The success of the Sun City Group: a B2B experience with PIM
22 September 2022
In mid-September, we decided to kick off the new season in style and, to mark the occasion, invited the Sun City Group to take part in a webinar. It was the perfect opportunity for us – and, above all, for you – to understand how one of Europe’s leading fashion brands specialising in licensed products for adults, children (85 per cent of its products) and babies best harmonises its customer experience within the highly specialised B2B and B2B2C textile industry.
The Sun City Group
Since 1986, Sun City has been collaborating with prestigious production studios to develop ranges featuring the most popular heroes and artists of the moment (Disney, Harry Potter, Warner, Universal and many others). The group develops over 5,000 designs a year, with its textile and accessory collections designed in France, enabling it to adapt effectively to current trends whilst prioritising product quality. With teams in Asia, offices in Europe and over 200 employees, the group’s operations are mainly centred in Europe, spanning more than 50 countries in total. The group’s clients include both large retail chains (such as Leclerc) and retailers, wholesalers and specialist retailers across Europe. Sun City’s distribution channels are primarily its sales force across Europe and its B2B online platform, which is used more extensively by retailers.
Why did Sun City opt for a PIM?
Or to put it another way: what challenges did the group face that led it to seek out and choose the Quable PIM?
The group’s main challenge was the centralisation of product data: information relating to pre-order purchases from suppliers was not being managed effectively; in other words, everything to do with product creation, its PLM (Product Lifecycle Management) and the management of this information. All this data was managed in Excel spreadsheets, each of which had a different version. Added to this were objectives regarding visibility and the redesign of the brand’s website, which required a constant supply of enriched data in order to market and sell products effectively.
Without the right tools, the group would have faced complications that would have hampered its commercial activity, making it difficult to open up new sales channels and enter new markets.
According to Jean-François Martins, CIO at Sun City, “the PIM was the obvious choice compared to other tools such as PLM or PDM, which have a completely different approach and scope”.
What are the different roles involved in PIM?
As well as the centralisation of data, as discussed above, the time savings are considerable: there is no longer any need to search for text, media or other information across two or even three different tools. It’s simple: everything is in the PIM. There is no longer any loss of information, so its quality remains unaffected – quite the opposite, in fact. The overview provided by Quable’s PIM enables effective management and a comprehensive view of the project(s), allowing for swift action to be taken subsequently.”“Everyone keeps an eye on their own work and on the work of others, both upstream and downstream,” according to Fabrice Pierre, a consultant and project manager for the PIM implementation. In Olivier’s words, “it’s a highly adaptable tool that allows certain tasks to be automated, and everything runs itself”. Today, the PIM offers peace of mind as it is much easier to manage than other tools, according to the group’s IT department. Other client success stories in the fashion and textile sectors attest to its benefits, notably Jennyfer, Bonpoint and Gémo.
Conclusion
Speed, fluidity and accessibility of information are the key factors underpinning the success of the PIM project within the Sun City Group. As well as unifying the B2B customer experience, the PIM enables the group to easily plan for future developments because “we know we now have the tool that allows us to do so”. This is why the group has decided to expand its use of PIM by opting for the brand portal, which will enable it to make products ordered by buyers available according to seasons, trends and collections.