In today's retail landscape, smooth data flow, transparent inventories and dynamic replenishment are crucial for sustainable success. Kunert shows how the combination of Chainbalance and Prankes' EDI database solves precisely these challenges and has transformed its replenishment process and achieved measurable improvements through automated processes, precise inventory overviews and flexible control.
Kunert's challenges
- Replenishment in ERP: static and difficult to control
- Annual inventory update
- Lack of transparency regarding actual store inventories
- Late identification of anomalies and changes in demand
Solution through Chainbalance & Pranke
- Data provision via the Pranke eGate®
- Shadow Copy Account for automated data transfer
- Basis for dynamic, data-based replenishment with Chainbalance
Kunert's results
- Dynamic target’s reduce inventory by 13% and increase sales by 9%
- Rapid identification and correction of anomalies through regular inventory data
- Easy and efficient maintenance (40% less effort) of target quantities through Chainbalance
From static processes to data-driven decisions: The central challenge in modern retail
For Kunert, the biggest challenge was not having an up-to-date view of the situation in the stores without regular inventory data. Static replenishment based on annual inventories left little room for quick reactions or transparency.
For Kunert, dynamic inventory management therefore means one thing above all else: knowing what is really happening in the store at all times. This allows shortages to be identified more quickly, overstocking to be avoided and demand to be mapped more accurately: the basis for efficient, automated replenishment.
Challenges of static processes
Before Kunert started working with Chainbalance and Pranke, replenishment was limited by static processes. Inventories were only updated once a year, which meant that changes and deviations in the store were hardly visible. This made it almost impossible to respond flexibly to demand.
This led to three key problems:
- No transparency regarding current inventories → Anomalies were detected late.
- No dynamic adjustment of target stocks → It was almost impossible to respond to changes in demand.
- High manual effort with low precision → Static parameters (target stock, sales, replenished quantity) offered only limited information.
- German fashion label specialising in hosiery
- Combines textile expertise with modern brand management
- Stands for quality, comfort and contemporary design
- Digitalisation and process optimization play a central role in the drive for greater efficiency and sustainability
- 400 POS in 4 countries (Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Netherlands)
How Chainbalance and Pranke were able to transform processes
The combination of Chainbalance's dynamic logic and Pranke's stable EDI database has significantly improved the entire replenishment process at Kunert. For the first time, sales and inventory data could be processed on a weekly basis: automatically, reliably and without additional effort. This enabled flexible rebalancing, greater inventory accuracy and a noticeable increase in efficiency. Now, all inventory data is updated weekly instead of annually, target stocks are adjusted dynamically while stocks are reduced and sales are increased. In addition, inventory anomalies are detected and corrected much more quickly, and target quantities are maintained automatically. The data is provided smoothly through a shadow copy account in Pranke.
less manual effort
less overstock
more turnover
Optimized inventory & less tied-up capital
The dynamic adjustment of target stock levels led to significantly lower average stock levels and more stable product availability:
- Average stock levels reduced by 13% despite dynamic demand
- Faster detection and correction of stock anomalies
- Lower capital tied up in retail stock
Higher turnover through better replenishment
With weekly inventory data and automated replenishment, stores could be supplied more quickly and sales losses due to missing stock were reduced:
- 9% increase in sales thanks to improved responsiveness
- Precise and automated replenishment in response to rising or falling demand thanks to Chainbalance
- Significantly fewer stock shortages on the shop floor
- 40% less effort thanks to automatic replenishment
“The automation of dynamic target stocks has reduced our average stock levels while simultaneously increasing turnover. In addition, we can identify stock discrepancies much earlier and react more quickly.”
The next steps for a successful partnership
Even after the successful introduction of Chainbalance, the collaboration between Kunert, Chainbalance and Pranke remains dynamic. The continuous exchange regularly generates new ideas that help Kunert to further optimise the use of Chainbalance and make processes even more efficient. The focus is on making additional customer-specific adjustments and further strengthening the database in order to make future replenishment processes even more precise and flexible.