5
Innovation. E‑SCM should make it possible to be more flexible in delivering a more
diverse range of products and to reduce time to market.
Benefit: better customer responsiveness.
Case Study 6.2
Argos uses e‑supply chain management to improve customer convenience
Retailer Argos is a leading proponent of using supply chain
management to improve multichannel sales. The transac‑
tional Argos website was launched in 2000 when they were
pioneers in implementing a reservation service. Sales have
grown significantly since the launch over 10 years ago.
According to E‑consultancy (2010), multichannel
sales for Argos reached £1.9bn in 2009. Its ‘Check and
Reserve’ feature, which enables visitors to check store
availability and then order from a specific store for later
pick‑up, was responsible for 22% of the retailer’s total
sales in 2009, growing by 36%. Internet sales account
for 32% of all sales. Some features of the system which
rely on integration of the website with different logistics
systems are superior to competitors’. For example, real‑
time stock availability information is shown and while
some retailers make customers wait several days for
in‑store collection, items reserved on the Argos website
can be collected straightaway.
David Tarbuck is head of multichannel retail at Argos.
He explains the approach Argos has used for its fulfilment:
The way Argos is built is unique in the UK market, and
this has made it easier for us to implement Check &
Reserve. Since customers are in the front of the store,
and the stock is held in the back, we have a clear pic-
ture of stock levels in our stores. This means we can
be confident that, if we ask our systems about stock
levels at any store, this information will be accurate.
Check & Reserve gained immediate adoption with
customers, and this has accelerated over the last two
or three years, with this channel growing by 36% for
a second year in a row. People have caught on to
it, and appreciate the convenience of being able to
check before they leave the house and save them-
selves a wasted journey. While our model has been
improved over the last ten years, other retailers have
a more difficult and costly process for implementing
this kind of service.
A further benefit for multichannel retailers like Argos
is that they can broaden the available range of prod‑
ucts available to shoppers by providing extended
ranges on their websites, and Argos planned to add
10,000 online‑ only products in 2010. Argos also pro‑
vides kiosk services in‑store to help customers arrange
home delivery.
Mobile commerce offers more order choice for Argos
customers. In 2010, Argos launched its first iPhone
app, in response to a 600% increase in traffic to Argos.
co.uk from mobile devices. In December 2009, Argos
had 750,000 visits from iPhones and iPods, suggesting
demand for such a service.
The iPhone app initially asks you to set your home
store to make subsequent reservations smoother. The
app can also find the local store via GPS, or by enter‑
ing the town name or postcode. Results of local stores
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