Chapter 96

The "opening-day boom" at Flagship Department Store Store A and the IT department's initial green light on data integration subtly boosted both the internal visibility and support for Li Banjia's "Smart Retail" pilot project within the group. However, Li Banjia knew very well that these were merely two tiny steps taken on a long march, with much tougher battles awaiting him ahead. The next fortress that had to be conquered was the group's supply chain system, which had operated for decades and now appeared antiquated and inefficient. "President Wang, you saw the results of our Friday promotion at Flagship Department Store Store A ourselves. But there was a minor hitch at the time: a few top-selling lipsticks and serums ran out of stock by six o'clock in the afternoon due to insufficient inventory, throwing away quite a few orders for nothing. When we reviewed it afterward, the main reason was that the existing supply chain reacts too slowly and the replenishment cycle is far too long, completely failing to keep up with the precise marketing rhythm of our 'small-batch, fast-response' approach," Li Banjia seized the opportunity to throw out the issue during his routine report to Wang Laohu.