Fluent Commerce and its Omni Channel Order Management System Cater to Modern Day Retail Needs
- Kindly give us an overview of the company and what it does. How has OMS evolved over the years?
We are a software company that focuses on distributed order management for commerce, with a global presence. We work with retailers and brands worldwide to enhance omnichannel order fulfilment. Our system offers accurate and real-time inventory availability across numerous locations, as well as automated order orchestration, fulfilment optimization, fulfilment location management, in-store pick and pack, customer service, and reporting.
When it comes to order management, there has been a considerable shift in the way warehouses work now, with even greater changes on the horizon. Pens, paper, and spreadsheets are being phased out of most warehouses. It took a long time to do a stock take with manual mechanisms. Few operations were automated, and information sharing was challenging. Version control was problematic since different spreadsheets were saved in separate locations, and old data could end up in the hands of a team member. In retrospect, it appears rudimentary and arduous. With today’s technology, these practices are obsolete.
Fluent Order Management is a cloud-native, extremely modern order management platform. Data can be accessed not just in real-time, but also from any location, on any device, via the internet. Online inventory management has improved data management and helped to keep inventory levels stable. Because stock levels can be tracked in real-time, computers can detect when they are low and place automatic orders to suppliers. This no sale is lost due to an out-of-stock occurrence.
- How is Fluent Commerce helping retail companies manage their inventory and orders?
Supply chain leaders who wish to thrive and remain competitive must comprehend the limitations of legacy systems and how implementing an order management system will facilitate the evolution of supply chain execution systems, enabling success.
By employing Fluent Order Management, it has become simpler for businesses to improve their product cycle times, reduce errors in order fulfilment, and update their fulfilment strategies fast and efficiently. We help retailers manage orders coming through different channels, set up ‘dark stores’ so they can ‘Ship from store,’ provide Click & Collect, or view their inventory in real-time so they know where their stock is. This allows retailers, brands, and B2B businesses to fulfill orders profitably while giving the best possible consumer experience. In addition to facilitating real-time inventory tracking or order fulfilment, our technology also allows for customization.
- What are the challenges to growing in this market?
OMS software providers face some strategic issues. One of them is the reluctance of retailers to invest in solutions like these as most believe their commerce platform or ERP already “does some Order Management”. But as the saying goes “You can’t be what you can’t see”. These businesses are unwilling to replace legacy systems, which means they lose sales and negatively impact customer experiences.
- Can you brief us about the software offered by Fluent Commerce? Moreover, what are some Continuous Development Processes undertaken to keep up with Industry Trends?
Fluent Commerce is continuously aiming to provide comprehensive solutions for efficient and simple commerce to our customers. Our Cloud-native platform is built for future expansion in modern architecture.
With Fluent OMX, a low code order management platform from Fluent Commerce, a company can tailor the user interface and fulfilment logic to their specific needs with minimal coding. By using it, retailers may customize their user interfaces by combining different pre-made components. They can use the SDKs to create the user interface and the rules for processing orders (SDKs).
Our web software, Fluent Store, provides merchants with OMX Design System reference templates to use as a starting point for their own unique creations. It makes it easy for companies to adjust to new circumstances, such as when they need to set up a third-party logistics provider, offline a region because of a storm, or something else entirely.
We have a continuous feedback cycle with our customers where we incorporate new challenges and requirements into our product delivery roadmap. We also work closely with industry bodies and retail associations to ensure we deliver the best feature set out there.
- Brief us about the technologies that you use for order management. Any existing integrations with the technology solution providers?
We have been using the following technologies/applications to provide a more streamlined and better customer experience.
- Web apps: Customises the user experience to enhance employee satisfaction and productivity
- Orchestration Engine: Keeps all systems up to date on the product, inventory, order, and payment across all platforms
- APIs: Using our GraphQL and REST APIs, our customers may integrate with any application or platform
- Scalable architecture: Scalable architecture permits scaling on demand, global accessibility, and zero-downtime releases
- Order Management Experience (OMX): Retailers can tailor User Interfaces and Workflows on the low-code Order Management Experience (OMX) platform to meet their specific needs
Our solution is smoothly integrated with Adobe, Salesforce, and other commerce technologies to facilitate efficient and rapid order administration. Utilising our OMS has made it easier for businesses to optimise their product cycle times, eliminate order fulfilment problems, and implement better inventory management procedures. Our technology enables real-time inventory tracking and order fulfilment, as well as modification.
- What are the upcoming trends in the OMS space?
The global omni-channel OMS market is one with high potential. It is expected to grow from USD 2.3 billion in 2021 to USD 3.9 billion in 2026 at a CAGR of 11.2% during this period. The majority of the money spent on OMS systems is presently going to the retail and wholesale sectors. The demand for OMS solutions in these sectors is being driven by the rapidly expanding e-commerce industry globally.
It is also seen that fast uptime is essential to meet rising customer needs. There are strategies to invest more effectively while increasing productivity in times of economic uncertainty. Holistic solutions like OMS software that include commerce, inventory records, order management, and payments are highly preferred by businesses trying to boost productivity and maintain the best client experience. As a result, there is easier scaling, faster time to market, improved customer experience, and the chance to expand into new international markets using technology that can handle things like local payment methods.
For their online business to work effectively, businesses also look out for certain features in these OMS software that suit their needs. Such features include the automation of operational strategies and processes for inventory, warehouse management, logistics, and other backend operations, as well as the integration of new marketplaces to maintain the momentum of long-term customer, needs even in uncertain times.
We also foresee an increasing demand for MACH-certified technology. Fluent Commerce is a proud founding member of the MACH Alliance and as such, is fully compliant with the MACH principles which are: Microservices based, API-first, Cloud-native SaaS, and Headless.
