V Net team were able to expand the 50 closely managed sku’s to over 2000. By utilising seasonal trends, advertising forecasts and customised replenishment algorithms these lines were maintained at manageable stock levels to ensure sales were maximised while returns were minimised”.

The results were immediate. The initial orders landed in store with the on shelf availability increased to 99%. The stores were now in a position to merchandise stock effectively, which resulted in the below after 3 months:

Sales went from -15% v LY to +10%. Meaning a 25% increase in sales

The retailer gained market share, increasing by 2.61%

Although stock holding was increased, sales were increased at a greater rate, equating to a stock turns increasing from 3.22 to 3.36 per year.

The successful results within books has provided V-Net with a launch pad into other difficult to manage categories within this Discount Department Store environment.

A pilot program testing the impact of V Inventory with a major film studio and a major consumer electronics retailer was commissioned.

V Net’s Director Sales APAC, Tony Bugge, commented “The pilot program was a huge success. The major improvements in processes were derived from the following key initiatives;

1. Graded all stores with a product range in line with consumer demographics of location.
2. The replenishment orders for all stores run twice a week using model stock numbers creating by our solution based on most recent daily sales and up to date inventory levels.
3. The allocation of new release and campaign lines using our benchmarking process ensured the stock weight of these products were in line with consumer demand for each outlet.
4. A V Net specialist was placed on site at the retailer store support centre, allowing them to collaborate with the buyer, planner and key account executive.

The results provided an On Shelf Availability improvement of 27% to 97.6%. This led to a 32% year on year sales improvement for the pilot vendor!”

The success of the pilot program has led to all film distributors being rolled out within the retail environment.

V Net is now the industry standard with 98% of all Filmed Entertainment products being managed by V Inventory.”