| Retailing is the most active and attractive sector for | | | | Excel is the simplest and effective tool used for |
| last few decades. Since the onset of computers in | | | | making calculations and performing one time analysis. |
| retailing from past few years, retail executives, | | | | Nowadays most of the retailers' uses excel in some |
| managers, and professionals have been challenged to | | | | capacity as data repository. Taking action from insight |
| find the most effective way to report information. | | | | often also drives business processes such as ordering, |
| Writing report is a complex issue since many factors | | | | cancelling or revising orders, inter store transfers, price |
| must be considered. | | | | promotions, clearance mark downs, allocations, |
| Every retailer has to manage products, suppliers, | | | | replenishment, assortment planning, in season plan |
| channels and customers. A retail organization must ask | | | | revisions, supply chain optimization, and price |
| itself what role each of its functional business areas | | | | optimization. Some of the statistical software, SAS |
| has in managing these entities? How does | | | | and SPSS, provide a complete, comprehensive and |
| merchandising, planning, store operations, finance, | | | | integrated platform for data analysis, including solutions |
| supply chain management and marketing measure | | | | for data integration, analytics and forecasts. |
| success and failure? How does each of these | | | | A much better approach is to utilize business |
| aspects identify recurring problems and uncover | | | | intelligence to constantly examine thousands of data |
| opportunities? What action does each area take upon | | | | points to find outliers, and appropriately inform users |
| learning of outstanding or disappointing performance, or | | | | along with supporting detail. What is appropriate |
| when problems or opportunities are uncovered? | | | | depends on the user and what they are doing. It might |
| A retail report provides information on grocery retailing, | | | | be an email, a dashboard alert, or a downloadable |
| food retailing, textile retailing, retail banking, electrical | | | | format. |
| retailing, energy retailing etc. It provides insights on | | | | Report gives summary on top performers, bottom |
| product and market trends, analysis, opportunities, | | | | performers, key value items, sales performance, |
| projections, sales, marketing strategies, market | | | | forecasting trend and seasonality. Effective reporting |
| segmentation and its size and growth in the domestic | | | | gives benefits of increased knowledge, improving |
| and global markets. | | | | return on inventory assets, increasing sales, reducing |
| Nowadays retailers face problem with increased | | | | expenses and improving business relationships. |
| products, lack of inventory calculations, unutilized | | | | The success of a retail business is grounded in strong |
| spaces, problems in identifying consumer purchasing | | | | merchandise performance. Retail reports helps retailers |
| behaviour and making marketing decisions etc. | | | | improve their productivity by understanding sales and |
| To find a solution for above problems, IT systems are | | | | inventory, seasonality and trend patterns. Retail reports |
| very good at transforming raw operational data into | | | | enhance employee productivity and operational |
| information. Information is a vital building block for | | | | efficiency. It helps in maximizing sales volume and |
| business intelligence, but information alone does not | | | | revenue. |
| produce any benefits. | | | | |