The Veselo Shagat footwear chain has introduced know-how into assortment management: it renews collections 12 times a year in accordance with the weather forecast.
For a long time, the assortment line of stores was formed according to the classical principle of two seasons. At the same time, there was often a shortage of certain models in stores, while others, on the contrary, were not sold for a long time. After analyzing unsuccessful sales, the company came to an unexpected conclusion. “Mom-shoppers are different from ordinary consumers,” says Yulia Bartel, executive director of Rusdel (runs the Ekipazh and Veselo Stride chains). “Children grow up, parents buy shoes to meet their needs. It’s raining outside - urgently to buy rubber boots for the child, it was August 31 - everyone went to the store. "
Several years ago, Veselo Shagat began to analyze the weather conditions in Moscow and, depending on the weather forecast, bring this or that assortment to stores. For example, for a cold, rainy summer, the company introduced the categories of semi-athletic and canvas shoes. Now the assortment is updated 12 times during the year, while the number of items in it remains the same - about 200 for each season. The company has accumulated analytics on consumer behavior and is going to introduce a software package by the fall of 2014 - now the assortment will be updated automatically in real time. The software allows forecasting demand and ordering the necessary shoes from suppliers in advance. Although there are mistakes - for example, the heat in May this year, the company could not predict.
According to Julia Bartel, a new approach to assortment formation allowed the chain to increase its turnover by at least 10% in each store. At the end of last year, the proceeds of "Merry Walk" amounted to 1,5 billion rubles, the company made a profit for the first time.
We would like to remind you that the Veselo Stepat chain of clothing and footwear stores for children has existed since 2005 and is positioned in the “average plus” price segment. Now it includes 17 stores in Moscow and 4 in St. Petersburg.
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