infonet-economy

A study carried out by a team of researchers from the University of St.Gallen's Chair of Logistics Management shows that the airfreight flows which pass through Swiss airports are a decisive element in Switzerland's appeal as a business location, and that airfreight contributes significantly to strengthening the Swiss economy and safeguarding domestic jobs.

Fast-moving retail items follow a cyclical demand pattern depending on timing and marketing efforts. In our research, we observe the occurrence of intraday sales patterns. We therefore model an inventory policy accounting for intraday sales patterns by refitting the review period. We include lost sales, inventory holding and handling costs, and marketing efforts. Using actual transaction data, we compare this new policy to current practice, evaluating effects on customer service and total cost.

Purpose - Addresses the effects of retail out-of-stocks from a Service-Dominant (S-D) logic view.

Design/methodology/approach - Conceptual, combining classic S-D logic research with recent research of S-D logic in supply chains, and applying this to out-of-stocks in a retail setting of fast-moving consumer goods.

Findings - This article unveils out-of-stocks as emergent operant resources that alter and attenuate value creation across manufacturers, retailers, shoppers, users and their networks. It develops a model of value co-creation where manufacturer supply and shopper/user demand meet in the retailer's realm. Differentiating between shopper and user in a sequential model of value creation, it identifies the shopper as an active entity whose response to out-of-stocks redistributes value within the retail service ecosystem. An additional model is developed that illustrates the novel costs of an out-of-stock as uncovered by the S-D logic perspective, allowing retailers and manufacturers to align their interests in improving on-shelf availability.

Research limitations/implications - Moving distribution thought and management towards a goal of service provision, this article suggests three logistics research possibilities: retailer-manufacturer misalignment, spatio-temporal supply-demand mismatch, and shopper-user interaction.

Practical implications - This article shows how the S-D perspective can bring previously misaligned incentives of supply chain actors into alignment. Previous goods-dominant research showed little common ground for manufacturers and retailers to jointly improve on-shelf availability. The S-D logic view demonstrates compelling rationale for both parties' involvement.

Originality/value - Extends S-D logic literature by considering value attenuation through failures in physical distribution and logistics management, adding that non-availability causes operand resources to become operant and attenuate/redistribute value. Extends the out-of-stock literature by providing a theoretical foundation, and by showing the ecosystem effects of out-of-stocks.

Recent research that has applied service-dominant (S-D) logic to supply chain management (SCM) neglects SCM's prime objective to "deliver as promised" which is a core concept in the literature on logistics service quality and on-shelf availability. Addressing this, the paper proposes that mismatches in spatio-temporal availability may (1) render service-exchange and the co-creation of value impossible, (2) epitomize an enterprises' value propositions, and (3) attenuate value. The paper extends S-D logic to incorporate value-creation through spatio-temporal resource integration as a foundational premise. It implies that companies should focus on when and where they can assist their customers' own value-creation

ALDI founders Karl and Theo Albrecht would have agreed with Wal-Mart's founder Sam Walton. Walton was obsessed with detail. So were the Albrecht brothers. Walton and his managers knew that there is no magic formula for success, but that numerous small things contribute to it. ALDI shares this conviction: retail is detail: paying attention to all the success factors over decades. ALDI's success is the success of setting voluntary limits. For decades ALDI North kept its product range down to 600 items. At present this figure has presumably grown to 700. Ultimately in retailing, success is not decided by "buying power" and purchasing expertise. It is decided by marketing: the ability to truly focus on customer needs. ALDI could not have achieved its current success without close working relationships with its suppliers. Companies should be capable of developing their own business principles in line with their own cultures. ALDI has succeeded in doing this.