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o9 Solutions, Inc. > Case Studies > Transforming End-to-End Planning Capabilities in the Fashion Industry with IoT

Transforming End-to-End Planning Capabilities in the Fashion Industry with IoT

Technology Category

Application Infrastructure & Middleware - Data Visualization
Functional Applications - Enterprise Resource Planning Systems (ERP)

Applicable Industries

Apparel
Life Sciences

Applicable Functions

Logistics & Transportation
Procurement

Use Cases

Digital Twin
Supply Chain Visibility

The Challenge

The customer, a global leader in the design, marketing, and distribution of premium lifestyle products, was facing several challenges in their supply chain and planning capabilities. They wanted to respond faster to market opportunities and supply disruptions, requiring a scalable capability to postpone decisions on quantity, model, destination, price, and flow. This would reduce inventory risk by providing transparency and flexibility. The company was also struggling with rapid identification of actions between product lead times and market closure, and there was a lack of alignment on planning and buying strategies. Additionally, the volatile nature of the fashion industry presented optimization challenges regarding the timing and quantity of raw material purchases, dye lots, cutting, etc. to ensure customer demand is met. Lastly, the company found it difficult to communicate effectively and work in a low-touch digital environment that focuses on exception management, due to multiple brands, locations, distribution channels, and suppliers.

About The Customer

The customer is a global leader in the design, marketing, and distribution of premium lifestyle products. They operate in five categories: apparel, accessories, home, fragrances, and hospitality. The company is committed to sustainability, focusing on efficient and timely raw material purchasing and utilization, resource efficiency, and reduction of waste across company and partner networks. They were seeking a solution to transform their end-to-end planning capabilities, respond faster to market opportunities and supply disruptions, and reduce inventory risk by providing transparency and flexibility.

The Solution

The company adopted o9’s Enterprise Knowledge Graph and supplier collaboration capabilities to digitally connect with customers and suppliers, ensuring synchronized planning and decision-making. o9’s supply chain solver was used to enable identification of the ideal postponement timing for actions, as well as collaborating with suppliers on those activities and calendar expectations. This increased the ability to more accurately meet customer demand. The company also leveraged o9’s collaboration tools and end-to-end Enterprise Knowledge Graph to enable roles, geographies, and organizations to stay connected and efficient. The Enterprise Knowledge Graph was used to implement supply planning and supplier collaboration, with the goal to optimize the decision-making calendar, connect seasonal planning through factory shipping, and to respond to demand volatility with increased supply chain agility. The systems replaced were homegrown solutions and Excel.

Operational Impact

The implementation of o9’s Enterprise Knowledge Graph and supplier collaboration capabilities has transformed the company's end-to-end planning capabilities. It has enabled them to respond faster to market opportunities and supply disruptions, and to reduce inventory risk by providing transparency and flexibility. The company can now rapidly identify actions between product lead times and market closure, and align planning and buying strategies. The solution has also helped them to optimize the timing and quantity of raw material purchases, dye lots, cutting, etc., ensuring customer demand is met. Furthermore, the company has improved communication and efficiency across multiple brands, locations, distribution channels, and suppliers, thanks to o9’s collaboration tools and end-to-end Enterprise Knowledge Graph.

Quantitative Benefit

Rapid identification of timing challenges between product lead times and market closure.
Ability to postpone commitment decisions to procure fabric, lock color, size, and destination.
Simplified communications and work in a low-touch exception management digital environment.