S.T. Dupont Takes On FuturMaster Demand Management Solution

A COLLABORATIVE SOLUTION TO CONQUER NEW MARKETS

Since the beginning of the 20th century, S.T. Dupont is a French company recognized worldwide for its know-how in high-class fire lighters. In 1973, in order to widen its product range, S.T. Dupont manufactured the first pen named “Classique” which immediately became an icon thanks to its sophisticated style and noble materials used. Today, S.T. Dupont product range includes watches, jewelry, leather goods, perfumes and ready-made men’s clothing collections.

In order to support the continued growth of its activities, S.T. Dupont decided to review its demand forecast process, before the launch of a new product range, which is an ambitious project for the company.

The noble materials used by S.T. Dupont, such as the Chinese lacquer and gold, required centuries-old handmade skill which cannot be automated. In view of the manufacturing process and material costs, the forecast accuracy is a key factor for the company.

S.T Dupont wanted a robust solution to sharpen its demand forecast process, get real time follow-up on categories’ family level and also be able to drill down to product level. There was also a need to be able to see all the different products’ life cycles. S.T Dupont wanted everyone from the group-level down to the country-level to be able to access and play a part in the demand forecast process.

Following a call for tender, S.T. Dupont chose Collaborative FuturMaster ‘Demand Management’ solution. This would allow the ‘Brand and Marketing’ team to get accurate forecast with an 18 months projection to better focus on the supply chain processes. It would also allow users to have a clearer understanding on the SKUs, launches and promotions as the reports are dynamic, flexible and user-friendly.

_“We are a Luxury company with a traditional know-how. We have designed, manufactured and sold very high quality products since 140 years ago”, _comments Nicolas Codet, Head of Information System at S.T. Dupont. “S.T. Dupont has quality-demanding customers and we only want partners with the same will for quality and with the right know-how to work with us. We noticed these two assets in FuturMaster, and that’s why we have chosen their solution.”

FuturMaster consultants will work together with S.T. Dupont team during the FuturMaster ‘Demand Management’ implementation as well as define best practices in order to reach a forecast accuracy which is as refine as possible.

“This partnership with S.T Dupont illustrates our will and ability to collaborate with international global companies. We are proud of the faith S.T Dupont has in us, that is going to strengthen our luxury client portfolio”, tells Michel Ramis, Executive Vice President Sales at FuturMaster.

Today, FuturMaster collaborates with a lot of references in the Luxury industry, including L’Oréal, LVMH, Shiseido, Sisley and Luxasia.