Question

melcom has an online store in addition to the 44 retail outlet in all sixteen regions of Ghana . Illustratrate with relevant examples, critically discuss how the online sales affect Melcoms supply chain ability to meet customers need

Answer 1

Online retail anchored itself inside the first decade of the millennium, it jostled for space and started to push the conventional or brick-and-mortar retail in the direction of the sidelines. organized retailers like Melcom have opened online channels to engage with the consumers, the concept focuses on interaction with the potential customers in many formats: greater channels might be better—a multi-channel technique or an omnichannel approach; if not footfalls in the bodily store, then, as minimum clicks on the websites may enhance the selling pattern. Melcom has 44 stores in Ghana and an online store to sell their products. The online store is the need of the hour and an excellent way to penetrate the entire world market.Online stores has narrowed down the deliver chain. The intermediaries had been deducted. Buyers directly reach to sellers. This has affected in price and time of the purchase. On the alternative hand, it has virtualized the deliver chain.

Melcom retails store has adopted a modern way of selling and invested in the online store to reach the entire country and the world. But this has not eased the situation; in fact, it may be aggravated due to chain complexities. But the delivery chain models of brick-and-mortar retail and online retail are different for the Melcom store. Traditional retail chains follow a sequential multi-tier structure: manufacturer, a centralized warehouse, regional distribution centers, and physical stores. Each nation contains its very own standards and certification, so preserving compliance across all states requires transparent communications and reliable monitoring, with real-time actionable statistics such as stay equipment readings and signals for equipment in want of maintenance. As a result, the motion of goods is slow, more stock is distributed within the entire chain and the operating fee of maintaining various facilities, specifically the stores, is substantial. Customers have interaction with the retail body of workers in the shop and their shopping is store-centric. Stores offer ‘click on and collect’, promoting comfort in selecting items and buying them, as well as accepting alternative methods of payment, like PayPal. Third-Party Logistics companies (3PLs) can help smaller corporations load-stability their inventory based totally on customer vicinity and seasonal fluctuation records.

Melcom store has to manage the entirely new dimension Warehouse, Inventory, Logistics, Omnichannel, and Multichannel management to manage online stores. Online retail does away with a multi-echelon distribution center model and ships the item direct from the warehouse to the customer without preserving any of the facilities and having to undergo overheads. The online shopping experience is nearly impersonal. Getting the statistics perfect–by using sharing data, no longer paper–streamlines and eliminates wasteful use of human resources and time. These solutions can also assist remedy the problem of fluctuating inventory ranges and rapidly changing product assortments within Ghana. With many outlets resorting to maintaining the product in trailers on their yards, it is turning into increasingly tough for operators to manipulate inventory. However, integrating e-commerce features with multiple beneficial programs and customer relations software programs will definitely help melcom online store to combat supply chain challenges and offer the transparency that is needed to be successful at online selling.