Corporate Objective

"In 2013, our focus will be on further strengthening out store brands, accelerating revenue growth, maintaining strict cost control and generating free cash flow." - P.B., CEO (Source: Store Brands Decisions, January, 2013) 

Challenge and Vision
This leading food retailer was looking to transition from reactive food safety and basic quality control tactics to building strategic brand positioning by integrating quality, taste, freshness, health, nutrition, product sustainability and safety. Their strategy included building their private brand to represent 40% of their assortment and over 50% of their sales, making it a key differentiator.

Quality Needs

The company needed a quality system that would help to deploy an effective ‘quality and food safety’ strategy across thousands of private labels products and hundreds of stores, and essentially run enterprise quality as a business within the business. This included providing decision-makers with quality performance reports on the different entities throughout the supply chain, overcoming regulation and compliance to improve operational efficiencies, and supporting their strategic objective of having a clear and recognizable brand.

Solution

• Innovation and Improved Product Quality: Striving for better awareness of quality strategy, requirements, and process and tools, the food retailer proactively searched for product improvements to make them tastier, healthier, and more sustainable. By implementing a quality solution, the company was able to create transparency on material origin and composition and was able to develop an impeccable sample with quality equal to end-product quality.
• Committing to the Product Specifications Agreement: By implementing an Enterprise Quality solution, the company was able to ensure that all information needed to develop the product was complete and submitted on time. Creating a culture of accountability ensured they were able to commit to complying at all times with the supplier requirements and product specifications throughout the entire product life cycle.
• Delivering Impeccable Product Quality: The company was able to produce its private label brand by using a combination of laboratory analysis, reinforced quality control at reception, and sensory performance checks by internal and external benchmarks. As a result this food retailer could ensure that customers were getting the best product as the best price and store brand sales increased.

TrackWise Solutions Purchased

• Action Items
• Adverse Events
• Registration Tracking
• Product Recall/Withdraw
• Service Request/Work Order
• Training Management
• Complaints
• Incidents
• Audits for EHS
• Audits for GMP/Quality
• Nonconformities

Outcome
The company saw second-quarter net profits 20% ahead of market forecast.