Since 1987, State of Art from Lichtenvoorde has been working its goal: dressing men in current, sporty and authentic fashion of high quality. Moreover, it wants to make this top segment accessible. Supply Chain Director Martijn Mateman: 'Thanks to smart digital and logistics solutions, we always manage to take big steps, at home and abroad. Together with DHL eCommerce, our loyal, valued partner for more than 30 years.'
High quality, low threshold
'From the beginning, we wanted to make high-quality fashion accessible to a broad, international audience', says Martijn. 'In terms of price, but also accessibility. That is why we have been working step by step for years towards the omnichannel approach that we now have. We have our own stores and a webshop, but we also supply retailers and online marketplaces such as Zalando.'
A full set of channels
"Even though our products are available through multiple channels, it feels like a whole. This is because we have merged everything with our ERP system. At a glance we see what is going on with our stock, what happens at the cash registers and what is returned. This system is also linked to that of DHL eCommerce, our logistics partner. They automatically receive a notification about an order via our channels, immediately see where the package comes from and where it should go. And whether it has to go to a consumer, store or retailer: DHL takes everything at once from our distribution centre or our stores.'
Smart fashion
Martijn is proud of how IT-advanced State of Art is. 'Such an integrated ERP system is so valuable to us. In addition, we have also been using RFID tags in the labels of our clothing for a few years now. This gives us immediate accurate insight into our stock. Suppose someone in Utrecht orders a blue sweater in size M. We immediately see that it is not present there, but is in stock in Groningen. And if our ERP system shows that that sweater continues to do well in Utrecht, we immediately adjust our stock distribution accordingly. This way DHL eCommerce always brings our stuff to the best location.
Continuing to take steps
'We want to continue to grow in the fashion, IT and logistics fields in the coming years, within and outside the Netherlands. DHL eCommerce thinks along with us: they like to discuss our strategy, look ahead and also continue to innovate. For example, we can now use the new DHL portal, a smart tool in which all the information from DHL eCommerce about our orders and deliveries comes together and we can plan ad hoc pick-ups – of course we love it! But in the end, it is account manager Anita van Rooij, the boundless network and the openness, flexibility and (delivery) reliability of DHL eCommerce that has made the collaboration very successful for so long.'