Retail Distribution Consulting Experience

MWPVL International Retail Distribution Consulting Experience

MWPVL International Inc. has experience with retail distributors across many industry sectors and countries. Our clients include Fortune 100 companies as well as small and medium sized businesses throughout North America, Europe, The Middle East and the Caribbean. Regardless of company size, industry, or geographical location, our clients share a common need for the highest caliber of professional supply chain and logistics consulting services.

For more detailed references please contact us . A partial shortlist of recent retail distribution consulting projects follows for illustrative purposes.

Industry

Country

Retail Distribution Consulting Projects

Grocery

• 10-year distribution network strategy study for a top 30 North American grocery retailer for all departments to identify the optimal location, size and role of each distribution center in the network based on new store openings and projected growth plans.
• Purchasing and inventory management study to identify opportunities to increase inventory turns by vendor / department.
• Distribution center design study of multiple options for a 900,000 sq. ft. greenfield distribution center. The study included a detailed comparison of the economics associated with a fully automated Witron case selection system; versus a semi-automated ASRS facility; versus a conventional distribution center.
• Multiple sourcing studies to evaluate ambient and chilled self-distribution to optimize overall profitability of the company.
• Development of an optimized route schedule program to identify the reduction in drivers and fleet requirements associated with making changes to the company's delivery delivery schedule.
• Reset of the company's Dry Grocery and Perishables distribution centers to increase capacity and pick facings and to improve flow through.

Grocery

• Design of a greenfield conventional 610,000 sq. ft. Dry Grocery distribution center for a top 75 grocery retailer with 250 stores.
• Design of a 736,000 sq. ft. greenfield Centralized Distribution Center for Slow Velocity Dry Grocery, Specialty Foods, Health & Beauty Care, and General Merchandise.

Grocery

• Product sourcing study and distribution network strategy for a mid-sized grocery retailer seeking to understand the economics of sourcing through an existing wholesale distribution relationship versus through a cooperative distributor versus through self-distribution.
• Distribution center design for a new 600,000 sq. ft. full-line distribution center.

Grocery

• Selection of an enterprise-wide distribution management system (DMS) to manage all front and back office operations including order management, purchasing and forecasting, accounts payable invoice matching, deal management, warehouse management, labor management, and transportation management.
• 10-Year distribution network strategy study to optimize the use of the existing distribution center infrastructure and to eliminate reliance on middlemen distributors.

Grocery

• Distribution network strategy to study the consolidation and closure of existing retail grocery distribution centers to enable reduced logistics operating expenses.
• Reset of a 900,000 sq. ft. distribution center to maximize capacity and productivity.

Grocery

• Product sourcing strategy to optimize a retail grocery distributor's profitability based on sourcing SKUs through company-owned distribution centers versus through an existing wholesale distributor relationship.

Grocery

• Design of a conventional Perishables distribution center for a highly automated Witron distribution center for a tier 1 grocer retailer.

Grocery

• Distribution center design for a new 1,000,000 sq. ft. full-line distribution center.

Grocery

• Distribution network strategy study/roadmap for a retail grocery firm with 275 stores for the next 10 years.
• Distribution center design for a new 1,000,000 sq. ft. full-line distribution center.
• Distribution network strategy study/roadmap for a sister retail grocery firm with 60 stores for the next 10 years with 9 scenarios evaluated.

Grocery

• Distribution network strategy study/roadmap for a 4ドル.5 Billion retail grocery firm to develop a roadmap for the next 10 years.
• Also studied all aspects of the company's purchasing and inventory management practices and systems to evaluate opportunities for improvement.

Grocery

• Distribution network strategy study/roadmap for a Canadian Grocery retailer with stores throughout Newfoundland.
• Design of alternative distribution center layouts to reset a brownfield facility.

Grocery

• Developed a 10-year business case for: a warehouse management system; voice directed picking; engineered labor standards, and slotting systems for four distribution centers for one of the largest mass merchant retailers in Canada.
• Lead a multi-site vendor selection for WMS, LMS, and Slotting Optimization Software.
• Evaluated 8 different material handling options to identify the most cost effective warehouse layout for a high volume general merchandise / apparel distribution center. This included push-back racking, flow-through racking, drive-in racking as well as a multi-level pick-to-belt rack-supported tower with conveyors to support split case picking.
• 10-year supply chain strategy study to optimize the company's distribution network.

Grocery E-commerce

• Strategic advisor for the design of a Brownfield ambient, chilled and frozen fulfillment center for a high-growth e-commerce food retailer in Montreal, QC.

Grocery

Lithuania

• Distribution network strategy study/roadmap for one of the largest retail grocery firms in the Baltics with stores throughout Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia.

Grocery

• Strategic advisor for the deployment of an enterprise-wide networked order management system.

Apparel

• Design of a warehouse expansion and reset of existing warehouse space for a high profile apparel retailer based in Los Angeles, CA.
• Project involved the development of 7 layout options for a 50,000 sq. ft. (including a 25,000 sq. ft. expansion) apparel distribution center handling flat pack as well as garments on hangers (GOH) with the use of overhead monorail systems (manual and powered).

Apparel

• Researched market for prospective and qualified 3PL logistics service providers with experience in the retail apparel distribution industry. Development of all 3PL RFI / RFP bid documents to support the company's efforts to outsource distribution to a 3PL business partner.

Apparel

• Development of detailed warehouse layout options for a facility reset and expansion project to support projected growth rates for a successful Internet e-commerce retailer in Wisconsin.
• Project involved the expansion and reset of a 130,000 sq. ft. distribution center in Madison, WI equipped with very narrow aisles and wire-guided turret trucks and order pricker trucks. To support growth, the facility was expanded by 21,200 sq. ft. and a 3-level walk-back pick-to-belt mezzanine operation was designed to provide for a significant increase in SKU variety and sales order line throughput.

Apparel

• Design of a facility expansion and reset for a retail sporting apparel distributor based in Salt Lake City, UT to support the company's projected growth rates and to increase warehouse labor efficiency.
• Also developed a high-level distribution network strategy for the next five years to help the company understand the economics associated with relocating their main distribution center.

Apparel

• Distribution network strategy for a major apparel retailer with over 600 stores in the United States to identify the economic impacts if the company opens a second distribution center.
• Study identified impacts on inbound transportation for imports, outbound transportation expense through UPS, warehouse operating expenses and inventory assets.

Apparel

• Operational assessment of a 115,000 Sq. Ft. e-commerce/retail distribution center in Laval QC for one of the largest apparel retailers in Canada.
• Design of a new 402,000 Sq. Ft. brownfield distribution center in Winnipeg, MB including conveyor systems, automated sortation systems, put walls, bombay sortation systems, and goods to person shuttle automation systems.

Footwear

• Distribution network strategy study for a major running shoe retailer seeking to understand the shareholder value and customer value created by adding a second distribution center to its distribution network.
• Study identified impacts on inventory assets, inbound transportation, outbound transportation, warehouse labor and warehouse fixed overhead expenses.
• Impact on customer service levels were determined and shareholder value was assessed through an after tax economic modeling tool developed specifically for the company.

E-Commerce Retail

• 24/7 home shopping and e-commerce retailer in Austin, TX.
• Conducted an audit of the company's distribution operations and issued recommendations in a number of areas to improve accuracy and efficiency.

Mass Merchant

• Product sourcing strategy study to identify the optimal distribution flow path strategy for every vendor/SKU sold at retail (over 100,000 SKUs). Study optimized how products are sourced: direct store delivery (DSD); versus self-distribution through the company's 500,000 sq. ft. distribution center. A detailed SKU-level ABC costing model was developed to account for all logistics expenses and inventory asset costs to identify the most advantageous vendors / SKUs to switch from self-distribution to DSD and vice versa.
• Distribution center design of multiple mechanized warehouse layouts to support flow through, cross docking and stocked inventory requirements.

Mass Merchant

• Fortune 50 retailer with 20+ distribution centers
• Strategic advisor to assist the firm in its internal strategic study of its logistics network and the evaluation of logistics technology solutions and process flows.

Home Hardware

• Served as a strategic advisor to develop an optimal distribution network strategy for a 1ドル.4 Billion multi-channel specialty retailer of hard surface flooring and related accessories.

Home Hardware

• Retailer with over 100,000 SKUs of home products, hardware, tires, food, etc.
• Conducted a strategic study to evaluate self-distribution versus direct store delivery for all vendors doing business with the firm.
• Also led the design of numerous options to expand the company's distribution center.

Office Supplies

• 10-Year distribution network strategy study for one of the largest office supply companies in the U.S.
• Identified distribution center closures / consolidations due to declining market conditions.
• The study also evaluated alternative rear and forward deployment strategies within a complex network involving over 30 facilities and 30,000 SKUs.

Pet Supplies

• Documented all existing process flows and identified economic benefits for a new WMS solution.
• Developed a WMS roadmap and a vision document depicting the future operational process flows to be supported by a new WMS.

Pharmacy

• Product sourcing strategy to evaluate self-distribution versus an existing wholesale distribution relationship.
• Distribution center design and implementation of a greenfield 160,000 sq. ft. mechanized facility.

Hardware

• Market evaluation and selection of an enterprise-wide distribution management system (DMS) to manage all front and back office operations including order management, purchasing and forecasting, financial accounting, warehouse management.
• Distribution center layout and design, reset and implementation of systems and operations improvements.
• Conducted a 10-year strategic study to define the optimal distribution infrastructure following the company's merger with another retailer.

Consumer Electronics

• Strategic advisor for a 10-year distribution network strategy study for one of the largest retailers in the world involving a complex network of 25 distribution centers.
• Strategic advisor for the evaluation and selection of a Warehouse Management System (WMS) and Transportation Management System (TMS)

Automotive Aftermarket

• Evaluated a legacy warehouse management system for a major Canadian automotive aftermarkets parts retailer/wholesaler
• Project identified if the application should continue to be developed versus being replaced with a new best-of-breed application.

Health and Beauty

• Distribution network strategy study to optimize the company's distribution infrastructure and to delay capital investments to maximize the leverage of existing assets.
• Development of multiple distribution center layout options and operating processes to optimize labor efficiency through the use of zoned picking systems and high-speed conveyor applications.

Health and Beauty

• Product sourcing strategy to optimize the company's profitability based on sourcing SKUs through a self-distribution strategy versus through a new wholesale distributor relationship.

General Merchandise

• Distribution center design for a new 600,000 sq. ft. retail distribution center handling slow moving SKUs including Health and Beauty Care, General Merchandise and Consumer Products.

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MWPVL International Inc. is a full-service global Supply Chain, Logistics and Distribution Consulting firm. Our consulting services include Supply Chain Network Strategy, 3PL Outsourcing Strategy, Distribution Center Design, Material Handling Systems, Supply Chain Technology Advisory Services (WMS, TMS, LMS, YMS, OMS, DMS, Purchasing, Slotting ), Transportation Management, Distribution Operations Assessments, Warehouse Operations Consulting and much more.