On the way to the S/4 world

To accelerate the transformation, the company relies on KPS' Instant Platform. The Kaufhaus des Westens (KaDeWe) is a force to be reckoned with in the German and international retail world and continues to be on a growth trajectory. The group has also grown strongly in the online sector.

The KaDeWe Group is replacing an ERP system that does not originate from the SAP universe. Against the backdrop of increased digitization at the interface to the customer, constantly new business requirements and the opening of two new locations, the changeover to S/4 should take place as quickly as possible. For this, the Luxury Lifestyle Department Store needs a future-compatible platform that can flexibly meet these requirements.

"For us, it is central that the core business is mapped as quickly and cleanly as possible"says Michael Peterseim, Managing Director for Finance, Operations and Digitalization at KaDeWe. "Business continuity must be ensured while expanding omnichannel capabilities, harmonizing touchpoints across all channels, and optimizing the customer experience."

Consolidation of IT

The S/4 migration is intended to harmonize the IT landscape and processes of KaDeWe's stores and Globus' magazines in Switzerland. The different starting situations - Globus already has SAP experience, while this was previously uncharted territory for the IT managers at KaDeWe - pose an additional challenge to the actual transformation and change management.

For this reason, the KaDeWe Group relies on the Instant Platform and the KPS consulting team. One of the decisive factors in this decision was the speed that KPS's platform approach promises: Since a large part of the business processes run similarly in most companies, they can already be made available on the platform ready for use. Based on the processes already implemented in the system, the managers of both companies can talk hands-on and practically about the optimal setup instead of starting from scratch - without a common vision or goal. This results in so-called frontloading of decisions and avoids costly changes at a later stage of the transformation. The teams from both companies managed to complete the preparation in just five months - normally this project phase not infrequently takes a year or more.

Advocate concept

Based on the platform, the premise applies that process or IT managers must justify when an adjustment to standard processes is necessary. To this end, the KaDeWe Group works with an advocate concept that follows the principle of shifting the burden of proof. "If a person in charge who wants to customize the software does a research, makes a profitability calculation and convinces the management, then the customization will be implemented"says Dr. Peterseim. With the help of this procedure, the company evaluates which processes actually contribute to market differentiation and justify a deviation from the standard.

The switch to S/4 should open up further potential in omnichannel retail. The customer journey is becoming increasingly complex, has far more than one touchpoint in over 70 percent of all transactions, and customers frequently move back and forth between online and offline channels. In addition, the KaDeWe Group is already preparing for a generation change.

Digital natives have high demands on digital content and the various touchpoints as well as a comparatively short attention span. The KaDeWe Group therefore relies on highly relevant, personalized content to remain attractive to these target groups, but at the same time, of course, long-standing regular customers must also be informed accordingly. In order to map this highly personalized customer journey, IT must therefore be able to process a disproportionately large volume of master and transaction data on the customer. This data must be analyzed, structured, assigned to individual customers or customer groups, and made available at the individual touchpoints in real time. This B2C interface is to be continuously expanded and optimized at the KaDeWe Group in the coming years.

The KaDeWe Group comprises the three luxury department stores KaDeWe in Berlin, Oberpollinger in Munich and Alsterhaus in Hamburg. All three department stores have been an institution and shopping destination for international, national and local customers in the luxury segment for over 100 years. The group is owned by the Thai Central Group and the Austrian Signa Holding in a joint venture.