At the garden center chain Plantagen, the economic downturn is not as noticeable as it is at many other retailers. In the second quarter of the year, the company’s net sales totaled 2,132 million kronor and profit reached 543 million, making it the strongest quarter in the company’s history. When times get tougher, interest in gardening, plants, and other home-related activities tends to increase.
– Historically, we perform better during tough times. That’s been the case ever since the 2008 financial crisis. At the same time, we’re competing with a wide range of other hobbies and leisure activities for consumers’ time and money, so it’s crucial that we deliver value and create a sense of joy around planting and caring for flowers and plants,” says Olav Fyldeng, CIO at Plantagen.
Plantagen’s first store was established in Norway more than 35 years ago and has since been joined by an additional 122 stores in Norway, Sweden, and Finland. Of course, there is also an online store, which accounts for an increasingly large share of the company’s sales. Since 2016, Plantagen has been owned by the Swedish investment firm Ratos, a recognized long-term investor with a 150-year history of successful business operations.
CIO with a Focus on Logistics
Olav Fyldeng is a CIO with a strong focus on the supply chain and extensive experience in the 3PL industry, retail, and IT consulting—with a focus on business systems. His experience is of great value to an organization whose core operations are procurement, logistics, distribution, and sales.
“It’s important that those of us who work in IT help the business deliver value, and that we do so throughout the customer’s entire journey—before, during, and after the purchase. Otherwise, there’s a risk that the customer will start birdwatching, biking, or something else,” he says with a smile.
Out with computers, in with cell phones
In recent years, one successful initiative has been to equip staff throughout the organization with smartphones and phase out traditional computers. Of Plantagen’s approximately 2,400 employees, only 400 have a desk and therefore benefit from a conventional computer. The rest are out in the field and do not have fixed workstations.
– Everything is now mobile in our stores. The goal is to give our staff the tools they need to do their jobs as well as possible and provide top-notch customer service. “Smartphones are powerful tools that provide access to vital business information,” says Olav, noting that today’s smartphones are significantly better than the handheld computers previously used by front-line staff.
”Kodak moment”
“Since we got started a little late, we skipped the phase where many companies set up their own networks and purchase handheld devices. Instead, we’ve gotten straight to the point and are using regular smartphones on our regular network,” Olav explains, continuing:
– Cell phones have gotten better and more ”rugged,” and they also have better cameras, image processing, and handle apps better. I think this is a bit of a ”Kodak moment” for many of the established players, who seem to have fallen behind in terms of both hardware and software.
Cloud-based, user-friendly solution
The approximately 1,500 cell phones that have been distributed to Plantagen employees so far are equipped with the Agrippa Retail software, a cloud-based solution that manages and facilitates a wide range of in-store activities, and which was developed in collaboration with Plantagen. Olav and the software provider IMI Agrippa Solutions first got to know each other around 2016, when he was working on setting up an automated central warehouse in the fashion industry.
– At that time, we introduced an app-based, user-friendly system for reporting discrepancies and errors in the warehouse, using both text and images. By equipping warehouse staff with smartphones running Agrippa’s software, errors and discrepancies could be reported directly where they occurred. For example, by scanning the barcode for a specific storage location, which significantly reduced downtime,” says Olav. That collaboration was a great success for both parties and forms the basis of the solution that has been developed for Plantagen over the past several years.
Understands logistics and business systems
Together with Agrippa, Olav and his team have developed the Agrippa Retail solution, which has enabled store staff to handle goods receipt, conduct inventory counts, locate products, view promotions, access product information, fulfill orders, manage incidents, and much more. In addition, the mobile devices can be used to notify staff, scan barcodes, print documents, and send photos or videos.
“There are many companies that develop apps. What sets Agrippa apart from others is that they have a unique understanding of processes, logistics, and business systems.” “Those who come from the app side don’t fully understand the underlying processes; instead, they focus more on a sleek interface,” Olav notes.
25 percent increase in efficiency
Until now, the plantation’s various IT systems have had their own user interfaces and overlapping functionality. As a result, a consolidation of the systems has been initiated, which has had a significant positive impact on IT costs.
– The innovative and talented people at Agrippa have worked with us to develop a solution in which we’ve eliminated four of six interfaces and consolidated them onto a single platform; eventually, we’ll also consolidate the remaining two systems. Many systems can be merged because they have similar functionality. “I see efficiency gains of over 25 percent here for a typical IT department,” says Olav, proudly declaring that he has reduced his own budget from 84 to 59 million in two years by consolidating and eliminating systems that don’t create real value. He points out that the retail industry, which is now highly competitive, has been slow to change due to a previous long period of steady growth and increasing profitability.
– The entire industry has been stuck in the past and has been far too slow to respond to changing market conditions. There are significant opportunities for further efficiency gains, not just in IT, but throughout the entire supply chain!
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About Olav Fyldeng
Education: Bachelor of Business Administration, Norwegian School of Economics (NHH).
Career: 25 years of experience in the IT industry, including ten years as an ERP consultant at Accenture and the past ten years in leadership roles in the retail sector.
Best Leadership Advice: Hire employees who are smarter than you.
Family: A wife and three children.
Interests: Do-it-yourself projects, including those in the garden, on the farm, and involving all kinds of technology.
