Kmart: Performance Management Tactics

Kmart- Performance Management Tactics More than one hundred years ago, Sebastian Spering Kresge opened a modest five-and-dime store in downtown Detroit and changed the intact landscape of retailing. The store that Kresge built has evolved into an empire of more than 1,500 stores and an Internet presence that reaches millions of customers. Overall, Kmarts workforce is highly diverse. Kmarts total associate population, including store managers, reflects the communities it serves. closely 32 percent of its workforce represents multicultural minorities. (Kmart Corporation 2008, Funding Universe) Nations second largest retailer made an effort in the past few years to manage headquarters strategy at the store level, at least in housewares, Kmart can report some success stories. Accurate category management can thus far the playing field and eliminate the gulf of mistrust that sometimes exists between vendor/broker and retailer, said Ron Gellish, director of strategic market planning for Kmart. reject Store News, May 1995) Performance Management Tactics first step is to review the category, make sure both the retailer and vendor agree on a source for data and that both understand terminology and methodology. A. Agree on the goal of the project, be it volume increase or profit gain. B. valuate the categorys unit and dollar volume growth rates over the past two years, both by retail trade channel and on a national basis.C. Determine the market shares for brands in the category and identify any areas ripe for cannibalization. Specifically, Gellish recommended that partners aggregate UPCs by vendor to gauge impact. For instance, the top brand could be from a small vendor, while the next four brands could be from a megacorporation. D. Be aware of which products are trending up and which are slowing down. Maintain objectivity.Be ready to pull your items if the data suggests they are performing poorlydont just try to delist your competition, Gellish. (Discount Store News, May 1995) Products must first earn approval from Kmarts persona Assurance and Technical Design Laboratory, and vendors that want to be thought of favorably by Kmart should participate in the retailers Partners for Quality and/or Partners in Merchandise lean programs. (Discount Store News, May 1995)