Channel planning

Make bottlenecks a thing of the past

Demand can vary across different channels, as each channel has its own unique demand patterns, capacity restraints, and service level requirements. Channel planning improves forecasting accuracy and granularity for replenishment and supply chain planning, driving higher availability and turnover, better service, and more optimal inventory value.

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Accurate forecasts, optimized inventory allocation

99+%

availability

Reduced

cost to serve

Efficient

operations

Optimize your cost to serve with AI-driven supply chain software

Wholesalers and retailers need to forecast demand by channel to ensure high product availability for each channel. For increased accuracy, their forecasts must take channel-specific factors and behaviors into account.

Key features

Increase accuracy across channels

RELEX enables the calculation of forecasts for different sales channels. For wholesalers, that can include individual B2B customers, customer groups or sectors, and other sales channels such as e-commerce and stores. Retailers can calculate online demand separately from in-store demand, increasing forecasting granularity and the overall effectiveness of replenishment planning and optimized inventory.

Maximize demand forecast accuracy

Machine learning improves demand forecast accuracy across sales channels by using all available data—think pricing, promotions, events, and seasonality—to predict sales patterns at the channel level. Receive better visibility to challenging situations through ‘sales channel’-specific reporting on forecast accuracy.

Improve fulfillment efficiency

Retailers can better meet shoppers’ needs, whether in stores or online, while minimizing the cost to serve. Use localized demand data for each fulfillment channel to inform changes to your entire network. Wholesalers can increase inventory planning accuracy and ensure efficient use of inventory while maintaining high service levels across channels.

Ensure omnichannel availability

With dynamic channel and store-specific inventory allocation and management, including “virtual ringfencing” in DCs, retailers can protect inventory and ensure availability for all fulfillment options through optimum allocation of inventory based on channel-specific demand.

Benefits

Increase demand forecasting accuracy for better results

Accurately predict demand to ensure the right stock, resources, and capacity are available to maximize sales and customer satisfaction at low cost.

Use channel-specific forecasting to optimize product availability

Forecast demand separately for both in-store and online sales channels, taking channel-specific factors and behaviors into account to optimize product availability. Enjoy better visibility through sales channel-specific reporting and increase forecasting accuracy.

Improve forecast accuracy and optimize inventory levels

RELEX ML-based forecasting identifies patterns and trends quickly, allowing demand planners to react to demand from all sales channels accurately. Gain visibility into inventory levels across all channels, to optimize inventory and reduce stockouts.

“We would prefer to have the inventory where we expect a guaranteed sale vs. shipping it to a store and hoping that it sells. [Ringfencing] was a key requirement when evaluating what software to go through.“

Steve Finkelstein
Senior Director of Merchandise Planning and Inventory, The Vitamin Shoppe

Case study

Case study: The Vitamin Shoppe

The Vitamin Shoppe improved their inventory optimization and got more accurate forecasting after implementing RELEX.

“With RELEX, we were able to quickly reach a high level of automation. Additionally, because we are able to make essential adjustments to the system, it can continuously meet our ever-changing requirements.”

Beat Marending
Head of Goods Procurement at Migros Online

Case study

Case study: Migros Online

The Swiss online-only supermarket saw significant improvements in their forecast accuracy and promotional campaign outcomes.

Resources for you

We’ve accumulated a wealth of supply chain & retail expertise from our 1,500+ planning specialists.

Video

AI-enabled planning ensures availability for all categories and channels

Omar Louzir, RELEX Lead Business Consultant, shares some of the ways that RELEX is helping these retailers leverage AI-enabled technology to build a better supply chain that drives efficiency, reduces costs, and improves customer service and margins.

Webinar

The Vitamin Shoppe: optimizing omnichannel inventory

Leading nutritional products retailer in the U.S., The Vitamin Shoppe is driving improvements to omni-channel fulfillment through a sharp focus on supply chain visibility.

Blog

Cracking the omnichannel code: How to unlock online retail profitability

As we look back at 2020, the rapid evolution of omnichannel is at the top of everyone’s mind. Here we discuss how retailers can optimize their supply chain for online and offline success.

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