Why quality management is becoming increasingly important for retailers in a changing world.
“Quality management never gets boring, as there is always room for progress and innovation.”
Introduction
Remember the days when private label products were the cheap, low-quality alternative to a branded product? You could usually find them at the bottom shelf in the supermarket…
Over the years the sight on private brand products changed: Retailers realized that they are not only a possibility to drive the margin but that private label products can be used to differentiate with other competitors. Furthermore, high-quality private brands items can gain a devoted following and become a powerful driver of customer loyalty to the retailer.
The current situation
In a world where private individuals can easily buy their products at a fraction of the prices applied in the EU on alibaba or other marketplaces outside the EU, it is even more important than ever to understand that customers can no longer be convinced with the “cheapest” price alone.
The quality of the products is increasingly becoming the decisive factor. Customers are more and more aware about the products and their production conditions. They want to know where, how and with what means their products are produced.
The customer’s need is also reflected in legislation. In 2022 there will be 12 legislative changes for the toys and clothing products with completely new requirements as well as stricter limits for chemical parameters.
In a world that is developing faster and faster, with new products, innovations and requirements, a good quality management system must be flexible, agile and yet conscientious to ensure that the articles meet the legal requirements as well as the requirements of the customer.
What does a successful Quality Management mean?
To fulfil all the needs mentioned above, a successful QM should be build on the following aspects:
- Defining quality principles: what are the irrefutable rules and standards that all actions should follow:
- The leadership and the top management must stand behind the quality claim. There must be a common commitment.
- It can never be said too often: the customer is king: measures should be aligned with customer expectations and satisfaction.
- Quality as a process: Mistakes happen, but these mistakes should be evaluated and considered, so that small iterative improvements are constantly made to the product but also to the process.
- Relationship with suppliers: promote optimal value creation by building long-term relationships.
- Define a strategy of prevention and control:
- Analyse the environment in which the company and the products move and work out where risks could arise. Develops a set of standards and guidelines for internal and external shareholders to maintain quality.
- Strive for Improvements:
- The biggest mistake a quality manager can make is to become comfortable and assume that everything will somehow work out. Therefore, I can only say: Question yourself, question the processes and the products. Constantly analyse why mistakes happened and what went well.
- There are various methods for this: Kaizen, process charts, fishbones diagrams, FMEA, Six Sigma or simply a retrospective or postmortem. Most of the tools and methods have been developed for industry, but with small adjustments they can also be very helpful in the retail sector or other branches. The most important thing is: try out what best suits the needs of the situation you are in and the company!
- Focus on your employees:
- They are the key for everything I have written above. So build a culture where your quality manager can discuss ideas and doubts openly. Also allow mistakes and train them how to learn from them and how to improve.
Wrapping up
As we can see, quality management (QM), including quality assurance and control is becoming more important in this changing world. In this article, we had a quick look at how we can meet QM requirements by highlighting a bunch of aspects that should be taken into account.
I hope that you enjoyed this article and please do not hesitate to leave FEEDBACK, which is always more than welcome. Till next time!