Dumitro Chatterjee, a high-level expert in organized commerce (retail) and marketing, talks about development of effective merchandising; what a supplier company to do with merchandising, marketing service to a supplier, how to manage a field team.

VIDEO [Russian; Translation Support]

Coherent exposition of the seminar

1. Introduction to Operational Merchandising. Dumitro Chatterjee begins his presentation by introducing the topic of operational merchandising management, emphasizing its critical role in maintaining and developing an existing function in retail. The speaker clarifies that the focus will be on day-to-day processes, without deep dives into procedures related to merchandising or, otherwise, strategic aspects such as planograms. The expert stresses that the discussion will cover actions in the current operational mode, including key process management at the store level.

2. Speaker’s Authority and Experience. Dumitro Chatterjee establishes his credibility by referencing extensive experience in agencies and business organizations, from startups to large national ones, as well as on the manufacturer and retailer sides. The speaker notes that this background allows him to understand processes from multiple perspectives. The presentation focuses on tasks for the field merchandising team, regardless of whether it is agency-based, distributor-operated, or a contracted category provider. The specialist emphasizes the need for a clear understanding of expectations from the merchandising function, particularly without heavy internal intervention.

3. Definition and Essence of Merchandising. Mr. Chatterjee defines merchandising as influencing the shopper in the sales floor without direct contact, by creating conditions for purchase aligned with the company’s business goals. The expert clarifies that this applies to both visual and operational merchandising, with emphasis on vendors and retailers, and explains that key elements include product visibility on the shelf, availability, and purchasability. He also highlights how merchandising affects product eligibility, making it noticeable and appealing to shopper attention.

4. Link to Company Business Goals. Mr. Chatterjee connects merchandising to core business objectives such as revenue, margin, capital turnover, staff cost minimization, and inventory optimization. The specialist translates these into marketing goals: distribution, shelf share, market share, and brand awareness. Then he describes how these transform into in-store goals, including traffic coverage by product and shelf share management, and underscores the role of additional displays and promotional activities in achieving impact on the shopper.

5. Vendor and Brand Objectives. Mr. Chatterjee details vendor goals: shelf share, distribution, placement in key points of sale, and profit through rapid inventory turnover. He notes that each brand or line has targeted shelf shares and positioning that manifests in product placement and warns that incorrect placement, such as in the wrong price category, leads to loss of visibility. The presenter emphasizes targeted activities to develop specific clients, chains, or regions with low performance.

6. Product Availability and Visibility. Dumitro explains the concepts of eligibility and visibility: product presence on the shelf directly impacts sales, while visibility ensures the shopper notices it. He shares an example of a new chocolate line where lack of context caused shoppers to ignore it despite prime placement. The xpert recommends using promotional materials, wobblers, and social media to build context. The speaker stresses that the shopper’s brain filters out unfamiliar products, as confirmed by shelf tests.

7. Shelf Space Management. Mr. Chatterjee discusses managing shelf space in federal chains, suggesting either local planogram deviations for temporary gains or central office negotiations. It’s noted that local changes are fragile, as store staff tend to revert to standards. The expert shares experiences where systemic solutions in chains prioritize resource efficiency and optimization and highlights windows of opportunity arising from process volatility, such as assortment or supply changes.

8. Windows of Opportunity in Retail. Effective merchandising team management requires knowing desired changes at each moment to capitalize on windows of opportunity. Dumitro explains that process gaps in chains, due to limited resources, can be filled by supplier merchandisers and stresses the sustainability of changes when they solve store issues, such as display or stock problems. The speaker provides examples where gradual adjustments yield long-term effects without conflict.

9. Ensuring Product Availability. Mr. Chatterjee describes how merchandisers ensure availability by moving stock from backroom to shelf during delays. The store placement priorities can cause gaps. There is an impact of stock levels: high visible stock signals freshness and boosts auto-orders. The speaker highlights merchandisers’ role in managing overstock risks and aiding sell-through.

10. Additional Points of Sale. It sholud be a focus on creating additional display locations, such as endcaps or pallets, leveraging low seasons or competitors’ logistical issues. The specialist advises honoring agreements to maintain positions long-term. He gives examples where additional shelves are temporarily yielded for official promotions but retained by the supplier and emphasizes that such placements enhance visibility and sales.

11. Influencing Chain Assortment. Then Mr. Chatterjee discusses influencing assortment in chains with flexible matrices where stores select items. The speaker cites Magnit examples where auto-selection is adjusted via increased sell-through. The expert explains additional orders in Metro and Auchan, where store-level negotiations affect new items or gifts. There is a trend toward greater regional authority to account for local preferences.

12. Transit and Stock Assortment. Dumitro Chatterjee explains transit and stock assortments, where moving from transit to stock requires central office agreements. He highlights Auchan store autonomy for additional orders from supplementary ranges. The expert discusses online channels as testing grounds for offline assortment. The speaker forecasts reduction of legacy SKUs to make room for new categories.

13. Flexibility and Store Autonomy. Mr. Chatterjee details mechanisms for unofficial displays, such as hooks, depending on store autonomy. The speaker provides examples from Pyaterochka and Perekrestok where process gaps enable changes. The expert explains limited opportunities in premium chains due to stricter control and recommends creative approaches, like price snakes, to shift to priority shelves.

14. Service Exchange with Stores. Service exchange is important: merchandisers assist with displays in return for modifications. The expert shares Magnit and other chains’ examples where convenience and aesthetics justify placements. The expert advises testing flexibility in each chain and region and focuses on merchandiser priorities, such as stock and promo monitoring.

15. Virtual Stock Issues. Mr. Chatterjee addresses virtual stocks caused by theft or delayed write-offs, affecting auto-orders and then suggests solutions like photo documentation and central office alerts for inventory checks. It’s cited Dixy and Magnit cases where feedback accelerates write-offs. The spekaer then emphasizes formatting data in chain-compatible ways for effective negotiations.

16. Master Data and Matrices. In the following, Dumitro explains master data: store lists, assortment mapping, and matrices for issue analysis and recommends updating from stores or off-takes for accuracy. In addition, the expert highlights in-store specialists’ role in clearing obsolete items and links this to promo monitoring for discount compliance.

17. Promo Execution. It have to be a focus on promo execution: monitoring presence, price tags, and displays in stores. The speaker shares examples where stands remained unused due to overload and stresses providing key account managers with data to pressure retail. The presenter notes execution improvement from 60% to 95% via monitoring.

18. Influencing Orders and Stocks. Then Dumitro Chatterjee discusses impacting orders through stock levels and safety stock negotiations. He recommends regional A/B tests to demonstrate effects and explains using out-of-stock data to prove losses. Business goals over aesthetics must be emphasized.

19. Translating Business Goals to Team. Mr. Chatterjee stresses translating business goals into weekly team tasks, considering seasonality and events. He gives examples of January sell-through and thematic displays. Then he advises using shopper studies for grouping and focuses on leveraging windows for specific SKUs (stock keeping units).

20. Conclusions, Thoughts on Merchandising Effectiveness. Dumitro Chatterjee concludes that merchandising must solve real problems driving sales growth, with reporting useful for key account managers. He emphasizes integration with other functions for chain influence and suggests continuing topics in future webinars, including handling objections. The speaker underscores adapting approaches to specific companies and markets.