With 30 years' industry experience Barry Mellross believes most OP companies can significantly reduce costs, improve productivity and, therefore, improve their bottom lines.
Executive operations manager at Bantex for the past six years, Mellross told Stationery News that he is hoping his extensive logistics and operational experience will lead to a new posting in the industry, where many stationers "don't understand" the true cost of a business.
"Every dollar saved at the back end is equal to about $15 in sales," he said. "Operations can potentially be your best salesman."
Mellross advises suppliers to review stock levels and re-order 'triggers' to ensure products are not ordered many times a month.
"If you have 30-day trading terms you should, where possible, only be ordering once a month, unless there are space restraints," he said.
The industry has also seen private label branding added to the back end of a business with most major suppliers having to provide both their supplier brand and dealer brand in many key catgeories.
"You should also ensure supplier re-order codes also appear on purchase orders to minimise any delays and mistakes. Purchase orders should be sent electronically if possible," he said.
Mellross also offered the following advice:
Factor in supplier lead-times in re-ordering process. Review supplier performance regularly - if they are taking longer to deliver than you expect, the result will be that your customers could be affected. Placing orders costs money - if you can place orders every second day instead of daily, that will reduce invoices by 50 per cent and receiving will have 50 per cent less orders to be booked in. It is not uncommon for deliveries to sit on receiving docks for a couple of days because there are too many deliveries. Review excess stocks regularly - the sooner you identify a problem the quicker you can turn it into cash.
Mellross agreed with the view that the value of hard copy dealer catalogues would continue to diminish with the increasing use of online ordering.
"Websites are driving their businesses," he said.
