Clarity® RFID Software (Part 1): Supply Chain Transformation
For retailers, creating accurate visibility across their supply chain and in-store operations can be challenging. However, once this visibility is achieved, a retail business can enhance operational efficiency, elevate customer experience, and convert additional sales. In today’s environment, customers see a seamless retail experience as a basic requirement. To achieve this, retailers must fulfill orders accurately and effectively and ensure shelves are always stocked. Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) can power this change by providing reliable and highly accurate inventory visibility, product information, and availability on demand, driving greater efficiency throughout the RFID supply chain.
A high-quality experience and seamless customer journey can only be achieved if retailers’ supply chains work at optimum efficiency and brands have clear inventory visibility from production to sale. Item-level RFID is essential to delivering this service. In this two-part blog series, we will explore the transformative value of our Clarity® RFID Software and how retailers can use it to streamline business operations within the RFID supply chain.
Clarity® and the Supply Chain
Today’s forward-thinking retailers are utilizing RFID tags to track their inventory with up to 98% accuracy seamlessly. The application of RFID tags at the supplier factory allows retailers to scan and track merchandise at the item level through every stage of the supply chain.
SML’s Clarity® software is the most powerful item-level RFID software suite on the market. This RFID enterprise software suite is built on our cloud-based Clarity® Core platform to deliver unmatched operational efficiency and accuracy in solving today’s retail store, logistics, supply chain, and customer experience challenges.
With specific visibility into key product details, such as stock count, color, and size, our Clarity® software provides accurate information to enhance business intelligence and facilitate better decision-making faster.
Increased inventory accuracy eliminates the risk of out-of-stock occurrences and can ensure that retailers maintain product replenishment across all stores without over-ordering inventory. This ensures constant availability for customers, maximizes sales opportunities and minimizes bloated stock levels throughout the supply chain. Ultimately, this reduces unnecessary manufacturing, transportation, and storage costs.
Within the supply chain, RFID and SML’s Clarity® software also help streamline the returns management process and assist businesses working with suppliers to ensure a 100% accurate packing audit, helping verify that picking processes match orders and guaranteeing downstream order compliance. Using RFID in the supply chain significantly reduces customer chargebacks for accuracy-related charges.
BOPIS, BOSFS & Returns
With the modern world of online shopping and products available on demand for consumers, it is important for retailers to have a streamlined supply chain management system to satisfy these needs or expectations. A September 2023 Statista e-commerce report shows nearly 11% of all online orders were picked up in-store. Businesses must, therefore, adapt internal processes to meet these demands, with a multi-location structure. Since COVID-19, many businesses have now depended on Buy Online, Pickup In-Store (BOPIS), Buy Online, Ship From Store (BOSFS) to leverage brick-and-mortar stores to increase customer traffic and reduce last-mile shipping costs. RFID ensures more successful deployment of both of these fulfillment options.
While focusing on the forward flow of inventory, it is important retailers don’t neglect the reverse supply chain, with an effective returns process playing a key role in driving customer satisfaction. According to SML’s State of Retail Insight Report 2023, only 47% of returned items are resold at full price, with 42% being sold at reduced price and 12% being not resold at all. With Clarity® deployed, retailers can create full visibility of their reverse supply chain. This minimizes the time returned products spend undergoing transportation and inspection, and helps to deliver improved margins on resold products.
By implementing Clarity® RFID solutions throughout the RFID supply chain, retailers can take advantage of benefits for both forward and return-flowing inventory and reduce the labor hours needed to fulfill simple tasks with RFID.
Contact our RFID software experts today to find out more about how Clarity® can transform your supply chain operations.
