By Matthias Vandecasteele, Sales Manager for Lifestyle at Bleckmann
For fashion and lifestyle brands with an omnichannel strategy, inventory accuracy and visibility are of utmost importance. Learn how evolving customer expectations, new transparency regulations, and the complexity of modern supply chains have increased the need for comprehensive data collection and management. It also explains how a logistics service provider can support you.
Customer expectations continue to evolve. Many are demanding clarity and transparency from brands regarding the sustainability of their supply chains. For example, sixty-six percent of consumers surveyed by McKinsey say they actively consider sustainability when purchasing. It’s not just customers who are pushing brands to be more transparent. Customs regulations that came into force in Belgium and the Netherlands in 2024 require brands to be more transparent about the origins of their products and their routes to consumers. This requires a centralized, transparent and agile data exchange system to make products easily traceable.
Data is essential to achieve optimal operational efficiency. A logistics model that integrates data from multiple channels simultaneously enables optimized inventory management. For example, multiple sales channels can be served from the same central warehouse. This helps manage inventory and ensure full supply chain visibility. Maintaining real-time data can also be crucial for demand forecasting. Brands can analyze information from multiple channels simultaneously and respond quickly to problems and opportunities. This enables faster response times and more effective decision making.
Your trustworthy partner for data-driven omnichannel processing
Optimizing operational efficiency while meeting customer demands for greater transparency can be challenging. A robust enterprise resource planning (ERP) system is a key tool for optimizing and tracking business processes. These holistic platforms include financial, operational, supply chain, inventory and human capital data. ERP systems can also help companies comply with industry-critical logistics regulations, such as customs, traceability and product safety. Combined with powerful warehouse management and transportation management systems, a robust ERP system helps brands capture and access data more efficiently. This enables agile and flexible management of warehouse space and human capital throughout the year to accommodate peaks and troughs in demand. It also means that data from different sales channels can be consolidated. This enables early identification of supply chain risks so that mitigation measures can be implemented. This type of holistic omnichannel visibility is necessary to ensure your brand can proactively address supply chain issues.
Closer to the customer
Collecting and analyzing data across channels can also be a valuable marketing tool for brands. For example, implementing a loyalty program that works across e-commerce and physical retail channels can help a brand gain a deeper understanding of its customers’ spending patterns. This can contain exciting information for future marketing initiatives. Since so-called hybrid consumers – those who shop both in-store and online – spend more on average than purely online shoppers, this data is particularly important. Data collected across all channels makes it easier to track customers. This helps brands meet their needs more effectively.
An example of a brand that has invested in its loyalty program to increase sales is Levi’s. Given rising customer acquisition costs, the brand increasingly focused on its existing fan base. Their Red Tab™ program made it possible to collect data about online and in-store activities. This created a much more comprehensive picture of customer behavior, driving operational efficiency and revenue growth. H&M is now also using loyalty program and supply chain data to get closer to its customers. This serves as an important foundation for its AI-driven trend forecasting efforts. This helps the brand ensure that the styles offered are better suited to customers’ tastes. This improves sales and reduces overproduction. Inventory transparency can therefore be crucial to driving growth.
Creating a more resilient supply chain
A data-driven omnichannel strategy can also improve logistical flexibility from an operational perspective. Real-time inventory information can help manage human capital. This allows operations teams to determine exactly when and where staff and storage capacity is needed. Real-time inventory accuracy is also essential for implementing flexible scaling. This allows brands to increase their logistics capabilities in line with demand. A close and cooperative partnership with your logistics service provider is essential to enable such an adaptive strategy.
Unlock the potential of inventory transparency
In today’s logistics landscape, integrated data management is key to building a transparent, resilient and agile supply chain. This allows you to offer an exceptional customer experience. From cost optimization and resource allocation to demand forecasting and regulatory compliance, inventory accuracy and visibility are critical for omnichannel fashion and lifestyle brands. A third-party logistics (3PL) provider can help you unlock the potential of an integrated and data-driven approach to inventory management.
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