How to Create a Win-Win Situation with Suppliers
Wholesale brands are suffering in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic and the effects are twofold. Suppliers are eager to deliver stocks, leading to logistical implications. Meanwhile, warehouses are filling to the brim as retailers are cancelling orders as a knee-jerk effect to demand shortage.
Wholesalers have to tackle both ends to relieve the pressure. The impact of the pandemic is catastrophic, but it is temporary. In due time, the retail industry will bounce back. It’s crucial to bear this in mind and pivot the dialogue with suppliers and retailers on that basis. Instead of burning bridges, all parties involved should work together to find a medium as the survivability of everyone involved depends on it.
The following strategies are derived from Omnilytics’ live webinar with the former Head of Merchandising at Asos, Sarah Johnson, that covered merchandising best practices for crisis mitigation.
Parley with Suppliers
Start a conversation with suppliers to discuss existing terms and address setbacks.
- Offer suppliers partial payments in exchange for holding stocks. Agree to a period for holding stocks to provide some assurance to suppliers, then try to adhere to the set deadline. Review the order to segregate what styles to defer to a later delivery based on market conditions.
- Consider staggered deliveries to help both parties to fulfil contracts, albeit at a slower rate.
- Increase order quantity for styles with higher demand in the market. This decision will have to be supported by an in-depth analysis of current market conditions.
The Omnilytics dashboard provides an overview of trend performance in several markets. In this example, we will be looking at the women’s pants & leggings category in the US market to determine the top styles.
Leggings and cropped pants have emerged as hot commodities in the US market. From this perspective, it is evident that consumers have leaned towards comfort and practicality as structured styles like the tailored pants haven’t fared well. Wholesalers with access to this information can make amendments to orders that maximise profits.
Download our report, Fashion Retail & The COVID-19 Crisis for further insights and strategies to conquer through the crisis.
More than 115,000 data points were analysed on products retailing online for across US and UK markets from March 2020 to March 2020, as tracked by Omnilytics.
Meet the Author
