In search of more agility, Natura invests in logistics

Natura inaugurated yesterday its biggest own storage Center, in the city of Itupeva, São Paulo. According to the company, the hub (name given to the structure for storage of products from the factory, before transport to distribution centers, responsible for delivery to representatives of the brand) is the largest in storage capacity and distribution of cosmetics of Latin America.
There is room for 90 thousand pallets (pallet for cargo handling) and 3.6 million boxes in 35 thousand of constructed area. The company estimates that about 60 trucks leave daily the warehouse to meet the 8 distribution centers in Brazil and to supply international operations in Peru, Argentina, Colombia, Mexico, Chile and France.
Investment in equipment was r $ 73 million. In all, the contribution in the project was even bigger and integrates the r $ 2 billion spent by the company since 2010 for structuring a new model of production and logistics to reduce the environmental impact and expand operations. "The last missing link was the logistical hub," says Josie Romero, Vice President of operations and logistics of Natura. The venture begins fully operational this month.
Will be generated 180 direct and indirect jobs, most of them composed of skilled labor. The storage will be fully automated, using the WMS software, this technology only in two other establishments in Switzerland and Australia.
Natura has a smaller warehouse, manual and outsourced, in Jundiaí (SP). Gradually, the volume is being transferred to Dublin. The new hub is capable of storing up to 2018 all internal manufacturing products of nature and nearby towns partners, says Josie. Its proximity with the airport of Viracopos and the port of Santos, you can accelerate the flow of production.
Natura needs to accelerate the speed of delivery to gain competitiveness, especially in the online operation. The Analyst William Assis, Brazil's Plural Broker says in recent report that the company strives to circumvent the limitations of channels and increase the speed of their response to the increased competition, while dealing with a macroeconomic environment worse. Without a quick response, the company can continue to lose market share to competitors sites more aggressive, as the Apothecary, and for international companies such as Unilever, P&G and l ' Oréal, which are benefiting from the distribution on drugstores and retail types with faster growth.
Natura's net income totaled r $ 119.6 million in the first quarter, up 2% compared to the same period in 2014. Net revenue increased 5.5%, to $ 1.64 billion, with 2.2% indentation in Brazil, but 39.6% advance in the international markets.
The high prices prevented the deterioration of margins and the improvement in cash flow was considered a highlight positive by market analysts for the quarter. The analyst Fabio Monteiro, of BTG Pactual, claims that although results still weak, the company strengthened the focus on performance improvement in Brazil with initiatives such as a new credit policy, the expansion of the Natura (on-line operation), which more than doubled the number of consultants as compared to December, to 32 thousand, in addition to new smartphone payment options and cards. The analyst Alexander Robarts, of Citi, says the consultant sales continue to contract, but in the last three months lower magnitude of 2014.
Tobias Stingelin, of Credit Suisse, believes that the company's managers are in the right direction to focus on initiatives such as new means of payment and segmentation of channels to resume growth in Brazil, but the competitive environment remains difficult, the costs should increase to reflect the exchange rate depreciation, while the tax burden rises. The effort to streamline operations and cut projects that should not be profitable in the short term won praise from analysts. Are sign of the focus on efficiency, also reinforced by the new logistic project.