In turn, your ability to continue to carry stock and fulfil customer orders during difficult times has a positive impact on your customer satisfaction and ensures your sales remain stable.
Such agility ensures continuity of supply, minimises stockouts, and reduces the impact of disruptions on sales and customer satisfaction. Implementing smart inventory systems with technology so you can see all stock you hold, across every salespoint (online and in-store), will allow you to be able to continue to respond to consumer demand but without needing to over-order to meet it.
As part of Bunzl, we benefit from purchasing power where we can buy in bulk, minimising the risk for our customers, and securing lower prices. We then hold the stock and can then release product as our customers need them, so they arrive just in time. It’s part of our Service with Guts commitment.
Being agile leaves you free to respond to seasonal spikes and trends that appear outside of your traditional procurement process, enabling you to focus and give customers what they want when they want it. As this Harvard Business Review article points out, you don’t need to abandon your just-in-time supply chain, you simply need to revamp it.
Agile purchasing is better for the environment
It’s a no brainer that agile purchasing can play a crucial role in reducing your retail carbon footprint. The last thing anyone wants to see is overproduction, which means significant waste and higher emissions from the manufacturing and transportation process.
Agile purchasing, on the other hand, focuses on smaller orders in-line with actual demand. This approach reduces overproduction and waste, meaning fewer products end up in landfill.
A study by CDP suggests that the carbon footprint of supply chains is around 5.5 times as high as a corporation’s direct emissions. If you’re serious about reducing your environmental impact, then an agile supply chain is a must.
There are other benefits for your brand too. Consumers are consistently leaning towards retailers that are environmentally responsible. This Forrester report shows that European consumers are looking for environmentally friendly shipping and packaging options as part of their purchasing decisions.
We know that transportation in our supply chain is a key contributor to our own carbon footprint. We’ve spoken before about our commitment to maintaining a local supply chain wherever possible, which helps to reduce unnecessary transport miles within our supply chain. And we’ve now moved to weight-based shipment charges instead of the number of boxes we dispatch. We also work hard with our suppliers to optimise our in-bound freight movements, including partnering with DHL who have made a commitment via their GoGreen Initiative, that all deliveries to a European mainland location from Worldpack will be carbon neutral by 2030.
Considering your carbon footprint is an essential part of your long-term business success, and an agile approach to your purchasing can help you reduce your impact significantly.
Agile purchasing supports ethical supply chains
Creating strong ethical standards for suppliers to adhere to, maintains your commitment to ethical purchasing. Finding a partner that shares your values helps to bring stability and agility to your purchasing. Creating stronger relationships with suppliers also builds transparency and traceability, allowing you to monitor and report on the ethical aspects of your supply chains more effectively.
This is something that we are committed to, and last year, Bunzl’s Global Supply Chain Team completed 1,022 audits in high-risk regions. The team is dedicated to ensuring that we only source products and materials from suppliers that prioritise the quality of their goods and fair treatment of the people who work for them.
You can read more about our ethical supply chain policies in our Sustainability Report.
These relationships and transparency go a long way, with growing evidence that consumers are increasingly looking for brands to be transparent about their supply chain.
In 2024, just-in-time purchasing has made a comeback, but smarter working practices, preparation and consistent monitoring are key to its success.
If you want to pair up with a partner that can support your agile purchasing strategy, speak to our team on +31 (0) 88 494 20 80 or email us at online@worldpack.eu.
