Name: Rhonda Stinson, Executive Director – Category Management Team

Give us a brief history of your company, when and how did you get started and what is your high-level mission statement?

Plantensive, a MorganFranklin company, is a supply chain and retail planning solutions provider to many of the fortune 500 and mid-market companies across the consumer packaged goods, distribution, manufacturing and retail industries. Plantensive provides end-to-end supply chain solutions and proven tools to accelerate value by building, implementing, and optimizing dynamic, reliable supply chain solutions aligned with business strategies. Our mission at Plantensive is to develop enduring partnerships as trusted advisors to organizations as they define, improve, and evolve their supply chain planning, retail planning, and category management capabilities, supported by advanced technologies and hands-on approach.

What would you like CMA and SIMA members to know about your brand/company?

First and foremost, we are passionate about the success of our clients. We take great pride in ensuring a well thought out design that brings, not only best in practice, but also the most sustainable and efficient solution possible. Utilizing Integrated Planning and Execution (IP&E) along with process gap assessments can assist in that goal.

What is the most common question you hear from current and potential customers, and how do you answer it?

“How can we do x better” and “What are best practices for x”? We find that a typical scenario, for even the most well-intentioned organization, will have process gaps or silos. We work together to ensure we are recommending the best path forward, using a People, Process, Technology approach. With a team average of several decades of experience, and spanning many sectors, we have provided gold standard modifications for many organizations.

Any white space in the industry or areas you are looking to expand into?

We are proactively researching and implementing the most up-to-date advancements in technology to remain ahead of the curve and make sure that we are making use of the most cutting-edge capabilities.

What is the most important thing that needs to be addressed in the category management and shopper insights disciplines going forward?

A higher degree of Inventory planning and management for a more localized assortment (without building out store specific planograms) would be on my wish list. Adding substitution logic at the shelf position would be a gap closer that has vocalized for years. The capability for item substitution exists in other downstream systems, but every retailer may not have the ability to purchase or maintain those systems. Having the capability to have alternate options at the sku/store (or store cluster) level and be able to capture those decisions during a line review, would be very helpful for many.

How are you thinking about the next 3-5 years in retail?

Online sales (both omni-channel and micro fulfillment) trends will be forever changed in the last few years. We have observed an uptick in in-store sales trending back up, but innovation will remain a priority in the next few years. Analytical capabilities, such as a quick reaction for item substitution remain crucial. Supply chain disruptions will always be a factor, hopefully not to the same extent as in recent years, and we must ensure that shopper satisfaction is of the utmost concern.