How Adroit implemented IBM Store Inventory Management for a major retailer — turning receiving, putaway, fulfillment, and returns into one accurate, real-time view of store inventory, with ROI showing from the first pilot.
The store is the hardest place in the network to keep inventory accurate. Stock moves constantly, much of it by hand, and every channel now depends on knowing exactly what’s on the shelf. Buy-online-pickup-in-store and ship-from-store only work when the inventory record matches physical reality. When it doesn’t, you get missed pickups, oversells, and frustrated associates hunting for stock that the system says is there.
Adroit recently implemented a Store Inventory Management solution built on IBM Store Inventory Management (SIM) for a major retailer — integrating SIM with the retailer’s inventory sources, POS, and ordering systems to deliver real-time visibility, accuracy, and automation from inbound receiving all the way to fulfillment. The retailer is already seeing measurable ROI from the initial back-of-house pilot.
A walkthrough of the Store Inventory Management solution in action — from inbound receiving to store fulfillment.
What we delivered
The solution covers the full lifecycle of inventory inside the store, not a single function:
- Inbound processing — automated receiving of products from warehouses, vendors, and returns, with carton scanning and system-driven putaway tasks, cutting manual effort sharply.
- Smart putaway — mobile scanning lets associates deposit items into one or multiple store locations based on layout and demand.
- Store movements — intuitive screens to move inventory between locations, run lookups, and view detailed location data, with full traceability.
- Order fulfillment — real-time location visibility for BOPIS and ship-from-store orders, so associates can locate and pack items quickly.
- Returns & damaged goods — integrated POS visibility for faster restocking of returned items and accurate handling of damaged inventory.
- Inventory alerts & auditing — automated alerts for discrepancies and a detailed audit trail of every change: who, when, and why.
- ERP integration — continuous synchronization with ERP inventory movement and ordering systems, keeping physical and digital stock aligned.
- Reporting & downstream feeds — automatic publishing of SIM inventory changes to reporting and product-management systems for enterprise-wide visibility.
- Barcode label generation — printing and assigning store-location barcodes ahead of onboarding, so activating a new store is straightforward.
The result
Bringing these capabilities together produced significant efficiency gains, improved picking accuracy, faster restocking, and far better inventory visibility across the store network — the foundation every omnichannel promise depends on. And because the rollout started with a focused back-of-house pilot, the retailer saw the value before committing to a full network deployment.
Why it matters
Store inventory accuracy isn’t a back-office concern anymore. It’s what makes same-day fulfillment, accurate delivery promises, and a reliable in-store experience possible. A modern SIM implementation turns the store from the weakest link in inventory data into a dependable fulfillment node.
Adroit’s SIM integration framework is built to get there with less risk and faster time-to-value — connecting IBM SIM to the POS, ERP, ordering, and inventory systems already in place, and proving ROI through a measured pilot before scaling.
Want to learn how we did it? Reach out and we’ll show you how Adroit’s SIM integration framework can modernize your in-store operations and accelerate ROI.