Money for value
The latest ten years were influenced by relevant changes in the distribution operations:
- Consumption trends are more and more difficult to forecast: margins are deeply influenced by the consumers opportunistic behaviour;
- The product offer is featured by a diversification of items;
- New distribution channels have been developed;
- The number of retail stores have been multiplied, with an increasingly international presence;
- The supply chains have been globalized with a source in low cost zone (China, India, Vietnam) and a more and more complex logistic;
- E-business development has been accelerated.
- More frequent deliveries in smaller quantities, collaboration and automatisation of restocking (GPA, VMI, Collaboration,…), products traceability and improvement of the execution chain;
- Improvement of the cost prices thanks to the increase in productivity , development of the long production circuits (Asia) and regrouping of logistic activities between industrialists;
- Optimization of the restocking function and of the central purchasing agency, increase in the sales surface and reduction of stock reserves;
- Specialization of the distribution networks by product types, reduction of the number of breaking points, implementation of just-in-time production, cross-docking and direct deliveries.
An example of mission for a distributer of cigarettes carried out by Assystem Consulting.
