One of Japan’s largest home improvement retailers, CAINZ CORPORATION, has chosen RELEX Solutions in order to enhance forecasting and replenishment throughout its entire network of stores and distribution centers – DC, thereby linking store-level demand to upstream ordering decisions.
With roughly 270 stores and 23 distribution centers across Japan, CAINZ offers a wide range of products, including DIY and household as well as home furnishing, gardening, pet, and building materials, with an inventory of around 80,000 SKUs. The retailer also has a substantial private label range that makes up about 30% of sales.
CAINZ has been improving its in-house demand forecasting and ordering systems. But orders were primarily based on the levels of existing stock, so it was difficult to predict changes in demand. This was especially problematic for private label products with long procurement lead times where it was difficult to match inventory levels with the changing demand in the stores. The emphasis on present stock rather than future demand may also account for stock-outs and excess inventory. The process also took a lot of time for employees to manually calculate and adjust orders and differences between headquarters planning and store-level demand, making coordinated decision-making more difficult.
Using RELEX, CAINZ will forecast demand at the store-SKU level for all product categories, including slow-moving and highly seasonal items, and use those predictions to enhance store restocking. The forecasts will also be quickly and accurately integrated into upstream ordering plans at distribution centers, with constraints such as logistics capacity taken into account in order quantity calculations. This will allow CAINZ to consolidate inventory and refill planning between stores and distribution centers and to make better decisions in supply chain.
By automating the calculation of order quantities and regular daily alterations, CAINZ will minimize manual work and allow employees to prioritize higher-value activities such as strategic planning and decision-making.
According to Executive Officer/Head of Merchandising Operations at CAINZ CORPORATION, Takeshi Miyamoto, “As our customers’ needs continue to change, it’s important to strengthen the way we plan and make decisions across the business. Through our collaboration with RELEX, we hope to create an environment where our teams can respond more effectively to those needs and continue delivering greater value to our customers.”
Opines Yuki Fukuzawa, Country Manager, Japan, at RELEX Solutions, “We are honored that CAINZ has chosen RELEX. Managing tens of thousands of SKUs, including a significant private-label assortment, creates complex forecasting and inventory challenges. We look forward to helping CAINZ make better-informed inventory and better decisions in supply chain and build a more connected planning foundation for future growth in Japan.”
