• Economies of Scale

• Inventory • Wide supply chain of 60.000

management suppliers worlwide.
• Improve the current private
industrial network
• Vendor Manage • Improve demand aggregation
Inventory (VMI)
• Low wages
• No health insurance
for workers
• Strong Policies (Avoid
bad image)

• Electronic Data • Mastering: cross docking, demand

Interchange (EDI) -based
supply chain
• Collaboration tools management system
with suppliers. • Retail Link Network
planning, forecasting, inventory
management, strategic sourcing, and
distribution management.
• Reduce the time required to supply its
retail stores.
• Ease of meeting the aggregate demand
of all the Walmart stores
 • It starts with the customer. Retail Link system
connects consumer purchase data to Walmart
1. Where does purchasing system and to vendor supply systems.
Walmart’s supply
• They have more than 60,000 suppliers worldwide, the
chain start? largest in the world. Retail Link connects Walmart’s
What triggers largest suppliers to its own inventory management
Walmart’s Retail system and requires them to track actual sales.
Link system to
ship goods to • Most of traditional supply chain starts with a
manufacturer or a supplier distribution to the stores
local based on forecasts sales, in a push driven supply
Walmart Stores? chain. Walmart use a replacement stock from
inventory, driven by customer demand.
 • Walmart has regional and local differences
2. Why is a among all Walmart's stores, based mainly on
detailed different patterns of consumption considered
knowledge of such as location, culture, local
economy, weather and others.
consumer
purchases at
each store • Walmart uses this information as an input to:
• Adjust inventory: avoiding unnecessary stock and
important to having products available.
Walmart’s • To meet customer needs and increase loyalty.
success? • To optimize sales revenues.
• Reduce costs (cross-docking).
 • Competitors also ought to master these capabilities: cross
docking, demand planning, forecasting, inventory
3. Why can’t management, strategic sourcing, and distribution
management.
other large
retailers • Retail Link has decades of development, creating an
advantage in the know-how, that increase barriers for their
easily competitors, and it require a high level of investment.

duplicate • Walmart has market power on its suppliers, by requiring

Walmart’s them to use the network to respond to orders and to track
actual sales to replenish supplies according to demand.
Retail Link? Walmart also introduced financial payment systems that
ensure that Walmart does not own (pay) the goods until
they arrive and are shelved.
 • Because suppliers can immediately access information on
inventories, purchase orders, invoice status and sales
4. Why does forecasts in real time.

Walmart • Also because the system does not require smaller supplier
encourage firms to adopt expensive EDI software solutions, they can
use standard computers and the software it's free.
its vendors to
learn how to • Walmart can manage more effectively the stock in stores,
avoiding stock-outs or overstocking, also reducing costs.
use
Retail Link? • Walmart ensure that they do not own the goods before are
in shelves, reducing liability on Walmart because they are
not responsible for lost or damaged goods.