Merchandise and Assortment Planning Process Design and Implementation Case Study

CLIENT: A national multi-banner retailer with over 400 stores

The challenge

A national retailer in the midst of a multi-year merchandising transformation asked PwC Canada’s Retail Consulting Services to lead the design and development of future state Merchandise and Assortment Planning. PwC Canada’s Retail Consulting Services was also retained to support the end-to-end software implementation and to lead the hands-on coaching of 700+ end-users.

Our approach

PwC Canada’s Retail Consulting Services worked with a Client team to develop detailed process requirements in both Merchandise Planning and Assortment Planning. As future processes were refined and updated, PwC Canada’s Retail Consulting Services presented a view of the recommended future state processes to the Client’s Executive Team and end-user advisory groups. Simultaneously, PwC Canada’s Retail Consulting Services worked with the Client’s chosen technology partner to ensure that the new processes leveraged the capabilities of the software application.

As PwC Canada’s Retail Consulting Services was not ready to accept the lengthy time to ROI that is inherent in typical Planning implementations, we worked with the client to develop and roll-out interim process enhancements that could be delivered in advance of the solution go-live date. These enhancements were designed to allow the retailer to begin thinking and executing strategically along the new process 6 - 9 months prior to the software being installed and ready for use.

To ensure that the delivered solution supported the future business processes, PwC Canada’s Retail Consulting Services designed a business-scenario driven acceptance testing plan and successfully led its execution. Furthermore, PwC Canada’s Retail Consulting Services’ unique approach towards coaching required that each and every end-user received individualized attention on both process and application navigation.

The result

• While the planning implementations are still in progress, positive returns have already been realized as a result of the interim process enhancements.
• The Client’s merchandising group has rallied around the strategic levers that drive the creation of better assortments. Furthermore, processes have been launched to ensure that buyers gain insight towards localized demand via structured and timely input from the field organization.