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Tag: Manhattan Associates

  • How Seamless Shopping Journeys Are Reviving Physical Retail Stores

    How Seamless Shopping Journeys Are Reviving Physical Retail Stores

    With ecommerce projected to capture 41% of global retail sales by 2027, it might seem counterintuitive for retailers to continue investing in new and existing physical stores. Yet, retailers like Fujifilm, Sketchers, and North Face are not only maintaining their brick-and-mortar presence but actively innovating with new store concepts to better serve modern shoppers and stand out in a competitive market.

    Rather than signalling the decline of physical stores, the rise of ecommerce is actually fuelling the revival of retail spaces, where fresh, exciting store concepts are drawing in consumers. This trend highlights the evolving behaviours and preferences of today’s shoppers. Retailers recognise that modern consumers engage with multiple sales channels during their buying journey, and in fact, 73% of shoppers prefer to combine online and in-store experiences. This omnichannel approach underscores the enduring importance of physical stores in a digitally driven retail landscape.

    Flexible Payments

    In today’s omnichannel digital age, offering flexible payment solutions is essential. According to Manhattan’s Unified Commerce Benchmark Singapore, 31% of ecommerce consumers will not retry if they must re-enter their payment details at checkout. Modern shoppers expect to pay using their preferred method, whether it’s a credit card, digital wallet, contactless payment, cash, or pay-by-link—regardless of the shopping channel they choose.

    By providing a range of payment options, physical stores can better meet the flexibility and convenience expectations of modern shoppers. Offering popular alternative payment methods not only increases the likelihood of attracting new customers but also encourages repeat visits from those who find their preferred payment options available. Satisfying these preferences is key to fostering customer loyalty.

    Omnichannel Promotions

    Retailers plan and execute promotions to boost sales, attract new customers, and enhance brand awareness. However, without the right technology in place, promotions can negatively impact already narrow margins. It’s essential for retailers to focus on promotional effectiveness, ensuring these initiatives deliver the desired financial results and customer satisfaction.

    Seamless integration across all sales channels is critical, as promotions should be defined once and shared consistently with unified targeting, qualification, and calculation logic. If a customer is eligible for a promotion online, that same offer should be available in stores and at the contact centre, unless it is an exclusive online deal. Yet, executing promotions consistently in-store remains a significant challenge due to the fast-paced environment.

    An omnichannel promotions engine can address this challenge by providing a single source of truth for promotion logic, ensuring consistency across all sales channels. Effective omnichannel promotions are well-planned, targeted to the right customers, and executed consistently, playing a crucial role in the modern retail brand experience.

    Clienteling

    Modern shoppers highly value personalised shopping experiences, especially in retail segments like high-end luxury goods, where personalisation is expected. According to McKinsey, companies that excel in personalisation can potentially generate 40% more revenue, highlighting its significant impact.

    For brick-and-mortar retailers, personalised one-on-one shopping experiences provide a unique advantage over digital-only competitors. By incorporating clienteling capabilities, such as Mobile Clienteling, stores can seamlessly connect all sales and service functions, empowering store associates with rich customer data to enhance interactions throughout the store.

    Virtual clienteling is also emerging as a powerful tool, allowing store associates to maintain customer engagement beyond the store. Whether it’s responding to product inquiries via phone, text, or email, or providing additional information to assist with purchase decisions, virtual clienteling extends the personalised shopping experience beyond the store’s physical boundaries.

    In 2024, the key to effective clienteling lies in enabling store associates to quickly access and utilise customer purchase history, engagement history, and preferences. This allows for personalised interactions and tailored recommendations that resonate with customers, whether in-store or through virtual channels.

    Store Order Fulfilment

    Modern shoppers appreciate the convenience, immediacy, and cost savings of buying online and picking up in-store (BOPIS), driving increased demand for this fulfilment service. Simultaneously, retailers are increasingly leveraging their stores to ship orders, reducing shipping costs and speeding up delivery times.

    To meet customer expectations while maintaining profitability, modern stores must excel in fulfilment efficiency, scalability, and accuracy. BOPIS not only caters to shoppers’ desire for convenience but also drives additional foot traffic and sales in stores. According to a survey by the International Council of Shopping Centres, 67% of BOPIS users buy additional items when picking up their orders.

    Physical stores have evolved into multifunctional hubs within the omnichannel retail ecosystem, offering retailers a strategic way to meet growing shopper demands for speed and convenience. When optimised to handle increasing volumes and rising customer expectations, store fulfilment can significantly boost sales and enhance customer satisfaction.

    Unified Returns and Exchanges

    In 2022, returns cost retailers a staggering $817 billion, with 78% of shoppers finding the returns and exchanges process inconvenient, and 41% considering it time-consuming. Beyond the financial impact, returns significantly contribute to CO2 emissions and landfill waste. A March 2023 report by the British Fashion Council’s Institute of Positive Fashion, Solving Fashion’s Product Returns, revealed that in the UK, 3% of returned items are not resold—50% of which end up in landfills, 25% are incinerated, and only 25% are recycled, underscoring the environmental toll.

    Unified returns and exchanges enable modern shoppers to return or exchange any item at a store, regardless of the original sales channel, including online purchases. This approach offers customers the convenience of a straightforward return or exchange process, with the immediate satisfaction of an instant refund or a new item.

    By implementing unified returns and exchanges, retailers not only meet the needs of today’s shoppers in this crucial area of customer service but also reduce both business and environmental costs by minimising the need to ship returns.

    By Richard Wright, Managing Director, SEA, Manhattan Associates

     

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  • Manhattan Associates rolls out new eCommerce solution for global clothing company during COVID-19 lockdown

    Manhattan Associates rolls out new eCommerce solution for global clothing company during COVID-19 lockdown

    As COVID-19 swept its way across the globe, and many countries were forced into lockdown, businesses that were undergoing large-scale projects were subject to the challenge of no longer being able to operate under usual conditions. However, despite being caught in the grips of a global pandemic, Manhattan Associates’ was able to deliver its (WMS) remotely under COVID-19 lockdown to a global clothing designer and manufacturer.

    Many retailers across the Asia-Pacific region have experienced a huge spike in online orders during the COVID-19 period, which has stretched processes, technologies, and people. This has led to an increased focus on how to better manage eCommerce orders and the need for solutions to support the smooth flow of online goods to customers.

    Retailers today need warehouse systems that have the flexibility and agility necessary to adapt and grow alongside their business. However, the added challenge of how to deploy such solutions in a time when the movement and availability of technical experts is limited due to COVID-19 travel restrictions and lockdowns, is significant.

    In lieu of the usual in person deployment processes, Manhattan Associates can successfully design, implement, and deploy Warehouse Management System’s (WMS) remotely.

    “The ever-changing nature of eCommerce and consumer demands means that businesses can’t wait to improve their processes. Businesses need to constantly innovate to meet customer demands and COVID-19 lockdowns won’t stop this. Retailers must have agility and scalability built into their systems in order to seize new opportunities while still maintaining operational efficiencies. This is something our WMS works to achieve by being designed to meet consumer demands now and into the future,” said Richard Wright, Managing Director, SEA, at Manhattan Associates.

    Lawrence Railton, Managing Director and Founder of global clothing brand, AS Colour, found that after the company was forced into COVID-19 lockdown, more people were heading for the eCommerce space to buy goods, which increased the need to improve their warehouse operations, even if having a technical expert on-the-ground to deploy new technology was not possible.

    “With many lines of distribution brought to a halt in New Zealand, we saw an overflow of orders once restrictions eased, which put a lot of pressure on our DC to catch up,” said Lawrence. “This fluctuation in eCommerce demand is exactly the type of situation that drew us to implement Manhattan’s WMS technology in the first place, as it would prepare us for any future shifts in the market.”

    “When rolling out the new system, we really had to use remote working to our advantage, which in the end allowed us to launch the new system two weeks ahead of schedule and save plenty of money on travel and overheads in the process. Even under remote conditions, Manhattan’s expertise, motivation, and ongoing support ensured that the project was running smoothly, and that any issues were resolved quickly and efficiently,” added Lawrence.

    To hear more, Manhattan Associates will be hosting an APAC Virtual Summit from October 27-30. To register, go to: Manhattan Associates APAC Virtual Summit.

     

     

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  • Manhattan Associates Named a Leader in the Industry’s Top Order Management System Evaluation

    Manhattan Associates Named a Leader in the Industry’s Top Order Management System Evaluation

    Manhattan Associates Inc. announced that it has been named a Leader in The Forrester Wave™: Order Management Systems (OMS), Q3 2018 report by Forrester Research. Specifically architected for advanced omnichannel environments, Manhattan Order Management received the highest score in the Strategy category – with the highest scores possible in the Product Vision and Innovation Road Map criteria. Forrester’s analysts also gave Manhattan’s OMS among the highest Current Offering scores in the Order Channel Capabilities, Store Fulfilment, Order Orchestration, and Contact Centre Capabilities criteria.

    Forrester evaluated products across 40 criteria and Manhattan’s OMS achieved the highest scores possible in 23 of these categories. The report also notes Manhattan’s strongest offerings in store fulfilment capabilities, including endless aisle, BOPIS, and ship-from-store. Forrester analysts describe the product in the report as “a good fit for companies looking for an enterprise-class, cloud-based solution, with robust features and functionality that are built for complex but common omnichannel scenarios.”

    “We’re honoured to be named a leader in the Forrester OMS Wave. We see our placement as further validation of the collaboration and co-innovation we’ve done with our customers, some of the most successful omnichannel businesses in the world,” said Brian Kinsella, senior vice president, Product Management, Manhattan Associates. “Our OMS customers receive immediate access to these enhancements without ever having to worry about an upgrade, and have the full flexibility to extend the solution with their own proprietary innovations.”

    Manhattan’s Order Management solution is part of the Manhattan ActiveTM Omni platform, the most technologically advanced omnichannel commerce solution ever engineered. Built for the cloud, Manhattan Active Omni not only delivers the industry’s leading order management solution, it also includes next generation point of sale, intuitive store fulfilment, omnichannel promotions and a retail-focused CRM with case management and native social integration to ensure retailers are ready to deliver on their customer promises.

     

  • Manhattan Associates Predicts 2018 Retail Technology Trends

    Manhattan Associates Predicts 2018 Retail Technology Trends

    Manhattan Associates, Inc. predicts five key technology trends will influence the Southeast Asia retail environment and business strategies in 2018:

    1. Increased personalisation of shopping experiences
    2. More flexible checkout experiences
    3. Accelerated automation integration
    4. Reimagined use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based technologies
    5. Greater implementation of employee engagement solutions

    “As consumer expectations continue to rise in a fast-changing retail environment, retailers are seeking new ways to succeed,” noted Richard Wright, Managing Director Southeast Asia, Manhattan Associates. “With the pace of innovation increasing, we anticipate retailers will double down on technology deployments in the year ahead.”

    Increased personalisation of shopping experiences

    Digitally-savvy consumers are demanding personalised shopping experiences from retailers. “Nearly 90 percent of organisations say they are focused on personalising customer experiences, yet only 40 percent of shoppers say that information they get from retailers is relevant to their tastes and interests,” according to Brendan Witcher, principal analyst at Forrester Research. However, store staff and call centre agents historically have been unable to offer a personalised experience, lacking an omnichannel view of the customer and their behaviour.

    In 2018, new technologies will enable retailers to combine unstructured customer conversation data with structured order information allowing store and call centre staff to improve service. Retailers have long struggled with multiple applications and disparate data points lacking a single, comprehensive view of the customer. Retailers are expected to harness new technologies to improve customer engagement which, alongside enterprise order management, will provide actionable insight into the omnichannel shopping experience for personalisation and optimisation across the buyer journey.

    More flexible checkout experiences

    Retailers are expected to move from traditional fixed POS systems to more flexible approaches as consumers increasingly adopt Apple Pay and innovative contactless payment experiences.

    Consumers increasingly desire fluid approaches to seeking advice or online browsing when interacting with store associates, and no longer want to be limited to traditional purchase methods. Retailers are expected to seek standardised mobile POS systems that enable payment throughout the store and act as a one-stop shop for inventory management, browsing, recommendations and customer data, driving engagement with fast, easy to use technology applications.

    Accelerated automation integration

    Retailers have delivered huge service level improvements and accelerated goods flows in recent years by deploying advanced warehouse management systems (WMS) and automated equipment within their warehouses. But long-term success is dependent on striking the right balance between man and machine and using centralised software that synchronises both human and technological capital.

    This year we will see retailers do more than just dip their toe in the water when it comes to software and automation adoption, but they must remember to start this process from the ground up. The machine will evolve over the course of many years which will mean the centralised software orchestrating everything – technologies, people and processes within the warehouse – will need to evolve with it. This is why retailers are seeking centralised cloud-based systems that can be upgraded to advance innovation.

    Reimagined use of AI-based technologies

    In 2017, some retailers experimented with AI and chatbots to engage consumers and provide customer service. This year, retailers are expected to pivot from futuristic AI, virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technologies to embrace more pragmatic uses of machine learning within their back-end supply chain operations. Warehouse Management Systems will advance in 2018 with a machine-learning capability they can sense and learn, so retailers can optimise the release of work to the warehouse floor and when best to execute customer orders to maximise service levels and operational efficiency

    Greater implementation of employee engagement solutions

    Millennials are the new workforce and more of them than ever before are working in retail, presenting retailers with an engagement challenge. Employee engagement today requires more visual, graphic based content that is personal and digital. In 2018 retailers will look beyond traditional engagement channels to facilitate the sharing of thoughts and feedback in more creative and intuitive ways.

     

     

     

  • s.Oliver selects Manhattan Associates to expedite order fulfilment

    s.Oliver selects Manhattan Associates to expedite order fulfilment

    Not only do today’s consumers demand a seamless shopping experience across channels, they want orders to be fulfilled in ever-shorter timeframes. Iconic global fashion brand s.Oliver Group has selected Manhattan Associates to meet these service expectations and to execute the next phase of its omni-channel growth strategy.

    The Germany-based company is deploying Manhattan’s distributed order management and store dulfilment solutions to orchestrate orders and to provide customers with more reliability and convenience in terms of how they take delivery of goods. s.Oliver Group will use the software to pool and govern the availability of inventory across its ecommerce and store distribution channels. The new approach will better leverage the brand’s entire supply chain, driving product availability improvements and delivering a more fulfilling customer experience. The ability to accelerate goods flows will also improve stock turns, reducing capital tied up in excess inventory.

    Ansgar Weber, digital operations & IT director at s.Oliver Group, commented, “Operating complex omni-channel services such as ship-from-store is impossible without having a streamlined and reliable IT infrastructure across all channels. An Order Management System, which fulfills orders against network inventory based on an optimized routing logic, is critical to success. The Manhattan solutions will provide our store associates with a consolidated view of inventory and orders and will better leverage our stores to increase speed to the customer. New click-and-collect and ship-from-store fulfillment options will allow us to get goods into the hands of customers quicker whilst the latter will also complement our distribution center during peak selling events, such as Black Friday.”

    Pieter Van den Broecke, Managing Director Benelux and Germany at Manhattan Associates, commented: “It is imperative that retailers are able to effortlessly handle omni-channel transactions and be able to make the buying and fulfillment experience as convenient as possible for the customer. Those that do will be able to deliver an outstanding customer experience and earn brand loyalty amongst their customers. Forward-thinking fashion brand s.Oliver Group is committed to delivering these service capabilities and we are excited to play a key role in its omni-channel transformation.”

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  • Manhattan Associates Unifies Brand Experience for Country Road Group Customers

    Manhattan Associates Unifies Brand Experience for Country Road Group Customers

    Manhattan Associates, today announced that Country Road Group, one of Australia’s largest specialty fashion retailers, has completed a successful roll out of Manhattan’s Warehouse Management Solution (WMS). The technology deployment is a key component of a business transformation project designed to deliver a unified brand experience for customers across channels and to drive ongoing business growth.

    Country Road Group’s business and sales channels have evolved in complexity and scope as the company has expanded its operating footprint. With over 700 stores and a growing online operation, the retailer had outgrown its outsourced logistics services model and recognised the critical need to take greater command of its supply chain. The company made the strategic decision to invest in a new distribution centre (DC) and chose Manhattan’s solution to orchestrate goods flows through the new DC.

    Peter Fouskarinis, Head of Supply Chain Australasia, Country Road Group / David Jones, commented, “The Manhattan solution has enabled us to optimise our store replenishment and online order fulfilment processes, resulting in improved product availability and customer satisfaction.”

    The Manhattan solution’s advanced fulfilment logic for wave management, constraint-based selection and real-time replenishment has been critical in helping Country Road Group to realise its omni-channel commerce goals. The system eliminates costly physical counts with auditor-approved cycle counting and stores can now provide same day fulfilment as a result of a new cross-docking approach.

    Raghav Sibal, Manhattan Associates’ managing director for Australia and New Zealand, commented, “With our solutions, retailers can take ownership of their omni-channel operations and streamline their distribution processes. We’re confident our solutions will continue to unlock supply chain value for Country Road Group and support its commitment to strengthening customer relationships for many years to come.”

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  • Mobile, millennials to drive retail innovation

    Mobile, millennials to drive retail innovation

    Mobile commerce, millennials and faster fulfilment will drive retail innovation this year, according to commercial supply chain specialist Manhattan Associates.

    It predicts a rapid migration to more personalised shopping, with mCommerce presenting big challenges as well as inspiring innovation.

    Emerging Asia is still the fastest-growing region of the global economy, says the company, with strong labour markets and a growth in disposable income expected, especially in Southeast Asia. This means a continued rise in consumer spending along with mounting pressure for retailers to keep up with consumers and their rising expectations.

    “Millennials particularly demand seamless experiences across multiple channels, as well as more and slicker order and fulfilment options,” says Manhattan’s Southeast Asia MD Richard Wright.

    This means retailers must make informed choices about not only what is right for the consumer, but also right for the business.

    Wright says retailers will have to make some fundamental changes this year to address growing consumer demand, expectations for a more personalised shopping experience and increased use of mobile technology.

    “We have identified five key areas in which retailers can focus attention, not only to achieve customer satisfaction but also to drive business growth and profitability.”

    He defines the five key areas as:

    • Making the shopping experience personal and frictionless,
    • Recognising the power of millennials,
    • Embracing mobile technology to achieve customer-centric retailing success,
    • Delivering faster; and
    • Being more flexible with returns.

    “The anonymous shopping experience has had its day,” says Wright. “On the back of digital personalisation success, retailers are turning their attention to the in-store experience, recognising both the rise in customer expectation and the differentiation personal service can offer.”

    He says this experience can range from recipe ideas and ingredients lists in supermarkets to intuitive, customer-inspired fashion recommendations. “Retails have the chance to transform the in-store engagement.”

    Research by the group last month has shown that tailored shopping experiences will encourage more shoppers to engage with the in-store experience. In a consumer survey, 49 per cent of respondents said they would interact more with store staff members if the shopping experience was personalised.

    “When a shopped reaches the point of sale, give them tailored discounts, recommendations based on their shopping history, and even style tips matched to their recent purchases,” the group suggests.

    Manhattan Associates also says personal shopping is back. “It is time for retailers to redefine the role of stores, embrace technological innovation that drives both service enhancements and operating margins, and engineer a cultural shift that will enable staff to reinforce brand value and deliver personalised service across every channel.”

    There is a need to redefine the role of the store assistant. As consumers become ever more connected, store assistants need the knowledge, skills and desire to offer the best possible shopping experience.

    Dissatisfaction impacts brand reputation

    “Failing to give customers what they want will result in dissatisfaction and more complaints, which can have a longer-term impact of brand reputation and sales.”

    In Malaysia alone, says the company, the National Consumer Complaints Centre received 41,531 complaints in 2014, a 28 per cent increase for the previous year.

    Retailers can avoid such dissatisfaction by educating their store staff, but more is needed than just product information, says Manhattan Associates.

    Frontline staff need access to stock levels across all stores, warehouses and distribution hubs so they can sell the entire network of available inventory rather than just the stock in an individual store.

    Having an overview of enterprise stock and being able to offer delivery alternatives will keep customers loyal.

    “We predict that many retailers will being emulating the experiences of companies like Parkson, and change their structure so the store assistant plays a fundamental part in the buying process from start to finish, and acts more as a personal advisor.

    “However, a cultural change such as this cannot happen unless it is championed from the top down. Board-level executives need to buy into the potential results possible from investment in staff and customer experience initiatives.”

    Manhattan Associates believes millennials, who constantly interact with the online world, are frequent yet demanding shoppers.

    “We think it is time for millennials to take the lead on what they would like from a retail experience, and help retailers drive new strategies and initiatives. With 40 per cent of Millennials happy to give up cash completely, and 91 per cent opting to use a self-service checkout, it is clear these 18 to 34-year-olds shop differently to the traditional retail model. They adapt to technology quickly and expect retailers to do the same.”

    Another finding from the company’s research is that customers shopping via mobile devices spend up to 66 per cent more than those solely shop in a store. But as mobile devices now play a more important role in not only browsing and buying, but also paying for goods, the potential is even greater.

    Manhattan Associates predicts that retailers will use more beacons this year to augment the in-store experience.

    “Not only are these devices cost-effective, they communicate directly with smartphones through Bluetooth, meaning stores can lure in passing customers with offers and discounts.”

    Store assistants can also use mobile technologies to enhance the shopping experience. Tablet devices can enable assistants to deliver a personalised experience. They can access an online product catalogue populated with a shopper’s purchasing history, wish lists, online shopping cart and return history, improving their ability to up-sell and cross-sell.

    Meanwhile, POS technology is transitioning from fixed-point transactions to mobile engagement, offering payment acceptance “on the go” for all of a customer’s orders in a single transaction. This can be by cash, cheque, credit or such systems as Apple Pay.

    Advanced mobile POS technology can handle the most complex return situation with the least amount of friction, regardless of which channel initiated the order or how the customer chooses to receive credit.

    While price is the main attraction for 67 per cent of shoppers, across both online and in-store shopping, fast delivery is important for 51 per cent, and flexible returns for 42 per cent.

  • Chang Beer producer says ‘cheers’ to Manhattan

    Chang Beer producer says ‘cheers’ to Manhattan

    Asian beverage producer ThaiBev has now completed a multi-site implementation of Manhattan Associates’ warehouse management technology, as it looks to improve service levels and fulfil orders more profitably.

    Using the vendor’s Warehouse Management Solution (WMS), the Chang Beer producer is aiming to grow its business and expand its reach across its local market of Thailand and into new territories, while it also hopes to benefit from better inventory management and improved stock visibility.

    The project was delivered by a joint team from Manhattan and ThaiBev’s distributor arm Thai Beverage Logistics, as well as IT infrastructure and managed services partner TCC Technology (TCCT). The Manhattan solution, which has been embedded into ThaiBev’s existing SAP ERP system, is hosted at TCCT’s data centre.

    ThaiBev is working towards its “2020 Vision”, which is centred on the development of five core principals: growth, diversity, brand, reach and professionalism. Its latest investment in technology has been made with these business goals in mind.

    Kosit Suksingha, senior vice president at ThaiBev, commented: “In Thailand alone, Thai Beverage Logistics operates a supply network comprising three regional DCs and a series of provincial warehouses.

    “With Manhattan’s WMS technology and with TCCT’s complementary hosting infrastructure, we have improved product availability for our trade customers and are now able to fulfil customer orders within 24 hours of receiving the order.”

    He added that the technology is driving top-line sales growth and helping to improve the organisation’s operating margins.

    Manhattan has recently announced supply chain partnerships with baby and maternity products retailer Mothercare and fashion house Paul Smith, with both companies looking to improve their stock visibility and behind-the-scenes systems.

     

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