Shell Oil Plans for Weather-Induced Buying Swells
Shell Oil Company's SOPUS Products, makers of Black Magic, Rain X, Pennzoil, Quaker State, Jiffy Lube, Fix-a-Flat and Gumout branded products, licenses Planalytics Business Weather Intelligence platform to keep products in-stock at retail stores when weather creates a surge in consumer buying. Because SOPUS feature highly seasonal products, including wiper blades and fluid washer, Planalytics Business Weather Intelligence indicates what quantity of product that stores will need and when the buying behavior will be most active. "We've just started with Planalytics and we've seen some wins already," says Chris Hayek, group appearance brand manager, SOPUS Products, Shell Oil Company. "In one instance, we shipped an additional 30,000 gallons of washer fluid because we knew where storms were coming. Demand increased as expected, stores needed the additional product and it sold through within a week. This benefited our retailers and us very quickly." SOPUS Products also plans to utilize Planalytics Business Weather Intelligence in customer collaboration efforts with their major retail accounts. "We aim to provide the highest level of service and value-added benefit to our retail customers as possible," comments Hayek. "Having intelligence from Planalytics improves our efforts to minimize stock-outs and maximize additional sales."