Skechers, the global leader in performance and lifestyle footwear, has selected Manhattan Associates Inc. solutions to orchestrate the omnichannel fulfillment of customer orders from across Europe and to drive ongoing business growth.
Having already deployed Manhattan’s warehouse management system (WMS) in all of its distribution centers worldwide, the footwear brand will extend its deployment of the Manhattan technology at its expanding European Distribution Center (EDC) in Liege, Belgium.
Skechers has generated phenomenal growth in recent years and in 2014 reported a 40% increase in volumes processed through its EDC. To manage future demand, Skechers is extending its EDC to create a total storage capacity of more than one million square feet.
Skechers sells its footwear through company-owned Skechers retail stores, online at skechers.com, in department, specialty and other independent retail stores, through wholesalers, and via pure-play online retail sites such as Amazon and Zalando. With orders from all of these channels fulfilled from the EDC in Liege, Skechers requires a fulfillment platform that profitably manages inventory and lifts customer service across its brand portfolio, diverse selling channels and multiple geographical markets. Manhattan’s WMS offers this flexibility and has become the backbone of Skechers’ European supply chain.
“Our main challenge is to effectively manage our business growth at the same time as ensuring orders are delivered to customers on a daily basis,” said Bart Geenen, operations director at Skechers. “In the coming years, we anticipate an expansion of our retail store footprint in Europe. We have 40 retail stores and 50 franchise stores and expect to open another 20 stores next year. The expanded store operation alongside a continuation of the huge growth in orders we’ve seen online will have a significant impact on our EDC operations. We will add another sorter and optimize our other fulfillment processes to make sure that we can handle the expected order volume growth. Over the years Manhattan Associates has proven to be an outstanding partner with the solutions to support our business growth so we are convinced we are well-equipped for the future.”
“Skechers is one of our long standing customers in the United States and Europe with an impressive track record in terms of growth,” said Pieter Van den Broecke, managing director Central Europe, at Manhattan Associates. “They are a great example of an organization that is continuously optimizing its operations worldwide. We are honored to be part of the global success of this leading brand.”
About Skechers
Skechers designs, develops and markets a diverse range of lifestyle footwear for men, women and children, as well as performance footwear for men and women. Skechers footwear is available in the United States and over 120 countries and territories worldwide via department and specialty stores, more than 1,210 Skechers retail stores, and the Company’s ecommerce website. The Company manages its international business through a network of global distributors, joint venture partners in Asia, and 13 wholly owned subsidiaries in Brazil, Canada, Chile, Japan, Latin America and throughout Europe. For more information, please visit www.skechers.com
About Manhattan Associates
Manhattan Associates makes commerce-ready supply chains that bring all points of commerce together so you’re ready to sell and ready to execute. Across the store, through your network or from your fulfillment center, we design, build and deliver market-leading solutions that support both top-line growth and bottom-line profitability. By converging front-end sales with back-end supply chain execution, our software, platform technology and unmatched experience help our customers get commerce ready—and ready to reap the rewards of the omnichannel marketplace.