Asos is doing very well in the retail industry, and a big portion of their success derives from their operations.
The UK giant is a top clothing and beauty retailer that “delivers to 190 countries around the world, while [receiving] 65% of its £552.9m of sales from outside the UK.” What these sales do not show is that Asos is a purely online retailer having no high end fashion store anywhere.
“The multi award-winning company gets 18.8 million visitors to its site every month and has a total of five million regular customers.”
In order for Asos to maintain these numbers, their operations must be above par and ready to adapt.
Two big issues arise in Asos in terms of logistics: 1) receiving thousands of diversified products made on five continents on time and 2) delivering the right product to the right customer in an efficient manner.
Firstly in solving these issues I want to note that Asos solely operates with one warehouse located in Yorkshire where they send out all their products for delivery to their customers. I view this as a good idea because this can lead to a more efficient workforce from the unified employees. Additionally, if a problem did come up, it would be easier to source the root of it because there is only one destination to look at.
Secondly, Mr. Robertson, the CEO, puts a lot of focus into his couriers ensuring a variety of ways to deliver Asos’ products. An attractive feature of Asos is that they also have free delivery, both local AND on an international level.
In essence, these points of differences truly do add to the overall succession of Asos and it is without a doubt, that the suppy chain of Asos is working at a very efficient level. Whether it is the free shipping aspect, or picking out its couriers, Mr. Robertson has made a blueprint for success in terms of operations.
This article has really made me realize how important operations is. With a big company like Asos, it seems that operations is the very driving force to success. A good business will have an efficient supply chain from the very beginning to the end. It pays off as evident in the quote,
However, a look at the company’s latest results show it is paying off. Sales outside the UK increased by 64pc to £332.6m in the year to the end of August, including a 91pc increase in the US.
Lastly, Robertson says this
“We’re constantly pushing the logistics companies to be faster, quicker and cheaper.”
Sources:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sponsored/business/norbert-dentressangle/9633870/asos-online-fashion-retail.html