The Category Management 8-step Process (retail)
The industry standard model for category management in retail is the 8-step process, or 8-step cycle developed by the Partnering Group. The eight steps are shown in the diagram on the right; they are :
- Define the category (i.e. what products are included/excluded).
- Define the role of the category within the retailer.
- Assess the current performance.
- Set objectives and targets for the category.
- Devise an overall Strategy.
- Devise specific tactics.
- Implementation.
- The eighth step is one of review which takes us back to step 1.
The 8-step process, whilst being very comprehensive and thorough has been criticized for being rather too unwieldy and time-consuming in today's fast-moving sales environment; in one survey only 9% of supplier companies stated they used the full 8-step process. The current industry trend is for supplier companies to use the standard process as a basis to develop their own more streamlined processes, tailored to their own particular products
Market research company Nielsen has a similar process based on only 5 steps : reviewing the category, targeting consumers, planning merchandising, implementing strategy, evaluating results.
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