Case study

Supplier collaboration increases consistency and reduces complaints

The continued success of private brands in North America, including the move from being budget alternatives to many quality national brand equivalents and also destination brands (to differentiate from Amazon and discounters such as ALDI and LIDL), relies on a greater need for retailers to act as ‘brands’. This means listening to consumers more and reacting to feedback – good or bad. Constantly ensuring products consistently deliver on quality and the brand promise.

supplier-collaboration-reduces-complaints-feature

At a glance

Supply Pilot’s platform was used to consolidate feedback across multiple channels (product testing, complaints and online reviews) to provide a consolidated view of product and supplier performance.

Industry

Retail

Materially important issue

Customer feedback

Step of the process
Data-Driven KPI Activation
Platform elements used
Supplier Engagement Supplier Scorecards
Number of suppliers

600

Outcome

10% year-on-year reduction in CPMU

supplier-collaboration-reduces-complaints-banner

The solution from Supply Pilot provides increased visibility, allowing us to spend less time finding issues, and more time solving issues.

Director Private Brands Quality, North American Retailer

Background

Supply Pilot has been working with a major US Retailer and their own brand quality team to maximize visibility of customer feedback and quality or consistency issues. With thousands of products (food and non-food) and hundreds of suppliers, the volume of feedback means internal quality teams must triage and focus on the core issues. The highest volume of issues of which were identified as safety issues. Leaving limited time to investigate and action organoleptic or preference-based feedback.

Solution

The Supply Pilot Platform was used to consolidate feedback across multiple channels (product testing, complaints and online reviews) to provide a consolidated view of product and supplier performance. Combined with unit sales, it also allowed complaints to be analysed on a complaints per million units (CPMU) basis for greater context.

Importantly, The Supply Pilot Platform also provided suppliers with the same information on all of their products; a consolidated view of issues and feedback.

This makes the Corrective and Preventative Action (CAPA) process more efficient; allowing them to work as ‘one team’ to ensure consistent quality.

It also increased the number of ‘eyes on’ so all suppliers could see all feedback and customer verbatims on the products they supply. This enabled suppliers to be more proactive in their management of quality and consistency across their products.

Impact

The system has now been in use for multiple years and has consistently enabled the brand and its suppliers to reduce their complaints per million units (CPMU) by over 10% Year-On-Year, and over 35% since the system was launched to suppliers, supporting the continued success and growth.

Key facts

Thousands of private brand products

feedback consolidated

Multiple private brands

in North America

Hundreds of private brand suppliers

nationally and internationally

Tens of categories

food and non-food

Launch your pilot project in weeks

The world’s largest brands use the Supply Pilot Platform to navigate strategic and sustainable transformation through supplier collaboration. Book your demo today to see how it could help you too.