Supermarket Chain Super Nosso automates demand planning and reduces out-of-stocks

Performing product planning and replenishment accurately is a challenge for retailers, including the impact that hits and misses have on the financial side. Considering this, the Supermarket Chain Super Nosso, in Minas Gerais, decided to look for a tool to automate this process. The solution found was DRP, by Neogrid, which delivered as one of its most important results the lowest out-of-stock levels for the company in 2019.

Before Neogrid’s arrival, the company conducted demand planning with tools and calculations developed internally. “We managed to evolve. But there came a time when we identified that the risk was too great for the volume of transactions that the company was carrying out,” says Jessé Alves da Rocha, Supply Chain manager for the chain.

The executive explains that the company needed some improvements and solutions, but they couldn’t move forward because of the volume of data that is generated daily. “Any change caused a very high risk,” recalls Jessé.

Through the automated calculation of innumerable variables, DRP makes the retail purchasing and distribution process faster and smarter. Hence, DRP started to help Super Nosso in several processes that were not covered before.

“An example is similarity, which today is everything for us,” says Jessé. Before, when there was a new product in the mix, the company made the decision to allocate and distribute these items based on manual processes and calculations. “We had a very high risk and a high chance of making mistakes,” recalls the manager.

With the tool, this calculation is automated based on data from products similar to what is being incorporated into the mix. “This year we had several changes in packaging. And if we didn’t have this tool, we would have to develop everything by hand,” says Jessé.

Another example is the possibility of doing the apportionment among stores also based on calculations performed by the solution. “This functionality helps us look for the best business opportunity and not for the logical distribution, which was what we did before, something that affected the business results,” explains the manager.

For the future, the expectation is to improve demand calculations, reducing store inventory levels and optimizing product display for items that are really our focus. “Black Friday is very important for us and the tool really helps us to focus on what is actually important, reducing out-of-stocks and leaving us well stocked with the products we are offering,” says Jessé.