Marc O'Polo sets another milestone for digital merchandise planning

With the introduction of a new merchandise financial planning tool, Marc O'Polo is further optimising the complex sales and inventory planning process. Developed by consulting firm GF-Partners, the merchandise financial planning solution, which was implemented on the SAP-CAR platform, creates an integrated system right through to assortment planning, with immediate effect. The aim is to set a uniform standard across all divisions and reduce both stock levels and the resulting margin deficits. This customised solution is another cornerstone in the development of a new integrated SAP system landscape.

"Merchandise pressure and planning are a constant concern for the entire retail sector. An ongoing sharp increase in complexity and rapidly changing market conditions continue to make it difficult to plan ahead while acting with a high degree of flexibility at the same time. With the SAP solution implemented by GF-Partners, we have taken a technically important step towards a seamless and integrated merchandise financial planning process that can be applied across our entire global portfolio," says Dr Patric Spethmann, Chief Operating Officer of Marc O'Polo SE.

The user-friendly solution enables the collation of planning data across channels, brands, sub-brands, product lines and segments, providing increased transparency on the development of future sales as well as improved accuracy of demand forecasting and sell-through rates. It also enables better control of stock levels and OTB (Open to Buy) management, providing intelligent support for value and quantity planning.

"Isolated solutions for merchandise financial planning are still widespread in retail, which means there is usually a lack of data integration and centralised data exchange. We are delighted to be able to help Marc O'Polo plan the future even more reliably with our customised and innovative solution. Marc O'Polo is taking a leading position in the industry in the area of digital and integrated merchandise management planning," says Sven Grasse, Managing Partner & SAP Architect / Retail Business Process Expert at GF-Partners.