CHAIN - February 2024

FEBRUARY EDITION

Vice President of Supply Chain at Pizza Pizza discusses the Canadian company’s transformational journey.

also in this edition

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FEBRUARY 2024

FROM THE EDITOR Welcome to the February 2024 edition of CHAIN Magazine!

W

e have a cracking line-up for you this month and are thrilled to share four exclusive interviews in this year's first edition, starting 2024 with a bang.

For our cover interview this month, I speak with Marcelo Melo, Vice President of Supply Chain of Pizza Pizza. We dive into the Canadian company’s transformational journey, bringing together culinary and supply chain innovation alongside a sustainability agenda, which has allowed the business to maintain growth despite broader industry challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic (p6).

Justin Seamonds, CEO of Roti joins me to paint a vivid picture of the company’s supply chain transformation, sustainability strategies and culinary innovation behind providing simple, delicious, healthy and authentic Eastern Mediterranean cuisine. Justin captures Roti’s playful approach to experimentation in its operations with the ultimate goal of offering exceptional experiences to guests (p40).

I chat with Leandro Bandeira, CEO of PSIU - Indústria de Bebidas (PSIU) about the Brazilian beverage company’s growth in recent years. Leandro emphasises the importance of automation and lean manufacturing management philosophy at PSIU, and shines a light on the values, supply chain strategies and sustainability endeavours propelling the business forward (p70).

I sit down with Niko Hossain, CEO and Managing Director of logistics.cloud to explore how the company is building a collaborative logistics platform for global supply chain partners by sharing data seamlessly. Niko explains how logistics.cloud’s vision is to create the ‘Internet of Logistics’ – with maximum transparency and automation for all participants in the supply chain, in real-time (p98).

Our features this month cover the future of autonomous trucking driven by AI (p30), how to improve customer satisfaction by shifting order fulfilment strategy (p58) and supply chain sustainability strategy at Stella McCartney (p86).

We are thrilled to welcome Elske Messemaker-Kleijn, Vice President of Procurement Europe of DP World, as the guest in our new recurring feature In the company of… (p118).

We hope you enjoy our latest edition. As always, if you would like to be considered as an interviewee or if you have a story for us to include, please do get in touch.

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Director

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d.harris@ithink.media

Senior Digital Designer

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Ben Craske

Daniel May

Danielle Harris

Tom Barnes

+44 (0) 203 890 1189 enquiries@ithink.media All rights reserved. Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of material published in CHAIN Magazine. However, the company cannot accept responsibility for the claims made by advertisers or contributors, or inaccurate material supplied by advertisers.

CHAIN magazine is a product of iThink Media Ltd. Company Registration Number: 10933897. Company Registered in England and Wales

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FEBRUARY 2024

4

6

We sit down with Marcelo Melo to discuss how Pizza Pizza has brought culinary and supply chain innovation together

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Kodiak Robotics is introducing the world’s first driverless semi-truck

40

Justin Seamonds on how COVID transformed Roti’s operations and supply chain strategy

58

Improving customer satisfaction with the latest order fulfilment trends

70

We speak to Leandro Bandeira about sustainable automation in PSIU’s supply chain

86

How can Stella McCartney’s sustainable practices change fashion supply chains?

98

Niko Hossain discusses Logistics.Cloud’s goal to build the ‘internet of logistics’

118

In the company of… Elske Messemaker-Kleijn of DP World

Leandro Bandeira

Niko Hossain

70

98

Elske Messemaker-Kleijn

Marcelo Melo

Justin Seamonds

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58 6 40

30 86

118

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COVER STORY

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Delivering Awesome Since 1967: SUPPLY CHAIN STRATEGY AND CULINARY INNOVATION AT PIZZA PIZZA

Marcelo Melo, Vice President of Supply Chain at Pizza Pizza discusses the Canadian company’s transformational journey.

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SINCE ITS LAUNCH IN 1967, PIZZA PIZZA HAS OPENED MORE THAN 750 RESTAURANTS IN CANADA AND HAS GROWN TO BECOME A TRUSTED AND BELOVED FOOD SERVICE BRAND LEADER IN THE PROCESS. company prides itself on the quality of its food and serving communities from coast to coast in Canada. The pride is well-earned – Pizza Pizza has a venerable list of accolades under its belt. In 2023, it won Brand of the Year for restaurants by Strategy Magazine and was named as a recipient of the Franchisees’ Choice designation, during the Awards Gala at the 2023 Canadian Franchise Association (CFA) National Convention in Niagara Falls, Ontario. Pizza Pizza also won numerous other advertising awards including three Effie Awards and three Strategy Awards, while also receiving the Canadian Franchise Association (CFA) Diversity 8

& Inclusion Award for its outstanding contribution to the Canadian franchise community.

In recent years, Pizza Pizza has embraced a transformational journey bringing together culinary and supply chain innovation alongside a sustainability agenda which has allowed the business to maintain growth despite broader industry challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

Here to tell us more about the strategies behind Pizza Pizza’s expansion and development is Marcelo Melo, Vice President of Supply Chain.

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Marcelo’s background is in the Food Processing Engineering field and he has worked at Pizza Pizza for 15 years. Marcelo oversees four interconnected departments: logistics and distribution, procurement, quality assurance and regulatory, and culinary innovation.

Introducing us to the company and explaining its operational structure, Marcelo says, “Pizza Pizza is a leading pizza chain in Canada, with over 750 restaurants across the country and we have a presence in almost every province. Most of the restaurants are under the Pizza Pizza brand, about 650 of them, and about 100 are under the Pizza 73 brand in the province of Alberta. Of the 650 Pizza Pizza locations, about 450 are what we call our traditional locations. The other locations are called NTS’s (or non-traditional sites), for instance where we have partnerships with sports teams and arenas, amusement parks, theatres, colleges and universities. The Toronto Zoo for example is a terrific partner of ours.

“One aspect that is very particular to our model with Pizza Pizza is that we control our distribution to over 90% of our stores. All our vendors deliver to our main warehouses – for Pizza Pizza, this is in Toronto, and Pizza 73’s main warehouse is in Edmonton. From these bases of operation, we manage stocks and we deliver directly to our stores on 10

average two to three times per week and rotate the products quickly to ensure freshness for our guests.

About 10% of our distribution is managed by partners in regions where we are in a growing market, for instance in British Columbia.”

Marcelo explains that Pizza Pizza’s commanding presence in Canada’s fast casual food industry is the result of strategic vision and embracing a transformational journey in recent years.

“ONE ASPECT THAT IS VERY PARTICULAR TO OUR MODEL WITH PIZZA PIZZA IS THAT WE CONTROL OUR DISTRIBUTION TO OVER 90% OF OUR STORES. ALL OUR VENDORS DELIVER TO OUR MAIN WAREHOUSES – FOR PIZZA PIZZA, THIS IS IN TORONTO” “Despite the tremendous challenges we’ve all faced in the past few years, the company has done really, really well,” says Marcelo. “In the last three years, we have opened over 130 new locations and we are

deploying an aggressive expansion plan. We have completely revamped our menu in terms of innovation, adding new products and removing some. We call this process our Menu Simplification 11

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Approach – every year we look at things that are moving well and those which are not moving so well, because we need to create space for new ideas and unique and trendy products to bring into our system. As a company, we are known for our innovation and creativity when it comes to our ideas and menu. We were the first in the Canadian market to offer a gluten-free pizza, cauliflower pizza crust, keto pizza crusts and many other examples. Alongside this expansion and innovation, we have also changed our internal structure by promoting many of our people to senior positions in the company.

Every department has grown so we balance these internal promotions with bringing in new talent so fresh ideas are coming into the mix as well.”

Marcelo adds that striving for sustainability has underpinned Pizza Pizza’s transformational journey and permeates the company’s entire operation.

Major areas of focus include energy usage, packaging, distribution and partnerships.

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packaging and equipment to how we operate in our offices,” says Marcelo. “In 2009, we moved into a new head office where we have three wind turbines and a rooftop solar panel that helped us reduce our electrical load by approximately 15-20%.

What’s more, the lighting in our warehouses is all energyefficient lighting that helps us reduce energy usage and our environmental footprint.

and by using recyclable materials we have been able to save thousands of trees every year. It's not only pizza boxes but also the napkins, paper bags and all our packaging items are made from compostable materials or at least recyclable materials.

“In addition, we make sure that all of our vendors and partners have strong sustainability and environmental programmes in

“PIZZA PIZZA SOURCES RECYCLED AND COMPOSTABLE MATERIALS AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. WE DESIGNED OUR PIZZA BOXES WITH OUR VENDOR AND BY USING RECYCLABLE MATERIALS WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO SAVE THOUSANDS OF TREES EVERY YEAR” “We make dough in our dedicated facility, close to our head office and we buy our flour, water, oil and all the components in tankers or big totes. This allows us to reduce the total amount of packaging, cardboard and plastic used in our process. Every day, we look for opportunities to reduce wastage in our operations.

“Pizza Pizza sources recycled and compostable materials as much as possible. We designed our pizza boxes with our vendor

place. We have also changed one of our major and long-time vendors recently and moved to a company with manufacturing plants across Canada, rather than their predecessor who only had one plant in Ontario.

By making this strategic shift and decentralising production, we have been able to not only create a contingency plan for this product but also reduce the carbon emissions in our logistics operations for this particular item by over 30%. This is something that we're looking to achieve 19

with all our vendors, with the motivation of how we can be more efficient in distribution firmly in mind.

Related to this, we have also reduced the number of deliveries to our stores to reduce our overall carbon emissions. Our sustainability initiatives are taken very seriously across the company as part of our ESG board, and we have seen great results from our efforts.”

Another core aspect of the recent transformation at Pizza Pizza has been its enthusiastic approach to culinary innovation.

According to Marcelo, this process is driven internally but also weaves in external input from customers and partners alike.

“Early in 2023, we hired a new head chef,” recounts Marcelo. “He joined us with a lot of experience in the industry to head up our culinary innovation, working closely with my teams and the operations and marketing departments. Before changing our menu we look at our marketing sites, analytics and strategy, 20

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concurrently evaluating our menu in comparison with our competitors’ menus and broader industry trends.

We consider all kinds of data and analytics to help us determine if there is anything else that we can bring into our menus that our customers are looking for, including specific menu and flavours for specific regions across Canada.

alone we added stromboli, which is almost like a baked pizza roll, and it is performing excellently for us. We also recently launched our stuffed crust pizzas, with our famous garlic spread brushed around the edge of the crust and Italian seasoning adding a lot of flavour too, another innovative product addition which is very popular among guests.

“We know our customers really well in terms of demographics and we actively seek guest feedback. We love to hear what they have to say and take customers' comments on board – several of these suggestions result in us introducing new products. For example, this year

“Every week we have meetings to discuss our menu and ideas for new products. And innovation is not only an internal process, but many of our vendors are also involved as well. These partners come to us with proposals and we visit their culinary kitchens for

“EVERY WEEK WE HAVE MEETINGS TO DISCUSS OUR MENU AND IDEAS FOR NEW PRODUCTS. AND INNOVATION IS NOT ONLY AN INTERNAL PROCESS, BUT MANY OF OUR VENDORS ARE ALSO INVOLVED AS WELL”

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“CULINARY INNOVATION GOES HAND IN HAND WITH SUPPLY CHAIN TRANSFORMATION BECAUSE VENDORS AND PARTNERS ARE CRUCIAL TO HELPING THE COMPANY MAKE CHANGES TO ITS MENU OR OPERATIONS MORE BROADLY” ideation sessions with their Chefs and Marketing teams. We then take these concepts and test them in our Innovation and Learning Centre, which is a separate site from our head office. If we identify potential new products or ideas, we validate them in our kitchen environment and subsequently share the concepts with our marketing team before making any final decisions on changes to our menu offerings.

Whilst we remain laser focused on our core menu, we have always been opened to explore new opportunities.”

Marcelo explains that culinary innovation goes hand in hand with supply chain transformation because vendors and partners are crucial to helping the company make changes to its menu or operations more broadly. At Pizza

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Pizza, its supply chain transformation has four main components.

“When it comes to supply chain innovation, we pride ourselves on how we’ve built a responsible supply chain,” explains Marcelo. “Firstly, we source as much as we can locally. We like to support local industry partners and industries while also reducing carbon emissions. Secondly, our inventory is incredibly lean, and we rotate inventory every three to four days. Thirdly, as part of our vendor selection process, we have designed a process to ensure prospective partners meet our requirements not only in terms of quality and food safety but also in terms of

sustainability as well. We look at their sustainability programmes and their ESG credentials because these are important considerations for us. Lastly, we try to have as much automation as we can in our warehouses to assist our logistics and operations. We're about to finish the construction of a brandnew warehouse in Ottawa. It will become our most automated site with the best systems in place to control our inventory, reduce spoilage and ensure that we are running efficiently.”

Wrapping up our conversation, Marcelo reiterates that Pizza Pizza’s transformative journey

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in recent years has been made possible through hard work and strategic vision at the company, but it has also been empowered by partnerships. Here, Marcelo focuses on how Pizza Pizza’s warehouse operations and distribution teams work closely with partners in particular.

“We operate with great people in our warehouses who have been at the company for a long time.

They're very experienced and very passionate about our business.

That's a great asset to have as a business because we control aabout 90% of our distribution.

We have our own talented freight,

shipping and receiving crews along with brilliant managers and supervisors in our warehouses.

They do a fantastic job, ensuring that we run efficiently, have a lean inventory and are nimble to meet our franchisee’s expectation of fill rates and prompt deliveries. Together with our vendors, they optimise transportation and distribution, so our trucks are always fully loaded and our deliveries run like clockwork.

I am very proud of our teams.”

To learn more about Pizza Pizza, visit pizzapizza.ca.

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Added VALUE CONTINUING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT Marcelo embraces education as an ongoing pursuit in his career and highlights a course he took at the University of Pennsylvania in particular.

“As part of the Executive education programme at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, I completed an eightweek course called Global Supply Chain Management. It was an eye-opening experience for me, and I learned a lot about forging a modern, responsible supply chain management system. It really added value to my career, increased my knowledge and enhanced my networking. We worked with excellent professors and learned about fascinating case studies.”

Connect with Marcelo

Connect with Pizza Pizza

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TRANSPORT

IS AI THE FUTURE OF AUTONOMOUS TRANSPO

Photos from www.kodiak.ai

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ORTATION? Kodiak’s new driverless semi-truck is an industry first

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KODIAK ROBOTICS, A LEADING SELF-DRIVING TRUCKING COMPANY, HAS INTRODUCED THE WORLD’S FIRST DRIVERLESS READY SEMI-TRUCK DESIGNED FOR SCALED DEPLOYMENT. It is equipped with all the necessary redundant safetycritical hardware as well as the software required for driverless operations at scale.

Kodiak’s sixth-generation truck further enhances the overall reliability of the technology by building on Kodiak’s five years of real-world testing which includes 5,000 loads carried over more than 2.5 million miles. It will be used for Kodiak’s driverless operations, which it plans to initiate between Dallas and Houston, USA in 2024.

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Sixth Generation: Safety Critical Redundancy Braking: While traditional trucks feature redundant braking systems, Kodiak is taking it one step further in the interest of safety.

Kodiak’s pneumatic braking system consists of three individual brake actuators simultaneously controlled by Kodiak’s proprietary software.

Should any of the braking actuators fail, the backup systems can prevent loss of control and bring the truck to a safe stop.

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“THE LATEST KODIAK INCLUDES MANY UPGRADES T ENHANCE ITS SAFETY, FUNCTIONALITY AND PERFOR

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TO RMANCE”

Steering: The dual-redundant steering system includes two redundant ZF actuators controlled by Kodiak’s safety system. Based on Kodiak’s safety analysis, should the primary steering actuator experience any type of failure, the steering system seamlessly switches to the secondary actuator to maintain full control without compromising the vehicle dynamics and move the vehicle into a safe state.

ACE System: Like Kodiak’s fourth and fifth-generation trucks, the sixth-generation truck includes the Kodiak ACE – a proprietary, custom-designed and highintegrity safety computer. The ACE is responsible for ensuring that the Kodiak Driver can guide the truck to a safe “fallback” out of the flow of traffic in the unlikely event of a critical system failure.

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Upgrades, Additions and New Features The latest Kodiak includes many upgrades to enhance its safety, functionality and performance. Its trademarked SensorPods (which house tools the Kodiak Driver needs to see 36

everything around it) have been enhanced to include two high-resolution automotivegrade LiDAR sensors and two additional side radar sensors to improve long-range object detection. Overall, the Kodiak driverless-ready truck features 12 cameras, four LiDAR sensors and six radar sensors.

Top-mounted, extra bright hazard lights have also been added. As driverless trucks can’t place road flares or other devices required by the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Regulation in the US, this has been implemented to alert other drivers to the presence of a truck on the side of the road.

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Kodiak’s sixth-generation truck is also equipped with microphones, which are designed to detect and identify the presence of emergency vehicles and other suspicious sounds that could represent a hazard.

Additionally, the truck includes redundant LTE communications links, allowing it to establish highly reliable communications with Kodiak’s redundant command centres in Lancaster, Texas and Mountain View, California.

Future Enhancements Looking forward, Kodiak hopes to integrate new features into this latest generation of vehicles as it works with partners to develop and deploy new capabilities. Later this year Kodiak will include a nextgeneration Ambarella CV3-AD AI domain control system-on-chip (SoC) to improve the truck’s sensor and machine learning capabilities while transitioning to a high-volume SoC solution that can also provide high AI efficiency and performance.

The introduction of the company’s driverless truck follows the recently announced opening of a truckport to launch and land autonomous trucks.

Source: Kodiak Robotics 38

“KODIAK HOPES TO INTEGRATE NEW FEATURES INTO THIS LATEST GENERATION OF VEHICLES AS IT WORKS WITH PARTNERS TO DEVELOP AND DEPLOY NEW CAPABILITIES” 39

BUSINESS INTERVIEW

FOOD FOR A FULL

THE MEDITERRANEAN CULINARY AD TO SERVE A CURIOUS PUBLIC JUSTIN SEAMONDS, CEO OF ROTI ELABORATES ON THE COMPANY’S SUPPLY CHAIN TRANSFORMATION AND CULINARY INNOVATION BEHIND PROVIDING SIMPLE, DELICIOUS, HEALTHY AND AUTHENTIC EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN CUISINE.

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LIFE:

DVENTURE

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FOUNDED IN 2006, THE STORY OF ROTI STARTS WITH SPICE. THREE CHILDHOOD FRIENDS AND A FOURTH BUSINESS PARTNER WITH A PASSION FOR EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN CUISINE LONGED FOR AN AUTHENTIC EXPERIENCE FROM THE REGION CLOSER TO HOME. THE LONG STORY SHORT? THEY STRUGGLED. ather than resign themselves to fate, they decided to open a restaurant in Chicago, Illinois where they could share the spices, sauces, colours and flavours they craved with a curious public.

Roti’s first restaurant opened with resounding success, so the founders focused on formalising the business growth and turning towards a fast-casual model rooted in the deep culinary traditions of the Levant on the eastern Mediterranean shores.

Here to tell us more about the company’s passion for

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feeding a healthier world with bold, delicious flavour is Justin Semonds, CEO at Roti. Justin shines a light on the company’s supply chain transformation and culinary innovation which helped it not only survive the COVID-19 pandemic but find new footing in its wake.

“Our entire purpose is to bring craveable and healthful food to the market, with flavours that are either authentically reproduced or substantially inspired by culinary traditions that span the Levant (the eastern crescent of the Mediterranean into ancient Persia,)” begins Justin. “The

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other aspect that is fundamental to our DNA is to provide a familiar guest experience, featuring a make line where we present the beauty of these foods to the guests. The goal is for them to be able to do what we do on our phones, but in a welcoming restaurant setting – ‘I want some of that, try a little of this and take two of those.’ At Roti, we've made our guest experience a very self-directed journey centred around what I would argue is the most beautiful, appealing, flavourful and healthful food – brought together into the ultimate culinary combination.”

experiences and then keeping ones that we consider to be evergreen.”

Justin joined Roti as CEO in February 2020, just before the COVID-19 pandemic gripped the world and threw the hospitality sector into disarray.

“COVID dislocated every preconceived notion we had about what restaurants should be and how we should ask the public to interact with them,” says Justin. “We had to evolve and redefine what it meant to package food, serve customers

“WE WORK WITH SUPPLIER PARTNERS AND VENDORS TO SECURE THE COMPONENT PIECES SO WE CAN PUT THEM TOGETHER IN A WAY THAT WE THINK IS BOTH TRULY COMPELLING, AND EXECUTABLE” Since 2006, Roti has enjoyed rapid growth and commercial success and now has 19 restaurants in three US cities. Along the way, the company has experimented with myriad flavour profiles, products and influences which reflect the geographical and formidable culinary diversity of the Levant.

“It’s an inexhaustible place to go and find inspiration,” says Justin. “As such, Roti has been very aggressive about trying new things, pulling them in through our menu, introducing a curious public to new culinary

and approach health and safety.

Not everybody made it through that transition. For us, just coming out the other side is an immense source of pride for our brand. But now, it’s all about what we do next.”

Justin explains how surviving the challenges of COVID and emerging into growth entailed a transformational approach to supply chain strategy and culinary innovation at Roti.

“As part of a relatively small supply chain, we are what I would consider 45

which we think our people will value and are a little underappreciated or even undiscovered, we have to go and find partners who can help us activate those offerings. to be a challenger brand, meaning we are competing for a share of the public’s appetite against very large, entrenched, well-located, digitally active brands – even if they're not in our food category,” says Justin.

“Ultimately, this means we must be nimble and differentiated.

“From simple things like proprietary spice blends and ingredients that have real meaning and value in our food, to the inexhaustible world of complimentary culinary components like olive oil, it’s about finding the right partners to provide the best flavour profiles, who also share our passion for high-fidelity authenticity.

“So when we think about the kinds of products we want to bring into our restaurants and offer to our guests,

“We work with supplier partners and vendors to secure the component pieces so we can put them together

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in a way that we think is both truly compelling, and executable. We are still on our journey towards deeply and seamlessly collaborating with vendors to make it easier to create foods with ever-strengthening quality and flavour profiles.

“The place we start in our business is what represents the highly authentic, which generally means homemade or very intense processes with very expensive inputs – because you’re trying to replicate something that used to happen in somebody's individual kitchen.

“There’s an assumption in the hospitality industry that the more we

have to do and the more places we have to do it in, the more we have to dumb it down, reduce our quality and sacrifice along the way.

“At Roti, it’s a particular point of pride that we've risen above this pessimistic assumption and been able to make our food simpler to execute and even more delicious by choosing our partners wisely.

We've been able to use ingredients that we've been able to supply to three different parts of the United States and preserve the highest fidelity version of these flavour profiles, recipes, grill techniques and textures that define our brand.

We have an advantage because

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we choose our partners carefully and intentionally as we are just so unrelentingly proud of the food and flavours we’re trying to produce.

“One of our valued strategic partners is Angel Bakeries. These are fabulously inspired people. In their business, two people have master's degrees in baking certifications from Kansas State University and the company has brought a truly unique bread into the US marketplace that's also available globally. Angel Bakeries had an interest in a business that was doing similar things over in the Levant

“Angel Bakeries is a partner that dedicates the same kind of energy, enthusiasm and intensity towards making something that is as simple as they can make it but also replicates the culinary tradition at the highest possible level as we do.

“Another key strategic partner for Roti is Klondike Cheese Company, just over the Wisconsin border from us. The state of Wisconsin produces 25% of the world's cheese and Klondike is a company four generations in the making, with a decades-long heritage of

“ONE OF OUR VALUED STRATEGIC PARTNERS IS ANGEL BAKERIES. THESE ARE FABULOUSLY INSPIRED PEOPLE. THE COMPANY HAS BROUGHT A TRULY UNIQUE BREAD INTO THE US MARKETPLACE THAT'S ALSO AVAILABLE GLOBALLY” and they've brought a product to market that travels extremely well, made with – and I'm not kidding – a secret dough maturation process that you’re not allowed in the room to see.

“They've imported equipment from the Levant to be able to create and bake this product properly. They have a preservation and shipping method that allows you to reheat it with steam in your restaurants which makes it mind-bogglingly fresh, delicious and properly textured – easily on par or better than anything we’ve eaten over there.

winning gold medals for a number of their products in international competitions.

“Klondike have done a truly miraculous thing where they have taken a market opportunity for a diversified cheese business and they've carefully and meticulously scaled it into a highly-capable production facility – without giving up one iota of quality in what they produce.

“Everything they've built, all the machinery, equipment, training and tactics, is geared towards 49

transformation and seeking deep strategic partnerships, Roti explores playfulness and experimentation as core components within its culinary innovation to propel growth and ultimately offer exceptional experiences to its guests. According to Justin, there are two main approaches to culinary innovation at Roti: unique culinary leadership and self-directed guest experiences.

sustainability. Every ounce of their milk is sourced from within 60 miles of their dairy facility, so the carbon footprint relative to what they do is astounding and they recycle their water in the plant. What they produce is just absolutely exceptional in quality and super mindful. They've been a partner of ours for a long time and we've expanded the number of items that we use from them, even though Levantine cuisine tends to be narrow in its use of dairy products.

“Like Angel Bakeries, Klondike is a partner that operates at scale, and yet cherishes true, authentic and real production methods with a mindfulness for the environment. We think that’s a magic combination, and we're looking for more people like that.”

Alongside deploying supply chain 50

“In recent years, there have been two kinds of innovation that happened in our business – one that will be familiar and another that will probably be a bit surprising,” shares Justin. “The familiar one is unique culinary leadership. Our culinary influences are deeply rooted in countries and knowledge that encircle the Levant, and those who have built our culinary platform have a fundamental understanding of these rich culinary traditions.

“So unique culinary leadership is our ideation engine, but that ideation engine needs to be plugged into an apparatus that can actually create an executable food programme.

That's where our partners can come in and take something that we know we can do in a small batch but then do it at scale in dozens of restaurants.

“The second part of the culinary innovation at Roti is perhaps less

“KLONDIKE HAVE DONE A TRULY MIRACULOUS THING WHERE THEY HAVE TAKEN A MARKET OPPORTUNITY FOR A DIVERSIFIED CHEESE BUSINESS AND THEY'VE CAREFULLY AND METICULOUSLY SCALED IT INTO A HIGHLY-CAPABLE PRODUCTION FACILITY – WITHOUT GIVING UP ONE IOTA OF QUALITY IN WHAT THEY PRODUCE” familiar and it is led by our guests.

We’ve found that the customers who frequently come to our restaurants truly appreciate the innovative approach we facilitate where they can create unlimited culinary combinations, either self-directed or in collaboration with one of our Roti team members.

“We've got a palette of seven different sauces and five hot mains. Our bases

include rice, cauliflower rice, and three different types of greens – and, of course, we offer gorgeously stuffed pitas. So every time a guest comes in, they have several decisions to make and myriad options before them.

“So there's also a lot that you can do to go on a journey that provides you with endless combinations all within a beautifully merchandised 12

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to 16-foot line in our restaurants.

We try to put a palette of options in front of the guests so that they can control their own journey and go where their inspiration leads them. Anyone with the spirit of adventure can end up in a different place every time they visit us. And Levantine cuisine, from ingredients to finished products, is absolutely beautiful food.”

As Roti has expanded to new locations and developed its menu to bring Levantine cuisine to market in the US, the company has embraced and leaned into sustainability as a social responsibility. As Justin explains, reducing waste is a top priority within this broader endeavour towards sustainable operations.

“Inside our restaurants, we have a goal of zero waste,” says Justin. “When you look at our industry and the amount of food that is prepared and not eaten, it's staggering. There's a tremendous amount of inefficiency that's inherent in our business. So we try to stay very vigilant and disciplined about how much food we prepare and how frequently we prepare it.

The goal is to try and balance best meeting demand without running out because you never want to disappoint people.

“We also try to ensure that the number of ingredients working their way into our kitchen stays quite modest. When we bring something into our kitchen or when we have an idea to introduce something new to the menu, the first place we look for ingredients is what we already have in the pantry.

“If we experiment and it involves a new item that needs to come in to execute, we always consider how else we can incorporate these items so that we use all of it or use it more quickly so that it stays fresh. It takes intensity and focus but we really try working only with ingredients that have multiple uses or that we can ensure are fully exhausted as a resource in our food, without waste or by-products that are unsustainable.

“It's a journey, not a destination. But we've made a lot of strides forward to make sure that the amount of waste that we generate as a business is increasingly low and that the kind of waste that we generate is an increasingly sustainable waste. For instance last year we switched to fibre lids to reduce our use of plastic.

We’re also in the process of 53

switching out all of our other plastic packaging to biodegradable packaging.

“We haven't quite achieved the scale where we can lean into our suppliers and assess all of the sustainable practices that we have. But we are naturally drawn to people who are mindful of the environment, recycling, sustainable materials and reducing waste. We've gravitated towards people who are already doing that kind of work and hope to grow to the size where we can have more of a notable influence on the total supply chain ecosystem, not just what we can control within the four walls of every restaurant.”

So what does the future hold for Roti?

“We are looking to grow the number of units we have, develop our digital presence and grow in different markets,” summarises Justin. “Every one of those forms of growth creates opportunities for our existing team to progress in their careers, help us with projects and try to drive innovation inside the business.

“Ultimately in our industry, for branded restaurant companies, there's no other place to go – you’ve got to grow. So we are looking for ways to go and open new locations in new and existing markets, but also 54

“WE ARE LOOKING TO GRO WE HAVE, DEVELOP OUR GROW IN DIFFER to reimagine what those locations really look like.

“The utility of dining rooms, for instance, is not what it was preCOVID. Of course, you want to have a welcoming restaurant environment.

For us, the majority of our customers walk through our line and walk out with the product that they select. But many of them sit down to eat and enjoy our hospitality and restaurant.

So we will consider the proportions of our spaces accordingly. From looking at the area we dedicate to back-of-house operations to the ratio

very nicely into those buckets.

“For us, the joy part arises from multiple aspects of the business.

It comes from the people, teamwork, hospitality, guest satisfaction and flavours we create – these are the fun parts!

“The value of pride stems from how well we look after people and food, the experiences and the flavours we offer in our restaurants and through our digital journeys.

OW THE NUMBER OF UNITS DIGITAL PRESENCE AND RENT MARKETS” of the dining rooms, we will explore how we can improve efficiency while amplifying experience. At the end of the day, growth comes from design, performance and resources and these three factors are guiding us on an exciting path for the coming years.”

As he looks to the future at Roti, Justin wraps up our conversation by celebrating the company’s culture.

“We have three values that drive our business: joy, pride and progress.

I think all the core competitive characteristics in our industry fit

“The final part is progress. We have to progress as a company so that we can create the opportunity to grow for our teams and our suppliers as well – all to the ultimate benefit of our customers.

“If we can get all three of those values moving in the right direction at the same time, the effect on the business is exponential. It’s a privilege to help create this positive environment where those three forces can all be leaning in the same direction at the same time. It's a hard thing to do and it's a hard thing to do consistently. But when it goes right there’s no feeling like it.”

For further information about Roti, visit roti.com.

Turn over for 'ADDED VALUE' with Justin.

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PURPOSE Justin relishes the opportunity to offer healthy, simple and delicious food with purpose in his role at Roti.

“Purpose is a fundamental part of what Roti serves,” says Justin. “We exist because we believe that the culinary traditions that come from the Levant are the best for the body and best for the soul. It’s a communal food.

“But our purpose arises from more than this. In the world we live in today, our food comes from a complicated place. Connected to this, food is more relevant than it’s ever been due to the implications of diet-related health problems, obesity and post-COVID health issues.

“Food is the original social network and the original foundation for the health and wellness of communities, the body and the soul. At Roti, we believe in reigniting the passion for food as a positive force for good in society.

“We are deeply dedicated to trying to create a more healthful world that tastes fantastic.”

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“Our tagline as a business is ‘Food for a full life.’ And it’s not just about the food, it's about the full life that comes with it. We happen to focus on food but we're also trying to help our guests to eat with people, talk face to face and have a sense of joy, satisfaction and satiation from a meal well eaten – not necessarily because of what you ate, but also because of where you ate it and who you had it with.”

INSPIRATION “I get inspired by two key things in my career,” says Justin. “First, it’s about building a business that is high functioning, that has integrity and cultivates a high sense of trust. This is a powerful motivator for me.

“These kinds of businesses not only tend to outperform, but they tend to earn reputations as being desirable places to be. Of course, it's a journey, not a destination. But building a high-quality business with people

who have clarity of purpose and vision, who trust each other to carry their part of the load and who make things happen in the right way with integrity, with a sense of honesty, I think is a wonderful thing.

“I try to learn from people who can influence that. Simon Sinek is one of those people. Our Executive Chairman, Mats Lederhausen is another. I look to thought leaders like them so I can do better tomorrow than I did today.

“The other source of inspiration for me, connected to building a highquality business, is doing something that matters is important to me. If

somebody is interested in satisfying their craving, and they stumble upon us and wander out, I just want them to be happy with what they got from us. I’m especially proud that people who are more deeply rooted in eating more mindfully or leading plant-centric lifestyles can easily enjoy our cuisine. Whether they’re vegans and vegetarians, or they struggle with any kind of dietary limitations on food like sensitivities, allergies, or dietary and lifestyle pursuits – they can find something to enjoy at Roti, and that really matters."

Connect with Justin 57

CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

7 ORDER FULFILMENT TRENDS AFFECTING CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE 58

How can c fulfilment customer s

changing your order strategy improve satisfaction?

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IN TODAY’S COMPETITIVE RETAIL LANDSCAPE, SHOPPERS ARE INCREDIBLY DEMANDING AND DISCERNING. o stand out in the market and thrive, providing an exceptional customer experience is paramount. Consistently delivering a positive experience will keep your customers coming back – bringing friends, families and followers with them.

Numerous factors can have a significant impact on customer experience, but one operational aspect is often overlooked: order fulfilment. Here are seven ways order fulfilment trends can make a huge difference in customer satisfaction.

TURN OVER FOR THE 7 ORDER FULFILMENT TRENDS

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1 2: IMPROVING PROCESSES In this current period of economic uncertainty, many companies are streamlining their order processing as a clever, low-cost solution to improve responsiveness. The ideal strategy is different for every operation, but once you identify the optimal solution, there is remarkable potential to drive efficiencies. Every aspect of fulfilment operations likely can benefit from process improvements – from receiving and putaway, to replenishment and quality control to sortation and outbound staging.

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1: UPGRADING SYSTEMS A recent survey by Saddle Creek Logistic Services found that 98% of respondents had made system improvements – such as adding or upgrading a WMS, OMS or WES – in the past twelve months. These systems have improved inventory management, helping ensure product availability. As this allows customers to check product availability, it can provide a seamless shopping experience. A WMS can also help to streamline operations within the warehouse walls and improve speed to customers, while a WES takes processing speed to the next level – with typical productivity gains of 20% or more.

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3

4: OMNICHANNEL FULFILMENT In recent years, businesses have been giving consumers increased shopping choices, particularly in how their orders are fulfilled. This year, more companies will be offering versatile choices such as Buy-Online-Pickup-In-Store (BOPIS) and reserve online, pick up in-store (ROPIS). Customers prefer to have numerous options for how their orders are fulfilled, meaning that it’s become essential for businesses to meet consumers' diverse needs.

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3: EXPANDING USE OF AI AND ROBOTICS AI and robotics will be top focus areas for operations in the near future, and it’s easy to see why. They have transformed standards of efficiency and effectiveness, helping to improve order-processing speed, increase accuracy and support scalability. By employing these new technologies, companies can process orders more efficiently while reducing labour costs. The optimal technology solution will be different for every fulfilment operation. As a general rule of thumb, start with the simplest possible solution and gradually add more functionality to meet your needs.

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5: EXPANDING CUSTOMISATION Providing shoppers with items suited to their preferences is key to an optimal customer experience. Offering personalised products can help you stand out from competitors and capture the attention of customers who seek individualised experiences. Providing them with an item they can’t find anywhere else also helps to foster a meaningful connection and build loyalty. Creative packaging, gift wrapping and custom marketing inserts can enhance the unboxing experience and leave a lasting impression.

When products can be personalised close to the consumer, you can order items in bulk and add a favourite logo or embellishment as orders come in. This not only improves order processing time, it can also help to optimise inventory. When considering adding personalisation, scalability should be a central concern. Design a solution to accommodate future growth so you’re ready when demand increases.

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6 7: CAPACITY UTILISATION A challenge for businesses recently has been optimising their current space, which is crucial for safety, productivity and sustainability. Luckily, companies don’t need to do this manually.

Many companies are using AI tools to improve their warehouse layouts and processes. Through this, companies can strategically design layouts to enhance operational efficiency, reduce risks and take advantage of new growth opportunities.

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6: OPTIMISING SHIPPING Shipping has become a significant focus point for retailers, manufacturers and e-commerce companies. Free shipping is always in high demand, but increasingly difficult to provide as parcel costs continue to escalate. There are a variety of strategies to reduce costs in this area. One such way is by leveraging parcel analytics. Reviewing carrier invoice data can help identify shipping patterns and recognise factors that might increase accessorial charges. This information can help to guide shipping decisions. It can also help to reconfigure your distribution network to reduce costs. This can be an extensive undertaking, but is often a worthwhile exercise since shipping costs represent a substantial portion of the fulfilment budget.

7

Source: Saddle Creek Logistics Services

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BUSINESS INTERVIEW

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Quality above all: THE BRAZILIAN BEVERAGE COMPANY DRIVEN BY PEOPLE, INNOVATION AND VALUES Leandro Bandeira, CEO of PSIU - Indústria de Bebidas (PSIU) on the company’s transformational journey in recent years.

1997, PSIU began its journey with the sale of Mate Couro, a traditional soft drink from Minas Gerais, Brazil created in 1947. Today the company employs 250 people and produces 10 million beverages per year from its state-of-the-art production facility in São Luís, State of Maranhão.

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By September 1999, sales of the PSIU brand began, with the launch of Flavors of Orange, Guaraná, Cola and, at the time, the pink PSIU TuttiFrutti. Since then, PSIU has launched an array of mineral water, soft and energy drink products distributed to 189 municipalities in Brazil.

Leandro Bandeira, CEO of PSIU joins us to discuss the family-run company’s transformative journey in recent years and how it constantly strives to improve the quality of its services, acting as a citizen and socially responsible company.

Leandro has a degree in Business Administration and an MBA in corporate finance and project management from the Dom Cabral school and started his career 18 years ago at Yamaha Motors, formative years where he learned the lean manufacturing management model and philosophy.

In 2013, he left the automotive industry for the beverage industry as an industrial manager and built his career. Following several years of professional development and promotions, Francisco Magalhães da Rocha, President of PSIU, invited him to join the company in 2021.

After only a year at the company, Leandro was invited to carry out a turnaround at the company 72

in a time of internal crisis as the new CEO of PSIU. Despite significant challenges and competition from major brands like Coca-Cola, Leandro nurtured a culture of strong teamwork and implemented the lean manufacturing management philosophy to reorganise processes and make the company highly profitable.

“We are a family-run business with 250 employees,” begins Leandro. “Our people, innovation and striving for sustainability have been crucial to our transformation in recent years.

“Your values and actions are your biggest differentiator. At PSIU, our constant concern is that our activities transcend our service with the strong application of a peoplefocused approach to the lean philosophy with our employees and customers.

“As CEO, my responsibilities include resolving and making important decisions, managing

the organisation’s overall resources and operations, and acting as the central point of communication between the operational and board of directors. From this position, we have come together as a company to develop and implement strategies with the aim of promoting the mission and magnifying the ‘voice’ of the organization.”

Before exploring the innovation and sustainability endeavours which have characterised the

“WE ARE A FAMILY-RUN BUSINESS WITH 250 EMPLOYEES. OUR PEOPLE, INNOVATION AND STRIVING FOR SUSTAINABILITY HAVE BEEN CRUCIAL TO OUR TRANSFORMATION IN RECENT YEARS” 73

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transformation at PSIU in recent years, Leandro emphasises the values driving the business, its relationships and goals.

“We instil an inclusive and supportive working culture where our values are front and centre in all we do,” says Leandro. “Our philosophy arises from several priorities.”

• Commitment to the truth • Caring for our people • Meritocracy • Passion for the company and what it does • Respect for the planet • Austerity • Extraordinary profit • Provision of extraordinary service • To be a profitable, admired and respected company, offering quality products and extraordinary service provision

offer unique flavours, textures, and experiences,” says Leandro.

“Companies that can innovate and introduce new products or technologies to the market can gain a significant competitive advantage.

“To have a competitive advantage over competitors in a context of market recovery, companies must strive to adapt to Industry 4.0 parameters. At PSIU, we have been investing in innovation projects and technologies that allow us to increase productivity to meet demand and maintain the quality standard of our products. There are a series of technologies for the beverage and food industry already on the market that can optimise the process and reduce risks within factories.

“My top priority is instilling these values across the company into the hearts and minds of our people,” says Leandro. “By doing so, we have been able to embark on our transformative journey.”

Leandro explains that innovation is a critical component of success in the beverage industry.

“Consumers are always looking for new and exciting drinks that 75

“At PSIU, automation has been a key innovation. For instance, we have deployed robots throughout the production line. When passing through the production line, items can still be handled by other collaborative robots, which work alongside humans safely. These robots can assemble boxes, box the products and then place them on pallets for transport.

“This technology avoids waste and reduces the chances of errors, such 76

as changing packaging. By carrying out activities that pose ergonomic and safety risks, they also contribute to the health of operators. And they do all this for many hours without the need for breaks!

“Our industrial vision system consists of cameras, lighting, filters and software that collects production data and checks whether products meet established standards. They can, for example, identify dirt in the packaging that

you definitely don't want to reach supermarket shelves. They are also able to ensure that the packaging material is correct, control the size of the product and read OCR batch and expiration dates, among other functions.

“By learning from the information they gather, robots can identify a

minimal change at the beginning of the production line. This way, they prevent the entire process from being interrupted and reduce waste.”

Within its innovation strategies and deployment of new technologies, PSIU strives for sustainability in its operations as a socially

“WE WANT TO TAKE A DEEPER DIVE INTO THE CONCEPT OF THE 3 P'S OF SUSTAINABILITY: PEOPLE, PLANET, AND PROFIT”

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Wield localised, real-time visibility to drive efficiency in logistics and distribution.

General freight trucking Specialised freight trucking General warehousing and storage Product tracking

fsilvaexpress.com.br 78

responsible company. Here, process standardisation, partnerships and supply chain optimisation have driven the company’s success and growth.

“Today, we want to take a deeper dive into the concept of the 3 P's of Sustainability: People, Planet, and Profit,” says Leandro. “By understanding the interplay between these pillars, businesses can unlock new opportunities for

“Partnerships are crucial to us at PSIU because the supply chain is a sector of the food products segment that has been going through challenging times amid high inflation in recent years.

“Therefore, it is essential that this aspect of our business area is optimised to make all processes more agile, minimise the risk of stock-outs and maintain end consumer loyalty. Choosing good

“HERE WE STRIVE FOR EFFICIENCY AND REAL-TIME VISIBILITY AND OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH FSILVA EXPRESS LOG HAS BEEN INCREDIBLY VALUABLE IN MAKING OUR OPERATIONS MORE SUSTAINABLE THROUGH THEIR TECHNOLOGY” growth, create a positive societal impact and contribute to a more sustainable future.

“One of the crucial aspects of a beverage company is the distribution and transportation of products. Here we strive for efficiency and real-time visibility and our partnership with FSilva Express Log has been incredibly valuable in making our operations more sustainable through their technology. With their solution, we gain localised insights into exactly where our products are in their journey. This is hugely important for us and our customers.

suppliers should be part of the decision-making of managers in the supply chain area of the food and beverage industries.

“It is a formative time for the logistics chain, as correct compliance with agreed deadlines for the delivery of inputs and/ or other products is essential for the proper functioning of the production line and the success of the companies behind them.

“Furthermore, supply chain optimisation should focus on end customer satisfaction. Therefore, being aware of seasonality is 79

important to plan purchase orders and ensure their delivery in a timely manner for the production of the finished product.”

Leandro adds that 2023 was a crucial year for the company with the launch of several new products and the exponential growth in its mineral water products has been particularly important to its profitability. But Leandro emphasises that the development of the company’s new product 80

offerings and water technology has been done in a sustainable manner.

“Eliminating waste in our processes is a fundamental priority,” says Leandro. “We have been standardising our processes to improve efficiency and reduce our impact on the environment.”

Looking ahead to the future, Leandro explains that PSIU is aiming to expand and increase profitability by opening a new

factory dedicated to mineral water products to increase production in 2024. The other dynamic will be maintaining the company’s cultural transformation to lean into the challenges and opportunities emerging in the coming years.

“Our new factory will open in August 2024 and we’re very excited about this development since it will allow us to separate the production of mineral water and soft drinks, propelling the company forward

“PSIU IS AIMING TO EXPAND AND INCREASE PROFITABILITY BY OPENING A NEW FACTORY DEDICATED TO MINERAL WATER PRODUCT” 81

in its transformational journey,” says Leandro. “In the coming years, mineral water will become even more important to us economically since there is a trend in Brazil where people are looking to lower their sugar consumption.

Today our soft drink products are made with 33% reduced sugar and this trend will only continue in the future.

“In recent years and since I took the CEO position at PSIU, our people have powered

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our transformational journey and I celebrate the tremendous teamwork it has taken to get us where we are today. This wouldn’t have been possible without a cultural transformation, and I’m particularly proud of how we have embarked on this journey at PSIU. People are the foundation for our success.

“The key to this has been empowering and developing our employees across the entire organisation. I challenge my

managers, operations team and salespeople to strive for progress and growth with the shared and unifying vision of providing excellent service while remaining highly profitable.

“Our people can see the positive changes arising from the transformation, sharing in the successes and victories driving us forward as a company.”

To learn more about PSIU, visit psiubebidas.com.br.

Added Value ONGOING LEARNING Leandro loves to learn by listening to podcasts and watching YouTube videos. In particular, Leandro recommends the content created by Professor Vicente Falconi which he finds particularly insightful when it comes to management systems.

WORK

LIFE

WORK-LIFE BALANCE

Leandro believes it is imperative to strike a healthy work-life balance. For him, this means making time to enjoy watching soccer at the weekends as a way to relax and switch off.

Connect with Leandro 83

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STRIVING FOR SUSTAINABIL FASHION I

Stella McCartney’s plans fo

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SUPPLY CHAIN LITY IN THE INDUSTRY

for a net zero supply chain

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WITH MORE AND MORE COMPANIES PRIORITISING ETHICAL AND SUSTAINA PRACTICES WITHIN THEIR SUPPLY CH LUXURY LIFESTYLE BRAND STELLA MCCARTNEY CONTINUES TO BE AN INNOVATOR IN ITS STRATEGIES TO RE CARBON EMISSIONS. he company has committed to a net-zero supply chain with a comprehensive strategy involving business model overhauls, prioritising the careful selection of suppliers and utilising the latest technologies.

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RESPONSIBLE SOURCING As a company, Stella McCartney takes great care in selecting its suppliers. The brand’s Responsible Sourcing Guide serves as a comprehensive

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framework for its social and environmental standards throughout the supply chain.

In particular, the guide focuses on social responsibility standards and environmental sustainability standards to ensure its business practices remain as ethical as possible.

CIRCULAR BUSINESS MODEL A circular model of business allows companies to create, distribute and then take back materials to reuse within the business. This reduces the environmental impact of a product while helping the company save money. Stella McCartney sees this model as the future of fashion, as seen in its use of regenerative sourcing. With this strategy, the company can use materials with luxury quality while actively restoring the land it was sourced from. Not only is this beneficial for the environment by protecting biodiversity, but it can also help the farmers and local communities to continue using this land.

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EUROPEAN-SOURCED SUSTAINABILITY Stella McCartney’s supply chain begins in Sweden, with a sustainably managed and certified forest.

The pulp from this forest is then transported to Germany, where it is transformed into high-quality viscose filament. This is then sent to Italy, where it is turned into fabrics for Stella McCartney. By using a fully European supply chain for their fabrics, Stella 92

McCartney has lower transportation costs, uses less packaging and secures stronger logistical oversight. In order to fully optimise its transportation, Stella McCartney has spent the past year identifying the most energy-efficient routes across their supply chain.

BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGY FOR TRANSPARENCY As a progressive luxury brand, Stella McCartney uses blockchain technology

“STELLA MCCARTNEY HAS SPENT THE PAST YEAR IDENTIFYING THE MOST ENERGY-EFFICIENT ROUTES ACROSS THEIR SUPPLY CHAIN” 93

“IF WE EVER HOPE TO PROTECT AND RESTORE NATURE, WE CANNOT JUST TAKE FROM MOTHER EARTH - WE ALSO HAVE TO GIVE BACK” Stella McCartney

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to enhance transparency across its supply chains.

Collaborating with UNECE on a blockchain technology pilot, the brand seeks to be responsible, honest and accountable in its practices.

Blockchain's decentralised nature allows for the traceability of every product aspect, providing transparency evidence and validation through certifications and standards.

“Regenerative sourcing is not only the future of fashion, but of our planet,” says Stella McCartney, the brand’s founder. “If we ever hope to protect and restore nature, we cannot just take from Mother Earth - we also have to give back. By implementing UNECE blockchain traceability technology into our regenerative cotton supply chain, we are proud to pioneer and transparent path forward and hope that other fashion houses will join us.”

To learn more about Stella McCartney’s sustainable practices, read their latest impact report here.

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LAUNCHED IN 2018 AND BORN FROM MULTI-IND INNOVATION, LOGISTICS.CLOUD IS DRIVEN BY A THE FUTURE OF LOGISTICS WILL INVOLVE A SEAM EXCHANGE ACROSS ALL SUPPLY CHAIN PARTNER hampioning higher data quality, greater levels of transparency in the supply chain and easier connections among partners, logistics. cloud is powered by Lobster – offering a neutral logistics platform for shippers, carriers, customs, forwarders and third parties with low entry barriers.

Joining us to share insights into logistic.cloud’s vision for building the ‘Internet of Logistics’ is Niko Hossain, CEO and Managing Director.

Niko begins by explaining how logistics.cloud spans industries by offering a global and multimodal solution for exchanging transport data between all participants in a supply chain. The aim? Maximum transparency and automation: in realtime and across companies.

“Logistics.cloud has been created to connect the whole world of logistics,” says Niko. “In logistics, you have a 100

highly fragmented environment with hundreds of thousands of different players, which of course use completely different software solutions. These might be for capacity bookings, transport management systems, logistics service provider search platforms, visibility, track and trace or control.

“Logistics.cloud acts as a connection hub for all these different environments and enables customers – such as logistics companies, shipping companies and IT partners – to have an easy and standardised connection interface in terms of submitting data back and forth.

“We are steering the data rather than hosting the data centrally.

We are not the cloud on the top, where we receive all the data from everyone and hold it there as a kind of portal. Instead, we act as a steering system where we get the data infused by one company and

DUSTRY BELIEF THAT MLESS DATA RS.

we integrate and then generalise and forward the data to the output format of the recipient.

“For example, we might identify a booking for DHL Express from a shipper, and then we directly steer it into DHL Express system – getting the

confirmation and sending it back to the shipper as well – so the companies know that everything is on track with the booking.

“We built this steering solution as the first of its kind to address the gap in the market, with the goal of 101

connecting logistics providers around the world. As it stands, we are well established in the European market, with new connections emerging globally in China, the USA and other regions.

data exchange, while avoiding being locked into one connection with one company. We are trying to build the ‘Internet of Logistics’ by serving as a communications platform rather than an application platform.”

“For now, our major focus is still Europe because we are growing very fast but at the moment it is still a situation where most companies don’t even know that something like this exists.

Niko explains that one of the crucial benefits of seamless data exchange is the added value as each company or entity contributes new layers of information to the data, which has a compounding effect on the overall usefulness of the insights.

“Essentially, our clients can make use of logistics.cloud like a plugand-play solution for integration in logistics. The benefits are that it’s a much faster, cheaper and more flexible means of securing connected 102

“In days gone by, businesses knew it was beneficial to share data but there was a feeling that somehow you lost control of an asset in the process,” says Niko. “But nowadays companies

“WE ARE TRYING TO BUILD THE ‘INTERNET OF LOGISTICS’ BY SERVING AS A COMMUNICATIONS PLATFORM RATHER THAN AN APPLICATION PLATFORM” supply chain much more convenient and cost-effective.”

are realising it’s completely the opposite with data. The data will always stay with you, but if you share it, you see benefits because you create value for the other parties you share the data with but also your own organisation, adding value along the supply chain.

“Imagine that you have up to 50 different touch points with multiple parties when you have a global supply chain for shipments, for example. It is a huge advantage when you share the data related to the shipment with all these parties.

We have one of the most interesting business models today, but also for the future, because it makes coordinating logistics in the global

As logistics.cloud is entering an exciting phase of growth and worldwide expansion, Niko emphasises that the company’s service directly benefits the global supply chain by tackling some of the major pain points for the logistics industry, particularly for distribution by sea and air.

“There are a lot of challenges in operating global supply chains because of the geographical implications when you have European or US companies who have suppliers in Asia or on the other side of the world,” says Niko. “You have the procurement departments which are ordering designated products from afar and, depending on the terms of trade, you then have to align if the forwarder is responsible throughout all the processes, which can be expensive. Or, if you are responsible 103

for the whole supply chain, and then you have to secure all the information and share it with the designated parties.

“For example with maritime logistics, items must be collected from the plants, transported to the harbour, placed in the right container and allocated to the right ship. The ship might then travel for weeks, touching several harbours on its way to the final port of destination before unloading and distribution. Throughout the process, you need detailed information in real time to inform the relevant logistics parties and companies along the way.

“Depending on the nature of the global supply chain in question, you might have at least 10, 20, or even 30 different parties involved because all the connected logistics companies will, in turn, also use their own suppliers for their services.

There are a tremendous amount of potential touch points and many fragmented parts in the supply chain, which we are trying to connect at logistics.cloud to make it possible to have a flow of data information with clear visibility and precision.

“With air freight, it’s a completely different story because you have incredibly short notice times so there’s even more urgency for real-time data and access to the 104

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latest information. Typically, the value of the goods transported by air freight is very high as well, which only complicates things further because expectations increase accordingly.”

According to Niko, a major driver and motivator behind building the ‘Internet of Logistics’ is helping its customers and partners have end-toend visibility and transparency across their entire supply chains – regardless of the size or scale of the companies involved. Niko explains that logistics. cloud helps users at the earliest opportunity to facilitate this goal.

“Logistics.cloud steps in at the very beginning, right from the point where 106

we receive data from ERP systems or lead-in systems when a shipment or demand is created,” says Niko. “We retrieve the data from their systems and then we directly share it with all parties along the supply chain.

That's a huge benefit because if you have already shared the data with an individual connection, for example, you will usually lose most of the information because in terms of data integration, much of the data which is not needed for that specific player will be erased or left unused. The loss of information passes onto the next actor in the supply chain and you cannot extract relevant insights further down the line.

“LOGISTICS.CLOUD STEPS IN AT THE VERY BEGINNING, RIGHT FROM THE POINT WHERE WE RECEIVE DATA FROM ERP SYSTEMS OR LEAD-IN SYSTEMS WHEN A SHIPMENT OR DEMAND IS CREATED” “So we step in at the earliest opportunity to get the data from the ERP and then share it to the TMS system. As a result, logistics service providers and all the parties along the supply chain which need this data can access it – but we also ensure that the seamless integration works in both directions. We share this data with the other logistics companies, shippers, suppliers and customers so that everyone handling and acting

with these shipments has the same information.”

One of the challenges logistics.cloud reconciles is working with companies of various sizes, operating in dozens of languages, using diverse systems and bringing them together seamlessly and effectively. Niko describes how this is made possible by the company’s data model and system architecture.

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“SO WHAT DOES THE FUTURE HOLD FOR THE DIGITAL SUPPLY CHAIN INDUSTRY? NIKO EMPHASISES FIVE MAIN DEVELOPMENTS: VISIBILITY, PREDICTION, SUSTAINABILITY, ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI) AND CONNECTIVITY” “We created a highly comprehensive data model which covers air freight, sea freight, road transportation along with courier and express transportation,” says Niko. “We analysed all of these different commodities of transport and created a generic data model for them. It's published on Swagger UI so anybody can examine the model. If we see a new requirement coming up, we just add that to our data model.

In addition to our comprehensive data model, we have a decoupled exchange which means that we are not directly connecting one company with another. Instead, we have an outer core where we connect these companies individually with their systems. Within this, we integrate the data in an inner core of our system, which is then generically working with our data model. That means that we have a two-layered translator. So first of all we take the language of origin, say it’s English, and we translate it into a universal language internally. From this generic centralised language, 109

we send it to the data’s destination site and retranslate it into the specific language of the receiver. Our method means we can make all the global systems talk with each other seamlessly.”

So what does the future hold for the digital supply chain industry? Niko emphasises five main developments: visibility, prediction, sustainability, artificial intelligence (AI) and connectivity.

and consumption are on the horizon so the environmental impact of an organisation’s operations will have to be considered just as carefully as their overheads and costs.

“I think AI will help scale up the speed of connectivity across multiple industries and sectors. Today, we are in the early stages of its usefulness where we are analysing data, finding structures in the data and correlating or checking the insights

“WE HAVE WORKED TOGETHER WITH SOVEREIGN SPEED SINCE OUR EARLY DAYS BY COLLABORATING WITH THEM AND ALL THEIR CLIENTS VIA THE LOGISTICS.CLOUD PLATFORM” “The whole topic of visibility is still on the rise, so I think in the future all shipments will have to be completely visible,” predicts Niko. “But that's just the beginning. The logical next step will be prediction. Where's the demand? How can we analyse what’s happening and identify the best course for future action?

How long should processes take and how can we keep customers accurately informed? These are the sorts of questions that will become increasingly important.

“Sustainability is already a crucial topic, but it will become even more prevalent in the digital supply chain.

New regulations related to emissions 110

accordingly. But I think we are approaching the stage where we will be able to execute these processes completely automatically, in seconds.

It will then be a question of applying machine learning to the automated AI processes, which is where I see tremendous potential for driving value for businesses whether it's in planning, market analysis, pricing or applications.

“Lastly, connectivity and integration are on the rise in the digital supply chain, enabled by companies like logistics.cloud, which will help businesses thrive by increasing tracking visibility and offering real-time insights but also by

a seamless and connected system which everyone in the supply chain could make use of. Sovereign Speed is a fantastic strategic partner for On the topic of collaboration, Niko us because they have been pushing emphasises the importance of logistics.cloud forward alongside embracing working with strategic our own internal efforts to build the partners at logistics.cloud since the company. Together, we have created company launched in 2018. a lot of success stories with their clients by exchanging data from “Sovereign Speed was one of our first different systems via one unified partners, which has really worked connection. Today, we are doing all for both of us,” says Niko. “We have worked together with Sovereign Speed Sovereign Speed’s data integration across Europe in various different since our early days by collaborating commodities, in everything from long with them and all their clients via the haul and last mile to warehousing logistics.cloud platform. They have an impressive range of large clients in operations. More and more companies are joining their business, logistics working as service providers so it’s been a terrific success story to for them. Sovereign Speed saw the work with Sovereign Speed.” value in using logistics.cloud to build fostering strategic partnerships and collaboration.”

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“MYLEO / DSC CAN REALLY FOCUS ON THEIR FEATURES, APPLICATIONS AND CUSTOMERS WHILE WE COVER THE CONNECTIVITY TO THE LOGISTICS COMPANIES AND OTHER BUSINESSES. WE WORK TOGETHER AS A TEAM, IN CLOSE PARTNERSHIP” “Another valuable strategic partner we’ve relished the chance to collaborate with is myleo / dsc,” adds Niko. “Myleo / dsc was one of the first large software partners we had join us at logistics.cloud. They are a software-as-a-service company that is very much driven by empowering their customers by offering fast usage of the software they make available.

Myleo / dsc have a lot of customers in different industries and offer them a vast range of solutions. We partnered with myleo / dsc in an arrangement where they act as the application layer and we are the connectivity layer below it. The concept plays out fantastically because myleo / dsc can really focus on their features, applications and customers while we Your Digital Supply Chain

Supply Chain Teamwork Makes the Dream Work Time and again, events occur along a

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Take your logistics to the next level at www.myleodsc.com!

cover the connectivity to the logistics companies and other businesses.

We work together as a team, in close partnership.”

Wrapping up our discussion, Niko lauds the upward trends of innovation

and collaboration in the digital technology field.

“Having worked in this field for several years now, developments come and go but currently I really see a rising wave of exciting developments 113113

related to digital solutions and automation,” says Niko. “In a context where we face labour shortages and uncertainty in the supply chain, it is reassuring to see a shift towards data, technology and innovation to deliver services the customer needs and wants.

“AI is an enabling force accelerating this digital journey, adding energy to the drive for innovation.

“Digital ecosystems built on technological connectivity and strategic partnerships among businesses are also on the rise, when we compare to the situation a few years ago. Back then, every solution provider and every player on the market tried to operate independently with a winner-take-all mentality.

Fortunately, today there is an understanding that you have to work together in large digital ecosystems to survive and thrive. There are so many different players and solutions now, you cannot solve problems all alone.

You have to play together to create value for the customer.”

Visit logistics.cloud to learn more.

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ADDED VALUE

RIDING THE WAVES OF INNOVATION Niko loves to surf and draws parallels between the sport and succeeding as a business.

“It’s about finding the right wave, riding it and then paddling back to find the next one,” says Niko. “I’m totally convinced that the waves of innovation and the communities of companies driving digital technology will take things forward positively.

“I’m incredibly proud and happy with what we’ve achieved at logistics.cloud so far. Our initial idea and inspiration has evolved into a wave of innovation and we are thrilled more and more companies are joining us as we grow as a business and expand into new regions around the world.”

Connect with Niko

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PROFILE

In the y n a p com of...

Welcome to our spotlight profile feature where we chat with leaders and innovators in the supply chain, procurement and logistics industries.

For this month’s In the company of… we sit down with Elske MessemakerKleijn, Vice President of Procurement Europe, DP World.

A brief summary of what your company does and your role I am the Vice President of Procurement of DP World Europe, leading a team of roughly 100 ambitious procurement professionals throughout the region. DP World is an end-to-end supply chain provider and we are pivoting from being a traditional port operator to an end-to-end integrator. We own and operate strategic assets in all parts of the supply chain to offer end-to-end service offerings from the factory floor to the customer door.

How did you start working in procurement?

I was inspired by my first boss, who very convincingly shared his love for procurement and even though I’ve embarked on several journeys outside it, in the end, I always stay.

What has been the biggest highlight of your career to date?

I always like taking on a challenge and being able to drive and implement change. Currently, that is exactly what I am doing now by working in a large multinational.

Over the last year, we have been able to integrate into one procurement organisation with a centre-led,

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hybrid structure, developed a procurement academy, overdelivered 20% of our initial savings, developed and set up a Shared Service Centre in Romania to fuel future growth, redesigned our P2P process, rolled out a new procurement policy and all of that with 100% retention of our people.

For me, I’m particularly proud of the latter aspect.

Which emerging trend do you think will be most crucial in your industry in the next ten years?

Procurement is evolving beyond cost-cutting and is now pivotal for how businesses function. In 2024, I see AI enhancing its automation and expediting processes, offering templates, generating quotes and boosting overall efficiency.

It's an exciting benefit for crafting purchasing apps too, fostering intelligent dialogues among stakeholders.

If you could spend a day in the life of another profession, what would it be and why?

I have always been curious about working for the CIA or as a detective, analysing the facts and trying to solve a mystery. Being able to really puzzle different things together and in the end

come up with an actual answer and impact would be an exciting profession.

Outside work, what helps you feel like the best version of yourself?

Several elements are important to me and keep me balanced as a person: challenging my mind (work), creativity, cooking, being in contact with my gut feeling/ inner self and horse-riding. These elements and hobbies keep me in balance.

Before we go: what advice would you like to share with our readers?

Happiness or success is not determined by others, it truly is about autonomous and independent happiness. Be sure to achieve that and you can deal with everything else that life gives you. www.dpworld.com 119

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