With supply chain issues facing companies across the globe, retailers are turning to RFID solution to help them keep their inventory in stock for consumers looking to purchase such items as sneakers.
Sport Time, the premier sporting goods retailer in Eastern Europe, has teamed up with RFID solutions company Clustag to integrate high-accuracy RFID solutions across several of its distribution hubs. This aim of the alliance is to boost efficiency in post-pick control optimizing order fulfillment across eight countries.
As Nike’s leading distributor in the Balkans and Eastern Europe, Sport Time is tasked with providing best-in-class sportswear to millions of athletes across eight countries. It partnered with Clustag for its intralogistics solutions that strengthens its logistics capabilities across its regional hubs but as well as globally to improve overall supply chain performance.
Supply Chain Solutions
The used of RFID allows Sport Time, renowned for its extensive retail and wholesale network, to taking a major leap in intralogistics innovation, according to Sport Time’s Regional MPO and Logistics Director Bojan Djordjevic.
This company is the first Nike distributor to globally implement RFID in both warehouse and retail operations. As they see it, this is not just a sign of trust, but a responsibility to lead a major supply chain transformation in the region. To achieve this, they sought out a reliable supplier with a strong track record of delivering high-quality, innovative solutions tailored to the industry’s needs.
Allowing for Expansion
Djordjevic stated that with RFID, we’re not just talking about process improvement, but about complete transformation.
“Instead of lengthy and manual receiving processes, we now have the ability to accurately verify hundreds of items in just a few seconds, without physically scanning individual barcodes, said Djordjevic in a statement. “For employees in retail stores, this technology means spending less time on operational tasks and more time focusing on customer service and interaction.”
Sport Time officials noted that having the right supplier ensures the efficiency and accuracy of RFID processes, which connect all points of the supply chain — from the warehouse, through transportation, to the retail floor.
The RFID Solution
As Sport Time products from the same order are grouped into boxes, they are scanned at the item level by RFID stations, to identify any potential errors in pre-shipping. At the center of the RFID program is Zentup, a software solution developed by Clustag for efficient warehouse and intralogistics management. If discrepancies are found (such as missing items, extra items, or faulty RFID tags), the affected boxes are sent to an audit area where an operator, assisted by Zentup’s user-friendly interface, corrects them before outbound.
This process ensures that every product is properly matched to its order, preventing human errors before shipping, according to Luis Rius, CEO of Clustag.
“Managing diverse inventory in sporting goods is challenging, but our RFID solutions with Zentup ensure efficient reading, even with complex materials,” says Rius.
Better Supply Chain Visibility
Sport Time manage both retail and wholesale operations in Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Albania. The company started in 2014 with a small team of brand enthusiasts and has grown significantly, now employing over 400 people and covering markets with a population of 43 million athletes.
They operate numerous Nike stores and will continue to open new locations and launch new innovative retail concepts throughout the region soon.
With that growth, Sport Time officials reported that with the adoption of Clustag’s RFID solutions significantly enhanced the accuracy of its supply chain while optimizing the reading efficiency and error tolerance at every stage. The single platform for capturing, analyzing, and optimizing RFID data allows the retailer to adapt its logistics strategy dynamically, improving performance for wholesale, retail, and e-commerce customers alike.
Clustag Capabilities
With its smart RFID solutions for parcels, GOH, pallets, and AGV systems, Clustag optimizes both automated and manual warehouses, ensuring 100 percent accuracy in intralogistics operations such as inbound, outbound, and post-pick control processes, ultimately boosting sales.
Boxes with order discrepancies are sent to the audit zone, where an operator uses Zentup to reconcile contents and ensure accurate shipping.
“By integrating with Sport Time warehouse system, we help them achieve peak efficiency in stock handling and order fulfillment,” said Rius.