ERP/MRP
Optimize
for the future T Simplify supply chain complexity and seize the future. By Karl Lauri 4
scw-mag.com
he combination of globalization, e-commerce and the internet has blown apart the post-war ‘standard business model’, which saw large companies enjoying ever-greater economies of scale through mass production and mass marketing. They had the financial strength to invest in efficient manufacturing, and were able to convince the consumer that what they really wanted was whatever was most profitable for the manufacturer. Smaller companies with fewer resources were restricted to their local market or to a small selection of major wholesale or retail customers.
All that has changed. Mass promotion no longer works, as consumers gain their market knowledge from a myriad of streams, websites, and ‘social influencers’. They no longer want the same goods as their neighbors: they want to differentiate themselves through purchasing the quirky, the customized, the ‘limited edition’, the wildly exotic, the hyperlocal, the ethical choice or the next new thing. Small, specialist and agile manufacturers can now serve this volatile consumer base, almost regardless of geography and demography, directly, affordably and without the intermediation of the big retail chains. And thanks to Amazon and other e-commerce
