Business case
After the company was restructured by new owners, JFP, in 2019, a comprehensive schedule of improvements and investment began.
At the time, VITA was running on an older platform, where parts of the software were end-of-life. “The biggest challenge we had with one of our previous platforms was that we had a lot of customizations,” says Kristian Sonnenberg, Chief of Digitalization and Technology at VITA, “When we tried to update the platform, things could easily fall apart and we spent a lot of time trying to get things right before we were back at full operations.” Overall, the software performed its function but lacked support for the omnichannel customer journey. Customers could only redeem their loyalty points in physical stores, and many products could only be returned to the store where they had been bought.
For these reasons, VITA decided to look for a simple-to-use retail software solution that could handle its processes while enhancing the customer experience.
The project's focus came down to these key objectives:
- Automate – Optimize inventory using automatic replenishment
- Unify – Create a unified shopping experience across all channels
- Personalize – Improve the customer experience to increase loyalty
The solution
The cosmetics retailer mapped its requirements evaluated different systems and suppliers and selected LS Central, a complete retail solution based on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, as its new system.
VITA also decided to run LS Central in the cloud as Software as a Service (SaaS). Kristian Sonnenberg told us why this was ultimately the best decision for the company:
- Continuous updates with less complexity. The SaaS model eliminates the need for expensive and time-consuming upgrades.
- Access to full functionality. The company automatically has access to new features and functionality when the software is updated.
- Platform synergies. The company was already using the cloud-based business analytics service, Power BI, and Microsoft Dynamics ERP, allowing them to easily connect all their information into one platform.
Bedege, a local LS Retail partner, oversaw the implementation. “We needed a partner that would understand not only ERP, but also what is going on in our stores specifically,” says Sonnenberg, “The Bedege team is excellent. They are a true retail company. They have also been very flexible, thinking outside the box and accommodating our needs.”
VITA, supported by Bedege, went live with the solution in 116 stores between February and May 2023. “We rolled them out quite quickly,” says Sonnenberg.” “It took 6 weeks to roll out all the POS. The implementation went smoothly, and the best part is that our daily operations were not affected at all.”
Benefits
In the first short period since implementing LS Central SaaS, VITA has already experienced some benefits. With their key objectives in mind, they’ve managed to:
Automate
- The Replenishment for LS Central module helps the company order the right amount of stock and provides demand forecasting.
- Each store gets an overview of planned deliveries and can suggest changes to the order.
Unify
- No matter what channel a customer orders from, all channels are accessible in one single backend.
- The company can centrally control prices, offers, and campaigns for all their physical locations and eCommerce.
- Products are available across all stores and channels, simplifying product returns.
Personalize
- The company has relaunched its loyalty program as VITA Venn or “Friend of VITA.”
- With the integration between LS Central and Voyado, all customer information and communication is centralized in one single Customer Data Platform, allowing VITA to offer better customer personalization.
- Customers have the power to choose how they want to redeem their points and coupons, whether in-store or online.
To keep up with their significant online growth and meet customer demand, VITA decided to transform their manual warehouse operations using new technologies. "The challenges we faced with manual storage were primarily centered around scalability and efficiency," says Sonnenberg. "As our operations grew, it became increasingly evident that a more streamlined and technologically advanced approach was necessary." In 2023, the company implemented a custom-made AutoStore warehouse automation solution from IT partner Element Logic. They expanded their warehouse from 3,200 to 3,700 square meters, with 500 square meters dedicated to the new robotic system for order picking.
With AutoStore in place, all orders coming in through VITA's online store are routed to LS Central and Business Central, and from there to AutoStore where the entire picking process is automated. 17 order-picking robots pick and deliver goods at 5 ports, or workstations, following the smartest available routes on the grid as calculated by the AutoStore controller. The system automatically performs inventory control and sends the updated balance to Business Central and LS Central. Currently, approximately 12,000 products from VITA's online store are placed in the AutoStore, but the company can add more without having to expand the warehouse.
The company says the new robotic system for order picking has enabled them to speed up delivery and increase storage capacity in a space-efficient way. "The transition to the automated picking solution has been a transformative journey for us at VITA," says Sonnenberg.
The team at VITA has a lot of ideas about how to make more improvements and take full advantage of their software capabilities.
With Bedege and LS Retail on their side, VITA is confident they will be able to manage their business efficiently and expand operations even further.
