Real-time data helps Virgin cut lost sales rates

Stock management system creates efficiencies and cost savings

Virgin Retail keeps its stock replenished

Virgin Retail expects to reduce costs and increase sales by about £500,000 a year using a real-time stock management system.

The Microsoft BizTalk system delivers sales and inventory figures to head office every 15 minutes during the working day.

Kevin Hepburn, Virgin Retail’s head of software development, expects reductions in lost sales of £250,000 a year and operational in-store savings of £240,000 across 127 stores.

‘The same stock information used to take 24 hours to reach head office because it was only collected once a day at 1am in the morning,’ he said.

‘That meant we were essentially a day behind in being able to analyse and react to what was happening in our customer buying patterns and where our in-store inventory stood.’

The project will allow the company to gain a competitive edge on limited supply items and new releases.

‘We expect cost savings in avoiding lost sales and this is most significant with fast-moving products,’ said Hepburn. ‘Our buyers can now place orders a day earlier than they used to.’