Kudler Fine Foods, Uop Mgt 521

Kudler Fine Foods: Product Management

The 2003 Kudler Fine Foods Strategic Plan recognized several areas for operational improvement. To achieve the desired growth in and outside of the southern California area, Kudler’s is going to need to operate like a larger company. The owner handles the operations of three locations by being “able to control and monitor all activities on a daily and weekly basis” (Kudler Fine Foods Portal, pg 8).This is the owner’s prerogative to operate as such. Product management systems are used, and further use of automated inventory monitoring and purchasing systems could allow them to streamline daily operating procedures. This researcher is of the opinion that Kudler’s is headed for success, but believes it could prove beneficial to question current procedures for inventory management, before expanding to newer markets.

Kudler’s inventory monitoring system includes a POS Module that captures all retail sales in detail (Kudler Fine Foods Portal, Finance and Accounting, pg 1). The initial business plan for Kudler’s included a $50,000 allotment for this POS system, which have also been installed at the newer locations (Kudler Fine Foods Portal, Finance and Accounting, pg 1). This system allows for comparisons to be made inter departmentally, and between individual stores (Kudler Fine Foods Portal, Finance and Accounting, pg 1).

Kudler’s has one purchasing agent, the owner, who finalizes the buying for all three stores (Kudler Fine Foods Portal, pg 4). Some products are bought in bulk quantities in an attempt to save money. Kudler’s offers a wide variety of specialized foods, including 16 varieties of apples, 350 varieties of fresh fruits, 250 varieties of cheese, and various wines (Kudler Fine Foods Portal, pgs 6-7). This researcher is of the opinion that buying in bulk quantities may not be the best model for purchasing perishable goods. The stated amount of spoilage per 2-3 day period is 12% (Kudler Fine Foods Portal, pg 8). As...