Drive Cost-Optimization, Achieve Retailer Compliance

In today’s inflationary market, suppliers are forced to navigate increasingly strict retail compliance requirements. It’s not uncommon for suppliers to incur fines up to 10-15% of the value of their shipments for any number of seemingly small violations. From mislabeling, shipping errors or late deliveries, shipments are fines waiting to happen.

The ability to meet stringent retailer compliance requirements is critical to business success and profitability for today’s suppliers. That is why the time is now to partner with a 3PL that can serve as your compliance authority to produce a more efficient, resilient supply chain while increasing in-stocks at the store.

Below are key strategies for driving compliance, reducing costs and accelerating retail supply chain efficiencies.

Drive Efficiencies with Value-Added Services

As consumer preferences become more personalized, suppliers are required to deliver products that meet every compliance demand. This means heavily customized orders and tighter delivery windows. And for a supplier that doesn’t have the internal network needed to fulfill these requirements – a 3PL with a comprehensive suite of Value-Added Services can help.

By leveraging a 3PL’s custom VAS offerings – including re-packaging, labeling, bar coding, point-of-sale display services and more – suppliers’ products are packaged to match specific retail orders. This reduces turnaround time and overhead costs, creates a more sustainable supply chain and eliminates costly fines.

Leverage Technology for Better Decision-making and Cost Control

The integration of customized intelligence tools and on-demand tracking and forecasting capabilities are essential for high-functioning supply chains in today’s economy. Working with a 3PL that offers advanced technology platforms customized to retailer compliance requirements is critical for improved visibility and control – and fundamental for driving a more cost-efficient supply chain.

Equipped with real-time data on order tracking and proof of delivery, suppliers can more confidently dispute retailer claims, effectively eliminating fines from shorts and overages. Beyond order tracking, predictive business intelligence tools provide insights on consumer behavior, anticipate industry trends, and monitor item cost and performance. This positions suppliers to instantly identify their lowest performing SKUs – accelerating their ability to recognize gaps in consumer interest, cut underperforming products and make smarter decisions about raw materials and production.

Use a Centralized Inventory Model

The role of inventory management is a key factor to optimize shipment fulfillment and ensure products arrive at retailer DCs on-time, in-full and with accuracy. A centralized inventory model enables distribution from a single region, allowing suppliers to maintain in-stocks, drive delivery performance and increase retail sales. By managing inventory from a single location – suppliers avoid redundancies at multiple warehouses, reduce overall operational costs and achieve a more consistent product flow to store shelves.

This model creates the most effective route to retail – delivering increased control, improved scorecard performance, greater in-stocks and eliminated compliance fines.