Picking Up the Pace in an Omnichannel World
From recreational joggers and professional trailblazers to fun runs and ultramarathons, running continues to pick up popularity at a rapid pace. This trend rings true around the world.
For Brooks Sports, Inc., more commonly known as Brooks Running Co., the rise in running means opportunities as well as challenges. Headquartered in Seattle, Brooks designs and markets high-performance running shoes, apparel and accessories in more than 60 countries worldwide. The company’s 2014 sales reached nearly $550 million, with 90% of sales going through wholesalers, distributors and retailers. The rest went straight to consumers.
“Brooks has spent the last 40 years keeping the runner at the center of everything we do. That relationship is changing as things change in the runner’s world,” said John Rangel, Brooks chief financial officer. Runners decide how they want to interact with a brand, its products and other enthusiasts. They gather information from blog sites and online forums. They purchase online and make returns in stores. They expect products to be available when, where and how they want.
This omnichannel experience, combined with rising demand and accelerated inventory dynamics for retailers across the globe, drove Brooks to make some shifts of its own.
Connect, Collaborate, Accelerate
Brooks receives most of its orders through a business-to-business e-commerce portal and uses an EDI system to process purchase orders, invoices and related documents for its retail partners. Driven by increasing transactions, the company began migrating to a new ERP system that will improve operations, including inventory management and financial accounting.
“We have full visibility over inventory in our warehouse and in transit,” Rangel said. “But a lot of our retailers, especially smaller ones, don’t have the full visibility they need.” This supply chain visibility plays a crucial role in optimizing fulfillment speed and accuracy. Rangel added, “There needs to be more sharing of information and transparency between brands and retailers.”
To support collaboration with its trading partners around the world, Brooks selected SPS Commerce Integrated Fulfillment, a cloud-based solution that automates the exchange of forms and information between retailers, suppliers and 3PLs. This pre-built solution seamlessly integrates more than 100 business systems, simplifying the onboarding process while supporting more efficient communications and transactions across trading partners.
Hitting Full Stride
Brooks continues to work on implementing solutions for responding to new market dynamics, omnichannel challenges and global inventory management across various e-commerce sites. The company has established a foundation of supply chain management visibility, collaboration and transparency between partners that will help reveal insights for increasing efficiency and streamlining fulfillment. At the same time, Brooks can onboard new trading partners with increased speed and flexibility, as users only have to connect once to the SPS network for ongoing access.
“It’s a work in progress,” Rangel said. “But we think it’s critical that we establish that relationship between our partners where data flow goes back and forth, so that we can analyze that data, make predictions and share those with them.”
According to Rangel, the goal for Brooks is to upgrade its systems to achieve a single mix of ERP and supply chain management technology that can support the company’s evolving global network of e-commerce sites. It’s one more way Brooks is gaining a competitive advantage in a fast-paced industry, providing runners with the products they want — when, where and how they want them. And it is one more way Brooks is able to keep its brand promise, placing runners at the center.
Hear more about how Brooks is building its business around the consumer.
For Brooks Sports, Inc., more commonly known as Brooks Running Co., the rise in running means opportunities as well as challenges. Headquartered in Seattle, Brooks designs and markets high-performance running shoes, apparel and accessories in more than 60 countries worldwide. The company’s 2014 sales reached nearly $550 million, with 90% of sales going through wholesalers, distributors and retailers. The rest went straight to consumers.
“Brooks has spent the last 40 years keeping the runner at the center of everything we do. That relationship is changing as things change in the runner’s world,” said John Rangel, Brooks chief financial officer. Runners decide how they want to interact with a brand, its products and other enthusiasts. They gather information from blog sites and online forums. They purchase online and make returns in stores. They expect products to be available when, where and how they want.
This omnichannel experience, combined with rising demand and accelerated inventory dynamics for retailers across the globe, drove Brooks to make some shifts of its own.
Connect, Collaborate, Accelerate
Brooks receives most of its orders through a business-to-business e-commerce portal and uses an EDI system to process purchase orders, invoices and related documents for its retail partners. Driven by increasing transactions, the company began migrating to a new ERP system that will improve operations, including inventory management and financial accounting.
“We have full visibility over inventory in our warehouse and in transit,” Rangel said. “But a lot of our retailers, especially smaller ones, don’t have the full visibility they need.” This supply chain visibility plays a crucial role in optimizing fulfillment speed and accuracy. Rangel added, “There needs to be more sharing of information and transparency between brands and retailers.”
To support collaboration with its trading partners around the world, Brooks selected SPS Commerce Integrated Fulfillment, a cloud-based solution that automates the exchange of forms and information between retailers, suppliers and 3PLs. This pre-built solution seamlessly integrates more than 100 business systems, simplifying the onboarding process while supporting more efficient communications and transactions across trading partners.
Hitting Full Stride
Brooks continues to work on implementing solutions for responding to new market dynamics, omnichannel challenges and global inventory management across various e-commerce sites. The company has established a foundation of supply chain management visibility, collaboration and transparency between partners that will help reveal insights for increasing efficiency and streamlining fulfillment. At the same time, Brooks can onboard new trading partners with increased speed and flexibility, as users only have to connect once to the SPS network for ongoing access.
“It’s a work in progress,” Rangel said. “But we think it’s critical that we establish that relationship between our partners where data flow goes back and forth, so that we can analyze that data, make predictions and share those with them.”
According to Rangel, the goal for Brooks is to upgrade its systems to achieve a single mix of ERP and supply chain management technology that can support the company’s evolving global network of e-commerce sites. It’s one more way Brooks is gaining a competitive advantage in a fast-paced industry, providing runners with the products they want — when, where and how they want them. And it is one more way Brooks is able to keep its brand promise, placing runners at the center.
Hear more about how Brooks is building its business around the consumer.