Cloud computing - perfectly suited for fashion
- Summary:
- Cloud computing is well suited to meet the growth, time-to-market and planning needs of the highly dynamic fashion industry, finds Infor's Robert McKee
After all, with a potential to introduce new systems with greater speed and at a lower cost, cloud applications are hands down the fastest growing area in the software market today. A recent Mint Jutras enterprise solution study, for example, reports that, ''SaaS-based applications are 36% of all manufacturing and distribution software installed today, and will grow to 65% within 10 years.''
This incredible growth is driven by how the broad-based capabilities of the cloud make it relevant to almost any type of business. And, if we examine the specific demands of the highly dynamic fashion industry, we find the model particularly well suited.
Let's take a closer look.
Prepare for omni-channel growth
With the pressure of global competition increasing daily, today's fashion companies must constantly invent new ways to engage with their customers.
The resulting web of sales and distribution channels demand integration across an overwhelming range of retail outlets, online stores, product aggregators, pop-up stores, and kiosks to name just a few. By moving to the cloud, an organization can seamlessly connect all of these disparate outlets to achieve real-time visibility of their entire network, faster than ever. As Jean-François Roncatti at Infor cloud customer Christian Louboutin says:
With the opening of more than 100 new stores in 20 countries in the last seven years, the company has changed radically; this evolutionary project and harmonization of our management processes demonstrates the evolution and transformation of the group.
Replace guesswork with analytics
Another major advantage of cloud for fashion is the ability it offers users to employ sophisticated new planning tools. In an industry where 30% to 40% of products are sold at markdown prices, improved planning can make all the difference.
One way to improve planning is through social CRM tools. Nucleus Research notes that, “Social CRM increases the productivity of sales professionals by nearly 12%.” By examining buying patterns, integrating with social media platforms, and gauging consumer attitudes, fashion companies can replace the guesswork of the old days with insights driven by sophisticated technology and analytics tools.
Importantly, this Big Data analysis relies on massive storage capacity and processing power that's simply out of reach for most on-premise solutions.
But with cloud's networks of highly optimized and capable servers, users can tap into the power they need wherever they are, on the device of their choice.
Speed up the time to consumer
With trends appearing faster than you can say "Lady Gaga's Silver Dress," fashion companies must react with lighting speed if they wish to capture demand as it happens. As Manufacturer Magazine has observed, “It is now common for a single product to be designed, manufactured, and shipped by different companies, requiring a common cloud for coordination.”
By helping users connect internally and with suppliers in different locations, the cloud enhances collaboration right across the value chain and speeds up the entire process — from concept through to consumer.
Anticipate spikes in demand
The fashion industry is inconsistent by nature — with seasonal collections, sales, promotions, and other specific events placing excessive demands on IT environments. A company like China’s Alibaba, for example, processed more than $5.75 billion in its online payments system during its “One Day Shopping Spree,” which was more than two and a half times the total for American retailers compared with last year’s Cyber Monday, reports The New York Times.
That’s a huge spike in workload. These spikes require processing reserves that are largely underutilized during day-to-day operations. Not only is this a very expensive way to manage an infrastructure, there's no guarantee these reserves will cope with unexpected surges in demand.
With the cloud's completely scalable model, on the other hand, users have constant access to the exact capability they need, without paying for anything they don't. And, when you have spikes in workload, your IT systems must be ready to handle anything. Just think: What would have happened had Alibaba not been able to keep up with the demand it had created? While the ‘big boys’ like Amazon and Alibaba rely on their own infrastructure, smaller businesses with similar concerns need to use the scalability of cloud to meet these demand spikes.
Try it for size
With a modern infrastructure relying on an interconnected suite of task-specific applications, you may be wondering if migrating to the cloud requires a complete upheaval of your current IT system.
But this should certainly not be a barrier.
By introducing one cloud application at a time, you can gradually transition towards a comprehensive solution, while progressively evaluating how the model is working for your business.
Chances are, it will suit you perfectly.