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4R Systems Announces IPMark , New Benchmark Methodology to Help Retailers Assess Inventory Productivity
Introduced at Retail Systems 2003, IPMark applies 4R's inventory productivity metrics to assess retailer's current inventory productivity, rigorously quantifies the opportunity that can be realized through profit optimizing the inventory asset
CHICAGO, IL - June 9, 2003 - Retail Systems 2003 - 4R Systems, Inc., a leading provider of software tools, analytical techniques and information services that enable retailers and their suppliers to profitably manage their SKU's throughout the retail lifecycle, unveiled today IPMark, a benchmarking methodology that assesses inventory productivity and quantifies the profit opportunity that can be realized through better alignment of the inventory asset with demand. The announcement was made at Retail Systems 2003/VICS Collaborative Commerce Conference & Expo in Chicago.
"Retailers have long struggled to effectively meet consumer demand and maintain effective product availability while simultaneously keeping inventory investment within a profitable range," said Jiri Nechleba, 4R Systems' President and CEO. "With IPMark, we are providing retailers the ability to quickly benchmark their performance in balancing these contending forces as well as quantify the profit opportunity that can be realized through optimizing inventory to more profitably meet consumer demand."
IPMark provides retailers with a quantitative review of their inventory productivity by applying sophisticated analytics and metrics that assess how effectively the inventory asset is performing, as well as the payoff that can be realized by better managing inventory to drive profitability. IPMark combines this quantitative benchmark with a qualitative review of inventory practices and how those practices can be best aligned to support better inventory productivity, as well as a sophisticated peer analysis of inventory performance.
About 4R Systems
4R Systems, Inc. is a leading provider of software tools, analytical techniques and information services that allow retailers and manufacturers to increase the profitability of products by accurately matching supply with demand. 4R leverages transactional and point-of-sale (POS) data and turns it into critical decision-making information for forecasting and supply planning. The company was founded by supply chain experts Marshall Fisher of The Wharton School and Ananth Raman of Harvard Business School, whose groundbreaking research on product lifecycles with over 30 world-class retailers pioneered the retail analytics sector.
Based in Wayne, Pennsylvania, 4R's notable clients include Ahold, American Pacific, Linens 'n Things, Nokia and Stride Rite. For more information, please visit www.4rsystems.com or call 1-866-4RSYSTEMS.