Assortment planning: Strategic perception of retail owners and managers in Brazil

Abstract

The goal of the Assortment Planning (AP) is to specify an assortment that maximizes sales and profits which counterbalance the offer of products based on the decisions made about sales; it also increases the probability for consumers to find their own favorite product without increase in storage costs or risk of stock out. This work aims to investigate the strategic perception of retail owners and managers about assortment. Specifically, this study will analyze the impact of assortment, clients' fidelity, level of service and profits on the vision of the retailer. It is an exploratory investigation of retailers' perception about assortment management. The results of this research allow one to interfere with the inadequate knowledge of the interviewees about the theme, mainly the smaller stores. Generally, it was verified that the owners and managers evaluated assortment planning as a primordial strategic tool and considered important a system of information. Although recognizing the strategic importance of AP in the control of unproductive variety, the consumer of retail goods, mainly the small retailer uses the intuitive judgment related to the use of analytic methodology.