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"Given that the shoe business depends heavily on seasonal influences and fashion trends, we need direct access to all the relevant information so that we can react flexibly whenever our customers have new requirements. This is why Vögele Shoes puts its trust in the Business Intelligence solution from Business Objects, ensuring that we will continue to play a leading role in this market in the future."

Max Bertschinger,
Member of Management at Vögele Shoes

So the shoe always fits

Vögele Shoes was founded by Karl Vögele in 1922 at Uznach on the upper shores of Lake Zurich, and nowadays it is numbered among Switzerland's leading footwear suppliers, as well as being one of the most important in Austria. The company's entire competence focuses on the retail shoe trade. Vögele Shoes operates 260 branches in Switzerland and another 90 in Austria. Thanks to this good geographical coverage combined with a wide range of products, the family firm (which employs approximately 2,400 staff) is able to sell more than 8.5 million pairs of shoes per year.

New shoes
About four years ago, Vögele Shoes began to consider how more information could be extracted from the data supplied by the product management system which the firm had developed itself. In connection with this review, the entire IT strategy was also analysed at the same time. Sources of help included the expertise and experience of a consultant who was able to draw on know-how from Germany: he drew the management's attention to the subject of "meaningful bases for decision-making". The analysis revealed that the existing system was no longer adequate for the needs of the management staff. On the one hand, information from the product management system was only available on a functional basis and on the other, there were no analytical tools to forecast developments. For this reason, the firm decided to introduce a completely new system. Top priority was given to building up a sound database capable of delivering meaningful bases for decision-making.

Spoilt for choice
There were plenty of potential providers for the solution that Vögele Shoes wanted, but the firm was well aware of a sound principle: there is no need to enter into compromises if a "green field" start is possible. Three providers ultimately reached the shortlist, and the final decision was to opt for Business Objects, represented by the Bull company (now known as the Sema Group), which was awarded the order as general contractor for this project. The key factors in the decision were these: the proposed solution was not too complex, it offered an excellent cost-to-benefit ratio and (virtually most important of all) it would quickly yield specific, practical results and evaluations. The Business Intelligence solution from Business Objects has fulfilled these requirements excellently.

Nadine Vinzens
Miss Switzerland 2002 is always in line with the
latest trend.

The path to the goal
A team was assembled around Max Bertschinger, Member of Management with responsibility for finance and IT, and to keep the project risk as low as possible so that staff could focus fully on in-company assignments, they decided to enter into a general contractor's agreement with a cost ceiling. Fifteen clearly defined reports on the basic implementation scope were drawn up in advance as integral elements of the agreement. This meant that a major step had already been completed prior to implementation as such, and the project team could focus its entire attention on data quality and plausibility - a key factor in any project of this sort. After careful data streamlining, it was possible to hand the project over to productive operation after a six-month implementation period.

Now the shoe fits
"Nowadays, our data are in excellent shape, allowing us to use the information we obtain from them to react speedily to market events", says Max Bertschinger. "With the help of our Business Intelligence, for example, we can safeguard our 100% guarantee", Max Bertschinger continues. Vögele Shoes' 100% guarantee gives dissatisfied customers the chance to return products even after several weeks, for example if the shoes do not fit.

However, the greatest benefit comes from the trend analyses, which have given the company a strong basis for decision-making and significant benefits in terms of product management. "Now, we are better able to determine the range, as well as the various shoe sizes", Bertschinger comments. "And we should not forget the reporting here", adds Maurus Steinauer, Network/Data Warehouse Manager. "This virtually allows our regional sales managers to serve the branches in realtime, with constant monitoring of daily sales", Steinauer continues. In a flat hierarchy such as the one at Vögele Shoes, reports for decision-making purposes are not only available to management, but also to the sales and purchasing staff - making it possible to optimise the whole ordering process, for example. The inventory must always be able to satisfy the demand triggered by costly marketing campaigns, particularly in a business that depends very heavily on seasonal influences and fashion trends. Reports such as "Top 10 sellers" are especially appreciated by the Vögele team - they combine informative numbers and pictures so that trends can be spotted early on and suitable reactions can be triggered.

Consolidating the lead
For the future, the company is planning a new product management system which will also integrate the POS terminals. This will enhance the importance of Business Intelligence even further. The auditing and finance sectors are also set to benefit from these informative reports. Mr Bertschinger sums up: "Quite simply, we want to have the right product in the right place for the shortest possible time".

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So the shoe always fits

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