American retailer Build-A-Bear Workshop Inc. has made millions by allowing children to create their new best friend in-store. However, the fun, frivolity of kids “stuffing” their fuzzy companions sometimes can result in toys that are busting at the seams. Luckily, this type of problem can easily be fixed with a needle and thread. But in a beverage warehouse, a facility that’s busting at the seams with SKUs needs more than amateur sewing knowledge to solve its problems.
“SKU proliferation has affected the beverage industry in much the same way that it’s affected the retail sector,” says Gene Billings, director of software products for Cincinnati-based Intelligrated. “This product expansion requires better management of warehouse, slotting [and] product movement from receiving to picking through shipping. With the increases in SKUs, better visibility into trends such as seasonality and how that will affect the efficiency of fulfillment and overall storage needs becomes greatly important. Along with the requirement of tightening up warehouses’ storage, SKU expansion also brings with it the need to further optimize order fulfillment processes since more touches are required.”