Audience Analytics for Purchase Forecasting and Optimization of a Leading Distributor

ASBIS is a leading value-added distributor (VAD) of IT, IoT, and Robotic solutions, products, and services to Europe, the Middle East, and Africa markets. With a remarkable revenue exceeding $3 billion annually, ASBIS has firmly established itself as a powerhouse in the tech industry. They represent more than 250 vendors, including worldwide-known brands such as Apple, Bang & Olufsen, Logitech and many more.

ASBIS actively invests in their distribution network, operates its own premium stores and even develops its own brands. Operating across 65 countries, ASBIS has a robust infrastructure that includes 34 regional offices, and 4 distribution centers strategically positioned to ensure seamless operations and swift delivery.

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S.G.: Serhei, who is a Value-Added Distributor in general?

S.K: Retailers and brands choose us because we offer unique and vast market expertise and rich data from different sources to help them optimize business processes and product line-up. Our value for them can be measured in a decrease in excess and leftover stock, better product launches and assortment that fits the needs and expectations of local audiences.

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S.G.: At DISPL we are big advocates for a data-driven approach, our tools provide businesses with data about offline audiences that was extremely hard to gather in brick-and-mortar before. Please, tell us how your business uses data and how important it is for you?

S.K: Yes, data-driven approach is extremely important in our business and the business of our partners. Effective management requires clarity, and it is imperative to understand customer behavior, anticipate seasonal demand fluctuations, and assess the impact of marketing and sales strategies.

The success of our business heavily relies on how we manage warehouse balances. Products stored in the warehouse represent frozen capital. If you have too many unsold products, you're losing money; if you have too few, you're also losing opportunities.

This is where data becomes crucial. Understanding sales volumes, traffic patterns, and customer profiles allows us to forecast the optimal quantity of products to stock in our warehouse. Additionally, we leverage data to enhance the effectiveness of marketing campaigns and optimize the allocation of employees across retail outlets and different days of the week.

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S.G.: If you are collecting and using this much data, you need an advanced platform to manage it. How your company approaches this challenge?

S.K: Absolutely! And we are serious about it. We have invested in and developed our own sophisticated ERP (enterprise resource planning) system designed to centralize and analyze data from multiple sources – IT4. This system integrates data from all our business areas and locations into a single knowledge base, which works twice as fast as a ready-made solution we used before. Speed and freedom of customization give us a serious advantage against competition and provide additional value for our partners.

IT4 combines historic sales metrics, ongoing marketing efforts, external factors or trends (like weather or national holidays), and, thanks to DISPL, audience analytics enables us to do our distribution tasks more efficiently, like plan and optimize procurement, minimize inventory holding costs, and drive high sales volumes for our partner brands. But also, it gives us much more knowledge about our business: we can predict, analyze trends, find what products work better in different markets, what promotions really work. And we also provide this information for our brands and retailers, increasing their performance.

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S.G.: What is the impact of using DISPL’s for your business?

S.K: Brick-and-mortar stores successfully compete with online counterparts through unmatched customer experience and ability to try and test the products. But richness of audience data enables data-driven marketing for online retailers – they get better results while usually spending less. And data on customer interactions, engagement, most interested audiences was a big differentiator between offline and online.

You see, one big advantage of offline retail is that your traffic is ready to buy from you. It means that, if you are prepared to serve a customer and have the right tools and data to push them for the purchase, your sales efficiency will be much higher. That is why the concept of Retail Media started growing in recent years – retailers and brands are realizing that using data in the sales process can yield great results.

Our warehouses are five times smaller than those of our competitors with similar business indicators, thanks to our investments in IT and data analysis. By understanding who buys what and when, we can manage purchases optimally.

{{Quote|https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6270f157923cfedd922e9299/67d5aebfa79f0c901c1a8ad1_ava_Asbis.jpg|"This approach saves us thousands.With improved market understanding and more accurate demand predictions for specific products, we operate more efficiently, reducing overhead expenses for both ourselves and our partners."}}

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S.G.: Serhei, thank you for this insightful discussion! In conclusion, could you please share your plans and ideas for the future?

S.K: The data and our tools allow us to understand the demand in real-time and make more accurate forecasts. All this reduces the cost of processes for all participants, including buyers. We will continue to develop our business, investing in technology to improve processes and maximize the value of our partners: retailers and brands.

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