IKEA

IKEA is the world’s largest home furnishing retailer. It has around 380 stores
worldwide and is driving the furniture market in the developing nations.

Ikea is the provider of affordable, stylish, modern architectural designed

furniture, kitchenware and appliances that are shaping the comfortable living
of people around the world.

IKEA segmentation, targeting and positioning involves a set of consequent

marketing decisions that constitute the core of company’s marketing strategy.
Segmentation refers to dividing population into groups on the basis of their
common traits and characteristics. Targeting involves choosing specific groups
identified as a result of segmentation as consumers for the brand.

Positioning implies the selection of the marketing mix the most attractive to
the target customer segment. There are various types of positioning such as
mono-segment, multi-segment, standby, anticipatory, imitative, adaptive,
defensive and stop-gap types of positioning. IKEA uses mono-segment type of
positioning and accordingly, makes an appeal to the needs and wants of single
customer segment that are cost-conscious and prefers to get value for money.

IKEA segmentation, targeting and positioning:

Demographic, psychographic & geographic segmentation is used by the

company to segment the market to cater to the changing market dynamics of
home furnishing, Kitchenware & appliances industry.

Type of Segmentation
IKEA target customer segment
segmentation criteria

Region Europe, Americas, Asia & Australia, Russia

Density Urban
Geographic
Age 22 and older

Gender Males & Females

Demographic Life-cycle
Bachelor Stage young, single people not living at home
stage
 Newly Married Couples young, no children

Full Nest I youngest child under six

Full Nest II youngest child six or over

Full Nest III older married couples with dependent children

Empty Nest I older married couples, no children living with

them

Empty Nest II older married couples, retired, no children living

at home

Solitary Survivor I in labour force

Solitary Survivor II retired

Occupation Students, employees, professionals

‘Hard core loyals’

Degree of
loyalty ‘Soft core loyals’

‘Switchers’
Behavioral Benefits
Cost effectiveness
sought

Personality Easygoing and determined

User status non-users, potential users, first-time users and regular users

Social class Lower class, working class and middle class

Resigned

Psychographic
Struggler
Lifestyle[1]
Mainstreamer

Explorer

https://research-methodology.net/ikea-segmentation-targeting-positioning-
targeting-cost-conscious-customers/

IKEA’s vision is “to create a better everyday life for the many people”
It uses differentiated targeting strategy to satisfy the needs & wants of the
consumers who look for value for money furnishing solutions.

IKEA has transformed itself from being a product-based company to

positioning itself as a value-based positioning.

Vision- “To create a better everyday life for the many people”

Tagline – “Affordable solutions for better living”.

Segmentation:

Based on Geographies:

It divides customers based on the regions like US, Europe, Latin America, Asia
etc. Sizes of homes, choices of people differ across the countries. Tailored
content for each market is necessary.

Based on Income:

People from different income groups have varied choices and their propensity
to buy and how regularly they would buy also changes accordingly.

Based on Culture:

People with different cultures have distinct spending habits. Even the choices
of products as well as materials change with this.

Based on Lifestyle:

Urban, semi-urban and rural lifestyles are significantly different. Sizes of their
homes and furnishing styles differ as well. Also, material and color choices vary
accordingly.

Targeting:
The main target of IKEA is “Generation Y” or urban young aspirational people.
The people who would love to decorate their homes with stylish yet affordable
furniture. This generation would not use same furniture for decades. As soon
as they reach to different income level or as per trend they would junk the old
furniture and look for new. They provide these people with stylish, unique and
comparatively cheaper options. Parents having kids between age group 0-3, 3-
9 and 9-12 are targeted with different options. They are targeting larger
middle class market with affordable and good quality products. US customers
want big beds and closets whereas Chinese apartments are small so they need
smaller sizes. So, designs were changed accordingly.

In emerging countries urban people are targeted by IKEA. Also in China, people
were not so keen about assembling own furniture. People in India may not like
it as well. So, they would be targeting people young and urban population with
their products.

Positioning:

In U.S. and European countries Ikea positioned itself as a brand which sales
furniture at prices so low that more number of people can afford it. A brand
providing good quality and stylish products at low prices is the image in minds
of people. Ikea prices were higher than discounters like Aldi but lower than
West Elm and Bed, Bath & Beyond. This price helped them to position
themselves as a brand for wide middle class.

But in emerging countries like China this positioning confused buyers in the
beginning, as local manufacturers were manufacturing products at lower
prices, also they could copy the design at cheaper costs. So, in such countries it
positioned itself as an aspirational brand providing western styles. Though, it
kept the prices low thereby sticking to its mission. The same strategy would be
followed in India.

The IKEA concept is based on their market positioning statement “Your partner
in better living. We do our part, you do yours. Together we save money”.

There are different consumers that make up this target market. The first type
of consumers are those younger consumers who are just starting out in life
where they may be just moving to a new place or apartment or that the
younger consumers are couples who decide to move in together. These
consumers have a low budget and the concept to save the world because they
are concerned about the future and environment. These younger consumers
have the appetite to technology and modern style (Wei, 2006). The second
type of consumers are the students market who are looking for those products
that can provide convenience to their existing lifestyle. The characteristics of
this target market is typically lower income since they are not in the workforce
yet and that they have a simple approach towards useability and practicality.
The students want something that can solve their daily needs without much
hassles. The third target market is the older customers. This type of customers
wants something that is light and not too bulky because the older customers
tend to be downsizing. This means that they are selling out of their previous
residence and moving into an apartment style living for comfort and security.
Therefore, these customers are seeking the simple products that can provide
the comfort. Besides, the older customers tend to have a ‘green’ approach to
their lifestyle where they want to be environmentally friendly for the future
generation.

Based on this target market, Idea needs to position the products accordingly so
that they are able the meet the needs. To achieve this, the products are
designed to suit the needs of this target market. This is observed through the
simple and minimalist approach from the Ikea products (Blome, 2015). Ikea
does not aim to provide the highest quality product that is made up of solid
materials that are able to last a long time. Rather, Ikea aims to provide the
simple products that are tested against durability.

https://mpk732t12016clusterb.wordpress.com/2016/04/11/topic-4-
segmentationtargeting-and-positioning/
 UBER

Operating in more than 540 cities worldwide Uber have a come a long way in
operating as a cab aggregator from 2009. The company was formerly known as
Uber Cab and is founded by Travis Kalanick and Garrett Camp headquartered
in San Francisco, United states. It facilitates a platform for customers for
booking cabs at their locations while the app automatically prompts the
nearest Cab driver registered with Uber.

Uber’s marketing strategy in India was never once about large media spends or
traditional mass marketing methods like TV, Print & OOH. It was never even
about huge digital spends. Uber stuck to basics, always. The Uber team
focused on building a good product, putting it out in the market and speaking
about it in a language that instantly built a connect with the consumers. The
idea was to convince the consumer to try out the product once and Uber was
confident that the consumers would come back again.

Segmentation involves dividing population into groups according to shared

characteristics, whereas targeting implies choosing specific groups identified as
a result of segmentation to sell products. Positioning refers to the selection of
the marketing mix the most suitable for the target customer segment.
 Uber target customer segment
Type of Segmentation
Uber X, Uber XI, Uber Uber Premium, Uber Go,
segmentation criteria
pool, Uber-MOTO, Uber UberEATS, Uber BOAT, Uber Access
AUTO UberRUSH

North & South America,

Asia, & New Zealand North & South America, North & South America,
Australia, Europe, Africa Asia, & New Zealand Asia, & New Zealand
Australia, Europe, Africa Australia, Europe, Africa
Uber AUTO –
Region Bangalore and Pune
Geog-raphic
only
Density Urban/rural Urban/rural Urban/rural

Age 18+ 25-65 45-65

Gender Males & Females Males & Females Males & Females

Bachelor Stage

Newly Married
Couples Full Nest I

Full Nest I Full Nest III

Full Nest II
Full Nest II
Full Nest III Empty Nest I
Full Nest III
Empty Nest I Empty Nest II
Life-cycle Empty Nest I
Empty Nest II
stage
Demog-
Empty Nest II
raphic
Solitary Survivor I

Solitary Survivor II
Students, employees, Employees &
Occupation Retired & Hadicapped
professionals Professionals

‘Hard core loyals’ ‘Hard core loyals’

Degree of ‘Soft core loyals’
loyalty ‘Soft core loyals’ ‘Soft core loyals’

‘Switchers’ ‘Switchers’
Benefits cost-efficiency sense of achievement convenience
 sought

Behavi-oral Easygoing, determined,

Personality Determined, ambitious Easygoing
ambitious

non-users, potential
potential users, first-time non-users, potential
User status users, first-time users,
users, regular users users,
regular users

Lower class, working working class, middle

Social class middle class, upper class
class, middle class, class, upper class

Resigned, Struggler,
Psycho- Struggler, Mainstreamer, Aspirer, Succeeder,
Life-style[1] Mainstreamer,
graphic Explorer, Reformer
Explorer, Reformer

https://research-methodology.net/uber-segmentation-targeting-and-
positioning/

Both geographic and demographic segmentation is important because Uber

needs to know which areas to target for customers who are ready to use an
“on order transportation service” over public transport services. You will not
find Uber in Rural areas but mainly in urban areas only where it replaces taxis.

Differentiating targeting strategy is used by Uber in order to the share of wallet

customer brings in and how to increase wallet size by upselling. If we want to
define the type of differentiation used by Uber, then we can use the
terminology “Cost based differentiation”. Because of the very structure of
Uber as a company, there is a huge pricing advantage to the end customer
when they compare Uber taxis vs Publicly available modes of transport.

User benefit based and pricing positioning strategy is used by Uber to attract
customers from different strata of the society. Because day to day travel is a
huge cost to customers, positioning on the basis of Economy makes a huge
difference in the mindset of the customers.

Mission- “To connect people who need a reliable ride with people looking to
earn money driving their car”

Vision- “Not Available”

Tagline-“Where to?
https://www.marketing91.com/marketing-strategy-uber/

http://www.free-management-ebooks.com/news/stp-model/
Uber had a very thought out flow to their marketing approach

Launch -> Build Up -> Amplification -> Sustenance -> Growth

There were dedicated marketing activities initiated to achieve goals of the

above phases.

Influencer Marketing & Limited Access

Uber launched itself in Delhi NCR, Bangalore & Mumbai. They brought out a
campaign called Rider Zero where they roped in key influencers from every
city to try out Uber’s service for the first time “secretly”.

Referral Marketing

Instead of spending crores of marketing money on pushing traditional

campaigns, Uber decided to spend the money on giving the consumers a first
hand experience of the service to try out their product. Nothing works better
for the Indian consumer than a discount on a service they need.

Heavy Discounts, Festival Marketing & Product Development

With their referral marketing in full flow, Uber decided to go full throttle and
amplify their launch with product development by launching new cars, building
their coverage, expanding in other cities and the gift of choice from a
hatchback to a sedan to luxury and finally even an auto rickshaw.

Strategic partnerships

After all the right hooks and levers were pulled and things were moving north,
you need to keep doing a little something to stay there. Now this was the key
and the most impressive part of Uber’s strategy.

Tie up with Zomato

The option of booking an Uber from the Zomato app to reach one’s favorite
restaurant. Contextual and brilliant integration.

Tie up with Paytm

After they ran in trouble with the RBI regulatory authorities for flouting the 2
step verification rule for credit and debit card payments as well as using an US
payment gateway — they had to integrate their payment system through
PayTM wallet which in retrospect turned out to be a good move considering
PayTM

Tie up with BookMyShow

Uber tied up with BookMyShow as official logistics partner during the ongoing
T20 Cricket season. Again, this proved to be extremely contextual.

For Growth, you need to keep doing things right consistently because
memories are fragile and brands are replaceable.

Uber is being local

Uber is trying to catch the pulse and characteristics of every city.

Uber is being safe and social

What do we know? What have we learnt?

 In all of this, we have not seen Uber using any mass marketing methods
like TV, Print, OOH or Radio. Forget ATL, not even any promoted post
and tweets on Facebook & Twitter.

 Their primary means of communication with the consumer still remains

SMS and Email which seem to be working fine for the time being.

 Uber has invested a lot on their blog to document their efforts

 They are truly moving from 4Ps of Marketing to 3Cs.

Consistent, Contextual and Capability.

https://hooklineandclincher.in/ubers-uber-cool-and-unconventional-
marketing-strategy-in-india-f30d7994b6b4
CUSTOMER IS THE KING HAS BEEN PROVED WRIGHT BY SUBWAY IN ALL
THEIR MARKETING DECISION. HIGHLIGHT THE ACTION WHICH LET TO JUSTIFY
ABOVE FACT.

“A customer is the most important visitor on our premises. He is not

dependent on us. We are dependent on him. He is not an interruption in our
work. He is the purpose of it. He is not an outsider in our business. He is part of
it. We are not doing him a favor by serving him. He is doing us a favor by giving
us an opportunity to do so.”

– Mahatma Gandhi

The world is changing and the velocity of change in consumer behaviour is

changing at an increasingly rapid pace,"

There is a popular business motto that is used by corporate departments of

Customer Relations and Human Resources:

“A customer is the most important visitor on our premises.” Welcome a

customer into your business. It can be in person or on the phone. Even if your
business is an online website, you must draw the customer in and make them
feel comfortable.

“He is not dependent on us. We are dependent on him.” While your customers
may be dependent on what you sell, in the end you are more dependent on
them. Your customers pay the salaries for you and the rest of the employees of
your organization. For without customers, you have no sales, which means you
have no cash flow.

“He is not an interruption on work. He is the purpose of it.” No one should ever
treat customers as an interruption. On the contrary, customers should always
feel welcomed and encouraged to interrupt us whenever they want to.

“He is not an outsider to our business. He is part of it.” If your customers are
made to feel as if they are outsiders, they will eventually find a competitor who
makes them feel better about doing business with them.

“We are not doing him a favor by serving him. He is doing us a favor by giving
us the opportunity to do it.” In the end, the customer has choices. They honor
us with their business. Maybe it’s not quite doing us a favor, but the
alternative is that the customer does business with our competition. Make the
customer feel special and appreciated.

What is the total customer experience and why does it matter? At the root of
any managed service, customer service is absolutely crucial. While positive
customer service experience is a pillar to the coinciding success of on-demand
expectations, service delivery means nothing without an inherent relationship
in understanding a partner's needs, and retrieving feedback.

customers are generally key to your business success and you are responsible
for their perception of your business and services and of course – their
perception is their reality…

they are important, you need them and the success of your business or your
role in the business depends on them! A great practice to get into is asking
yourself – “who is my customer here?” and then plan your action accordingly.

You should understand the different types of customers you deal with and
tailor your approach to them. Once you understand your customers you can
really start to WOW them.

What great customer service means in the 21st century

It’s that age-old business mantra we’ve been hearing since we can remember -
‘customer is king’. It highlights the importance of customers (and potential
customers) in every business. Traditionally, it’s a rule that means your
company promises to provide good customer service to your customers. But
with the current evolution on work and business settings, coupled with ever-
increasing technological advancement, ‘customer is king’ means more than just
subscribing to good customer service, it means really practising it too.

1. Give them the best. Customers will still want the same thing - the best
value for their money. This is what you have to give them. Even before
you think of treating them well when they’re buying your services, you
should always keep customers in mind when developing new products
or offerings. Ask yourself all the time, ‘what will my king (the customer)
need or want?’
2. Know their power. The major premise of the mantra still holds true, you
should never offend your customers because it will mean serious loss for
your business. In fact, it is truer in today’s economy where customers
hold more power thanks to social media. In the past, what made a
customer king was their ability to boycott your products and influence
others to do the same through word-of-mouth. Today, social media
upgrades that power. Negative words about your company or your
brand can spread a lot faster over the web.

3. Don’t tell them what to do. A customer doesn’t want to be told what to
do. The ‘buy this’, ‘get this’ or ‘like this’ messages can only go so far.
Customers won’t buy your products just because you ask them to. In
fact, some studies show that aggressive marketing may actually turn
customers off. If you think of your customers as king, you should realise
that just like kings, they tend to listen and trust the opinions of their
advisers, the wise men of the palace. It’s therefore a great idea to
identify who these advisers are for your customers. Who influences their
purchasing decisions? Your answer should be the target of your
marketing strategy.

4. Make things easy for them. People want to save as much time, money
and energy as possible. That is why you have to make sure you’re
accessible to your customers. You should be where your customers are
because saving them the hassle will make them more likely to buy from
you. If you’re running an online campaign, for instance, the rule is to
make sure the mechanics are simple. The easier it is for them to
participate, the better. Because just like kings, customers want their
lives to be easier.

5. Let them call the shots. This isn’t to say that you let them run your
business. What we mean is that sometimes you could let your customers
dictate what they want or how they want it. We’re talking about letting
your customers participate in product development – Lego is one
company that has had input from ‘co-creators’, Starbucks is another, and
both to great success. The ‘I did that’ effect on customers of seeing the
results of their input builds a sense of engagement, empowerment and
advocacy.
Whatever industry you are in, whatever business you run, your customers and
would-be customers will always be one of your most valuable stakeholders.
How well you treat them will have a large impact on your business. Never treat
your relationship with your customers as transactional but instead as a long-
term relationship that needs to be sustained. Only this way can you give them
the great customer service they deserve.

A corporate cliche meaning that the direction of a business is ultimately

determined by its customers. The business is compelled to sell products and
services that customers want/need, at a price they are willing to pay, and
provide an acceptable level of service, otherwise customers will look
elsewhere and they will not make money.

RURAL MARKETING IS THE FUTURE OF INDIAN MARKETER. GIVE EXAMPLE OF

ANY ONE BRAND WHO IS DOING RURAL MARKETING VERY EFFECTIVELY IN
TERMS OF (1) MARKETING PRACTICES (2) PRODUCT LINES (3) CSR ACTIVITIES
(4) DIGITAL MARKETING.

Rural market is the key to survival in India. Most consumer markets are getting
cluttered, thereby slowing down the growth rates of consumer products. While
overall volumes continue to grow reasonably well, there are too many players
eating into each other's market share. Reducing prices and in vesting heavily in
sales promotion becomes inevitable in the urban markets.

Brief Overview of Rural Market of India

The rural market has been growing steadily over the past few years and is now
even bigger than the urban market. More than 800 million people live in
villages of India. ‘Go rural’ is the marketer’s new slogan. Indian marketers as
well as multinational ls, such as Colgate -Palmolive, Godrej and Hindustan
Lever have focused on rural markets. Thus, looking at the opportunities, which
rural markets offer to the marketers, it can be said that the future is very
promising for those who can understand the dynamics of rural markets and
exploit them to their best advantage.

The Indian rural market with its vast size and demand base offers great
opportunities to marketers. Two-thirds of countries consumers live in rural
areas and almost half of the national income is generated here. It is only
natural that rural markets form an important part of the total market of India.
Our nation is classified in approximately 630000 villages, which can be sorted
in different parameters such as literacy levels, income levels, penetration,
distances etc.

The main reason why the companies are focusing on rural market and
developing effective strategies is to tap the market potential, that can be
identified as follows:
Opportunities in Rural Market Of India

The rural market has been growing gradually over the past few years and is
now even bigger than the urban market. The saving to income percentage in
rural area is 30% higher than urban area.

https://www.onlinejournal.in/IJIRV2I4/059.pdf

http://ijbemr.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/THE-PRESENT-SCENARIO-OF-
INDIAN-RURAL-MARKET1.pdf

EXAMPLE HUL

https://www.slideshare.net/upsutkarsh/hindustan-lever-rural-marketing-
strategies

https://www.scribd.com/doc/35773466/Hul-Rural-Strategy

SCM SYSTEM OF WAL MART AS A GLOBAL REATAIL CHAIN HAS CHALLENGED

COMPETITORS LIKE BIG BAZAR. JUSTIFY STATEMENT WITH EXAMPLE.

https://www.skubana.com/walmart-leading-way/

http://blog.cemat.com.au/walmarts-supply-chain

https://www.slideshare.net/sagarc1990/walmart-supply-chain-management

https://graduateway.com/supply-chain-of-big-bazaar/

https://www.scribd.com/doc/45861225/Food-Supply-Chain-of-Big-Bazaar

NESTLE CRM

https://www.ukessays.com/essays/marketing/case-study-marketing-
planning-process-marketing-essay.php

https://www.bartleby.com/essay/An-Analysis-of-the-Marketing-Concept-of-
FK7UTYA5HKGEY

https://www.marketing91.com/marketing-strategy-nestle/

https://www.scribd.com/document/53676579/Nestle
http://www.sharedvalue.org/partners/funding-partners/nestl%C3%A9

https://www.slideshare.net/shveta_bhatia/customer-relationship-
management-2955032

https://www.scribd.com/document/53676579/Nestle

ck prhlad
http://thinkers50.com/blog/c-k-prahalad-top-and-bottom-of-the-pyramid/

The emergence of the 4 billion people who make up the

Tier 4 market is a great opportunity for MNCs. It also

represents a chance for business, government, and civil

society to join together in a common cause. Indeed, we

believe that pursuing strategies for the bottom of the

pyramid dissolves the conflict between proponents of

free trade and global capitalism on one hand, and envi-

ronmental and social sustainability on the other.

Yet the products and services currently offered to

Tier 1 consumers are not appropriate for Tier 4, and

accessing this latter market will require approaches fun-

damentally different from those even in Tiers 2 and 3.

Changes in technology, credit, cost, and distribution are

critical prerequisites. Only large firms with global reach

have the technological, managerial, and financial

resources to dip into the well of innovations needed to

profit from this opportunity.

New commerce in Tier 4 will not be restricted to

businesses filling such basic needs as food, textiles, and

housing. The bottom of the pyramid is waiting for high-

tech businesses such as financial services, cellular

telecommunications, and low-end computers. In fact,

for many emerging disruptive technologies (e.g., fuel

cells, photovoltaics, satellite-based telecommunications,

biotechnology, thin-film microelectronics, and nano-

technology), the bottom of the pyramid may prove to be

the most attractive early market.

So far, three kinds of organizations have led the

way: local firms such as Amul and Grameen Bank;

NGOs such as the World Resources Institute, SELF,

The Rainforest Alliance, The Environmental Defense

Fund, and Conservation International, among others;

and a few MNCs such as Starbucks, Dow, Hewlett-

Packard, Unilever, Citigroup, DuPont, Johnson &

Johnson, Novartis, and ABB, and global business part-

nerships such as the World Business Council for

Sustainable Business Development. But to date, NGOs

and local businesses with far fewer resources than the

MNCs have been more innovative and have made more

progress in developing these markets.

It is tragic that as Western capitalists we have

implicitly assumed that the rich will be served by the

corporate sector, while governments and NGOs will

protect the poor and the environment. This implicit

divide is stronger than most realize. Managers in MNCs,

public policymakers, and NGO activists all suffer from

this historical division of roles. A huge opportunity lies

in breaking this code — linking the poor and the rich

across the world in a seamless market organized around

the concept of sustainable growth and development.

Collectively, we have only begun to scratch the sur-

face of what is the biggest potential market opportunity

in the history of commerce. Those in the private sector

who commit their companies to a more inclusive capi-

talism have the opportunity to prosper and share their

prosperity with those who are less fortunate. In a very

real sense, the fortune at the bottom of the pyramid rep-

resents the loftiest of our global goals.

https://people.eecs.berkeley.edu/~brewer/ict4b/Fortune-BoP.pdf

walmart

https://mpk732.wordpress.com/2015/05/21/place-distribution-is-at-the-
heart-of-walmarts-success-2/

https://www.skubana.com/walmart-leading-way/

https://in.search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=AwrgEbCbMxdcDbIApx67HAx.;_ylc=X
1MDMjExNDcyMzAwMwRfcgMyBGZyA3lmcC10BGdwcmlkA0VMZEF2eW5NUld
tdjJkWHV2cDQyTEEEbl9yc2x0AzAEbl9zdWdnAzEEb3JpZ2luA2luLnNlYXJjaC55Y
Whvby5jb20EcG9zAzAEcHFzdHIDBHBxc3RybAMwBHFzdHJsAzM1BHF1ZXJ5A3d
hbCUyMG1hcnQlMjBkaXN0cmlidXRpb24lMjBjaGFubmVsBHRfc3RtcAMxNTQ1
MDI0OTQ1?p=wal+mart+distribution+channel&fr2=sb-top&fr=yfp-
t&vm=r&fp=1

There are nearly 6,300 international Walmarts spanning the globe, and over
11,700 retail units, all of which operate in 28 different countries.

Walmart operates under one of the most technologically advanced, and

efficient, supply chain management systems in existence.

It has pioneered ways to master distribution practices and manage inventory

electronically so that it knows at all times what products are needed, how
much products are needed, and when these products are needed.

This in turn guarantees that Walmart customers always get what they want
every time they step foot in a Walmart store, while keeping overhead costs to
a minimum.

Inventory Types at Walmart

Walmart utilizes various types of inventory to fulfill roles within the supply
chain.

However, there are 4 main types of inventory adding to their success that all
businesses should take note of.
Finished goods are the main type of inventory used by Walmart and make the
biggest impact on its overall success.

These goods arrive at Walmart stores directly, are replenished regularly, and
are always on hand in Walmart stores for consumers to buy.

Buffer inventory at Walmart stores is designed for those unexpected times

some goods are suddenly in high demand and running low.

Because of this innovative way of handling inventory, in addition to the

successful VMI system in place, Walmart was able to secure itself as Retailer of
the Decade in 1989, and even pass Kmart as the nation’s most profitable
retailer

At the time, Walmart distribution costs were 1.7% of its costs of sales, which
shattered even Kmart (3.5%) and Sears (5%), both household retail names at
the time..

Walmart was well on its way to making history as the most successful retailer
in the world.

Use of Advanced Technology

Since its inception, Walmart has been utilizing the power of technology to
streamline their supply chain process and give customers the lowest prices
possible on products and service

With this advanced technology, Walmart was effectively able to put their
employees back on the front line to provide better service to the customer.

https://www.nestle.com/aboutus/strategy