In these days brand experience is a key factor for running a successful marketing strategy. Arvato SCM Solutions offers supply chain management and provides tailor-made, sustainable and innovative solutions that meet the individual needs of their brand partners so they can provide their customers with the best end-to-end shopping experience.
We interviewed Marcel Spieler, VP Global Business Development Hightech & Entertainment, to tell us more about Arvato SCM Solutions, how customers can profit, what makes them unique, which challenges they are facing and how they can add value to the wearables ecosystem.
Could you briefly explain what Arvato SCM Solutions is about?
Arvato SCM Solutions provides end-to-end services for leading firms and labels throughout a wide range of international industries and businesses. For decades it has been our mission to offer solutions and services that exceed our client’s expectations while adding sustainable value to their supply chain.
How can this help your clients and their customers?
Arvato’s capabilities in terms of quality, flexibility and cost-efficiency is a key differentiator when it comes to supporting our clients to reach their goals and in turn ensure their customers are satisfied. Experience tells us that flexibility in the Hightech & Entertainment industry is invaluable, we see very short product cycles as a result of the rapid pace of technological progress. At the same time companies are faced with highly competitive markets, at Arvato we can offer an easy and fast implementation if required.
How is Arvato developing and implementing digital services?
At the end it is all about the brand experience. Our job is to make sure that the brands we partner with provide their customers with the best end-to-end shopping experience. Innovation and technology as well as digital services are an enabler. In close collaboration with the e-commerce platform providers Salesforce Commerce Cloud, Oxid, Hybris and Spryker we have developed new features to keep you at the forefront of progress online when it comes to Shop Development. And our digital services do not stop here. Furthermore, we develop together with our clients global e-commerce entry strategies for various markets and countries. Digital is not a thing anymore, it is reality.
Can you tell what makes Arvato SCM Solutions stand out in the market?
The close relationships to our clients. Once on-boarded as a client our journey does not stop there, at Arvato we are focused on driving innovations through collaborations and bringing new and disruptive technologies in the supply chain to our clients. Our integrated solutions and global setup provide our customers with the peace of mind that we have them covered. With regional logistics clusters across more than 60 locations in 20 countries in the US, Europe and Asia we offer global capabilities and local expertise.
Which hurdles do you have to overcome (currently)?
We are very fortunate to be growing in terms of customer base and global warehouse footprint. Our biggest priority is to deliver and execute our implementation projects in a timely manner. Every project is different of course, but as a general rule we have devised a set of best practices to ensure implementations go smoothly and stay on track.
How can Arvato add value to the wearables ecosystem (B2B)?
Arvato is one of the very few players in the outsourcing service industry that can deliver the entire order-to-cash process flow out of one hand. Many companies with fast growth plans are looking exactly for these kind of services to scale their operations and sales globally – with a trusted partner. We support the wearables ecosystem by supplying fronted as well as backend solutions, all around global financial solutions, CRM, and of course logistics. This degree of integration is very rare in the market place.
How do you think the future of wearables will look like?
The future of wearables will be dominated by a few big players that control the entire ecosystem and combine the technology with, for example, smart home solutions. The integration of new functions, next to health & fitness features, is going to be key. New start-ups and players entering the market bring very interesting and new concepts that urge the innovation process of the giants on the market – all in all very promising times for us end-customers.
What is your favourite wearable device and why?
Call me old-fashioned but my favourite is the Apple watch. I have followed the brand for the last 20 years and I am still inspired.
