How to spot voids and protect ...
November 8, 2021
By harnessing real-time, store-level insights from retailers like Walmart, ZURU isn’t just playing in the global toy market – they’re redefining the rules.
In the heart of New Zealand, a modern-day global empire flourishes, driven by a combination of cutting-edge analytics and creative imagination. Welcome to the world of ZURU Group. Founded in 2003, ZURU has expanded from its Kiwi roots to become a powerhouse in the toy industry worldwide, boasting a broad and dynamic portfolio ranging from seasonal summer staple Bunch-O-Balloons™ to the global sensation Mini Brands™.
Beyond the toy aisle, ZURU owns fast-growing brands in the pet, baby, and wellness categories — including Monday Haircare, a suite of millennial-pink products rapidly gaining internet fame and capturing retail market share.
ZURU’s secret weapon? Automation and a commitment to applying data to data in every decision.
A data-driven vision
In the fast-moving, dynamic world of consumer goods, agility is paramount. With distribution across 120 countries and a lean business model that minimizes reliance on warehousing – opting to ship direct-to-store from their manufacturing facilities – ZURU recognizes the need to sync with customer demand in real-time.
To realize their vision of a streamlined, data-empowered supply chain, Director of Sales Operations and Analytics Franz Oliveira signed on to Crisp in Spring 2022. For Franz, the goal wasn’t to merely access data, but to enable the entire company to make data-driven decisions, from supply chain to merchandising.
Previously, Franz’s team spent 10-15 hours per week pulling reports manually, which left analysts with little time to uncover important insights. With team members spread across multiple time zones, it was even more difficult to aggregate information and work efficiently as a unit.
“With Crisp, tasks that took us hours to complete have been condensed to minutes,” Franz highlights. “This has allowed us to pivot from number crunching to innovation and efforts that drive the business forward.”
Today, ZURU is going to market with new products in as little as three months, effectively staying ahead of demand and pioneering early category trends. This helps ZURU build strong, strategic partnerships with retailers like Walmart, where they’ve boosted total distribution 55% in the last year.
“With Crisp, tasks that took us hours to complete have been condensed to minutes. This has allowed us to pivot from number crunching to innovation and efforts that drive the business forward.”
Franz Oliveira, Global Director of Sales Operations & Analytics at ZURU Group
Assembling retail success
Crisp seamlessly integrates into ZURU Group’s daily workflow across multiple use cases, teams, and time zones, including:
Proactive inventory management
ZURU has elevated the concept of inventory management, seamlessly moving from demand plan to manufacturing, then direct to retail at the store level. With insights from Crisp, ZURU advises retailers on which products to stock at individual store locations for optimal sales.
“When we go to Walmart and Target we don’t just tell them how much to buy, we tell them where the product needs to go,” Franz clarifies.
This precision-driven approach, supported by real-time, store-level data, ensures that products are readily available where the demand is highest, enhancing sales and customer satisfaction.
Minimizing markdowns
Reducing the need for markdowns protects profit margins and brand value. By using Crisp to allocate the right amount of product to each store, ZURU has successfully sidestepped up to 50% of potential markdowns in the last year, safeguarding and even boosting its bottom line.
Detecting voids
Solving for voids is not an ad-hoc effort for ZURU; it is a regular and vital component of their analytics, ensuring that they are always aware of what’s missing and where. Backed by machine learning, Crisp’s voids dashboards help the team maintain a consistent product presence across all its retailers, fostering trust with its partners and ensuring a reliable brand experience.
Maximizing merchandising
Effective merchandising can mean the difference between a new toy flying off the shelves or remaining undiscovered. Historically, decisions about where to target maintenance efforts have been based on broad strategies or even gut feelings.
Today, instead of dispatching merchandising teams to randomized locations, ZURU leverages Crisp’s data analytics to pinpoint exactly which stores require merchandising attention. The team can then leverage sales insights to tailor unique store strategies that boost sales.
Store-level marketing
Marketing efforts can also boost sales volume, but as Franz puts it, “we don’t want to market to an empty shelf.”
Imagine a scenario where ZURU’s latest product iteration is flying off the shelves in Seattle but has significant stock left in Miami. Traditional digital marketing methods might blanket both regions with the same campaign intensity. But with store-level insights, ZURU can amplify its advertising spend in the Miami area and ensure marketing dollars have the greatest impact.
Swift go-to-market decisions
In the competitive, yet innovative toy category, time is of the essence when launching a new product. We know that ZURU can bring a product to market quickly, but what happens after the first shipments reach stores?
“We have a million decisions we need to make within the first two trades –notably, whether we need to increase or decrease supply [to any given location]” Franz explains.
Enabled with Crisp’s real-time, store-level insights – unlike syndicated data packages which maintain six-week delays – Franz and his team of analysts can refine strategies in real time during the critical post-launch period.
Devising seasonal sales strategies
In November and December 2022, ZURU experienced an 86% year-over-year sales increase at Walmart.
This surge is a testament to all of ZURU’s data-driven efforts throughout the year and reflects the strategic use of Crisp’s insights to optimize inventory and marketing strategies leading up to the holidays.
As the season kicks off, the impact of ZURU’s efforts is becoming increasingly evident, with ZURU already seeing a significant year-over-year rise in November unit sales: 9% at Walmart and 13% at Target, respectively.
Collaborating as a category advisor
ZURU stands apart in the toy sector, positioning itself as not just a supplier, but an advisor to retailers driven by a relentless passion for data. Their data-first approach to retail isn’t just about pushing their products, but optimizing the retail space for the best consumer experience.
Franz emphasizes, “Our buyers tell us that no other brands are bringing data to the table like we are. We not only propose our products, but we show how the retailer can optimize the space as a whole and make it consumer-centric.”
As Franz explains, this might even mean suggesting that some of their shelf space be given up to other suppliers if the data suggests it’s in the best interest of the consumer experience.
These suggestions reflect a practice known as joint business planning, or JBP. By definition, JBP helps suppliers and retailers build winning relationships that benefit both parties and improve the commerce experience through clear insights into the other’s needs and recognition of mutual interests.
“In line reviews, our forecast accuracy is much better [than other suppliers] because of our access to store-level data,” Franz points out. This precision allows ZURU to anticipate market needs, adjust its strategies in real-time, and ensure its retail partners are always a step ahead.
“Our buyers tell us that no other brands are bringing data to the table like we are… In line reviews, our forecast accuracy is much better [than other suppliers] because of our access to store-level data.”
Franz Oliveira, Global Director of Sales Operations & Analytics at ZURU Group
Unboxing insights: How ZURU’s Mini Brands™ make for big business
In a true meta moment, ZURU leverages Crisp data to ensure that its pint-sized, CPG-licensed Mini Brands™ collectibles remain synchronized with the dynamic rhythms of the macro market.
ZURU’s Mini Brands™ offer whimsical, yet starkly accurate miniature versions of everyday products found in households across the globe. These compact collectibles aren’t just toys, but rather a cultural phenomenon; a convergence of nostalgia, brand recognition, and the simple joy of unboxing surprises.
Online, viewers tune in by the millions to watch influencers unveil which mini products they’ll discover next, adding a communal and anticipatory aspect to the experience.
These fast-moving, hyper-trendy goods require nothing short of real-time data, and an agile and responsive supply chain which ZURU accomplishes with Crisp.
From insights to innovation
At ZURU Group, Crisp’s provision of store-level data has become so integral it’s now highlighted in presentations to retail partners.
Franz elaborates, “Any time we present to companies like Walmart or Target, we talk about who we are, and then we discuss Crisp, and our company’s data transformation.”
With the integration of Crisp, ZURU’s data bottlenecks have since been eliminated. Instead of relying solely on Franz’s sales analytics team for insights, all teams now have direct access to essential information.
“Today, we don’t spend time talking about numbers because everybody has the numbers. We spend time talking about strategy and driving the business forward,” he states.
Beyond the numbers and charts, it’s the stories of innovation and disruption that truly set ZURU apart. Their dedication to reimagining tomorrow, whether through toys or technology, signals a bright future.
“Anytime we present to companies like Walmart or Target, we talk about who we are, and then we discuss Crisp, and our company’s data transformation.”
Franz Oliveira, Global Director of Sales Operations & Analytics at ZURU Group
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