Verian

A New Kind of Online Strategy for Retailers

August 27th, 2010 | No Comments

As the nation’s retailers gear up for holiday season, many are mapping out their online strategy. And for good reason: each year, more people are avoiding the crowds, lines and headaches associated with holiday shopping and headline online.

But what about an online strategy for retailers’ not-for-resale (NFR) spend? Instead of buying what you need to run your stores manually via phone, fax and email, some retailers have started to purchase everything online. Taking a cue from consumers, there’s a new wave of retailers that are using online shopping in a whole new way – and reaping huge benefits as a result.

Retailers like GNC, Macy’s, Price Chopper, REI and other are using automated procurement applications to give their employees online access to vendor catalogs that have negotiated terms built in. Users simply log in, load up their shopping cart and checkout in just a few clicks. It’s no different than buying a book on Amazon.com.

With indirect purchasing captured in one central database, off-contract spending is almost eliminated. Some retailers even use the system to send selected vendors as a way to drive down costs even more.

When users complete their orders, the requisitions are then routed automatically for approval via email and their contents can be accepted or rejected by line item from any company computer or smart phone. Approval time is trimmed from weeks to days.

When you look at the simplicity and efficiency of procurement automation, you wonder why retailers haven’t been doing this for years. So this holiday season, take a closer look at procurement automation for retailers. It may just end up on your shopping list!

Bhavin Shah
Director of Product Strategy
Verian Technologies