Starting a Q-Commerce Company: Fundamentals (Part Three)
Your Retail Coach
Retail Consulting | Standard Operating Procedures | Franchise Consulting | Ecommerce | Business Plan | Omnichannel
In two of the previous media releases, retail and eCommerce consulting firm, Your Retail Coach (YRC) highlighted the first two sets of fundamentals in starting a q-commerce company. In this communiqué, the omnichannel consulting firm lists and shares insights on the concluding set of fundamentals on the same topic. The three sets of fundamentals covered in these three communications on the subject should not be regarded as all-encompassing because it is not possible to cover everything in briefings of a short nature.
Inventory Management
Inventory management is played out differently in quick commerce. For starters, there is a greater emphasis on fast-moving or popular goods. They sell quickly and restocking activities are always on the highway mode. For accuracy in demand forecasting, the ability of analytics tools and systems to generate fast and reliable inputs is of paramount importance in quick commerce. Thirdly, local fulfilment centres play a pivotal role as having the required stock at the required levels in these local hubs determines the ability of a q-commerce business to fulfil orders as per the standards of quick commerce. Warehouses are still important but the action gets on livewire from the level of local fulfilment centres. With increasing volumes of inventory in play, the task of managing the flow of inventory becomes more extensive and complicated. In between all these, the application of QA and QC measures also cannot be missed.
A standout feature of quick commerce inventory management is the nature of its reliance on software applications (more precisely, quick commerce inventory management solutions). The integration of inventory data in the software ecosystem cutting across business functions and processes holds special relevance. For example, the quality team, deciding to hold the supply of a faulty product batch, must have access to real-time data and sufficient powers to control the flow of inventory within the software ecosystem. The window for making such changes is very small in quick commerce. The impact of such decisions must immediately reflect in the fulfilment centres where such goods are stored or in the process of order fulfilment.
Best-Fit Technology and Software Systems
A lot of ‘quickness’ in quick commerce is possible because of the quick commerce technology platforms at work behind it. Entrepreneurs or business owners who are thinking of starting a quick commerce company must be aware of the technologies that are used in this line of business and the importance of integrating quick commerce with existing systems.
A Warehouse Management System (WMS) serves as the mother software system controlling the flow of inventory to all the fulfilment centres and micro fulfilment centres. Different businesses may organise their distribution structure as per their unique requirements and strategies.
Demand forecasting applications must also come with the ability to help optimise inventory levels. This is in addition to their ability to predict demand across product lines specific to local markets or areas.
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Micro-fulfilment Center Management Systems provides the software ecosystem to manage the operations of each micro-fulfilment centre. It encompasses all the activities pertaining to inventory starting from incoming inventory to goods going out for order fulfilment. The data generated by these systems are crucial at the levels of enterprise-wide inventory management.
Delivery Management Systems (DMS) go a step further down in the value chain and deal with last-mile delivery management. This covers task assignment to delivery executives, route optimization (analyse real-time traffic as per law), tracking pickup and delivery progress, secure communication options with customers and back-end teams, completion of orders, etc.
Registration and Paperwork
Nothing could be more important than being on the right side of the law prevailing. A business may fail, succeed, or take a middle route but not being legally compliant could bring a whole new set of problems. To start a business, there are laws in every country. These laws may be different from place to place but the essence is the same - compliance with the law of the land. The generic steps are choosing a business structure, business/company registration, obtaining necessary licenses, permits, and permissions, payment of the necessary fees, obtaining a tax identity number, complying with applicable rules of taxation, registration of brand names, ensuring adherence to acts governing intellectual property, etc. Depending upon the industry, there may be additional requirements. It is highly recommended to consult an authorised legal expert/firm for assistance in all compliance-related matters.
Localised Digital Marketing in Quick ECommerce
A common mistake in comprehending the relevance of digital marketing in quick commerce is its fallible comparison with eCommerce. Reiterating from one of YRC’s previous communications in the series, quick commerce is a hybrid version of eCommerce and brick-and-mortar . It should not be undermined that quick commerce is a local application of eCommerce i.e. local (super-fast) delivery via the eCommerce way. The effort of the part of even the big brands is dismal when it comes to digital marketing. Just because a brand has been able to work wonders in 100 localities of 10 cities of a state does in no way ensure its success in another state. Many quick commerce dark store brands and businesses, despite having full-fledged operations (say in a given city), have hardly any promotional content flashing on digital channels like search engines or social media for audiences of that city. The core of the problem lies in having poor or no localised strategies for digital marketing. Scaling quick commerce operations to a new region requires a region-specific promotional approach.
About Your Retail Coach:
With more than 10 years in business, Your Retail Coach (YRC) is a retail & eCommerce consulting firm specialising in tailor-made enterprise solutions for startups and existing brands and businesses. With a rising global clout, YRC has served 500+ clients in over 25 verticals with a success ratio of 95%. In quick commerce business consulting , YRC deals in planning and implementation services and solutions for enterprise setup and growth and expansion projects.