Why manual sample management is failing growing brands

Sample management is vital in the fashion, retail, and e-commerce industries. It involves tracking physical product samples as they move between various departments for photoshoots, product descriptions, and other purposes. As brands grow and content needs increase, managing more samples becomes increasingly complex.

Without an efficient system, manual sample management can lead to misplaced items, delays, and wasted resources. Proper management ensures all team members can track sample locations, conditions, and stages in the production process, ultimately improving efficiency and meeting deadlines.

The importance of sample management

• Essential for new season launches and digital catalogue updates
• Involves multiple departments: designers, marketing, merchandising, and logistics
• Becomes increasingly complex as brands grow and content production needs increase

The challenges of manual sample management

Lack of visibility and tracking:

• No real-time view of the sample status or location
• Gaps in tracking lead to misplaced or lost samples
• Risk increases as sample volume grows
• Results in delays in content production and struggles to replace lost items

Inefficiency and delays:

• Manual processes are time-consuming and error-prone
• Emails and shared documents lead to miscommunications
• Samples may be unavailable when needed, causing production delays
• The check-in/out process becomes a hassle, slowing down the workflow
• Teams waste time chasing samples or updating tracking sheets

Increased costs:

• Inefficiencies accumulate significant costs over time
• Expenses include: replacing lost samples, additional shipping, time spent tracking items
• Delays in content production increase operational costs
• Longer time-to-market impacts sales
• Minor oversights inflate production costs and reduce profits

A centralised, automated solution for sample management is critical as you grow. It provides the structure and visibility your team needs to handle higher volumes, ensuring every sample is accounted for and ready when needed. With the right tools in place, you can scale your operations smoothly. Simply put, as your content production needs increase, so does the need for more innovative sample management. And automation is the key to keeping everything on track.

In our next post, we’ll explore the benefits of automating sample management and how Lets Flo can help streamline your processes.

Ready to take control of your sample management and boost your production efficiency?